The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education announced today the selection of higher education leader Sean Burrage as the next chancellor of the Oklahoma State System of Higher Education. Burrage will take office as Oklahoma’s 10th chancellor on Dec. 2, 2024, succeeding Chancellor Allison D. Garrett, who has served in the office since November 2021 and will retire Dec. 1.
“Selecting the next Chancellor is a serious responsibility, and I thank the board for their thoughtful deliberation during the national search process,” said State Regents’ Chair Dennis Casey. “We are confident Chancellor-Elect Burrage is the right leader to advance Oklahoma’s state system of higher education as we work to execute the bold strategies in our Blueprint 2030 strategic plan, including aligning programs and services to meet Oklahoma’s changing workforce needs.”
Currently serving as vice president for executive affairs and chief of staff at the University of Oklahoma, Burrage brings a wealth of experience in higher education, the private sector, and the state Legislature. He is a past president of Southeastern Oklahoma State University (SE) in Durant and was managing partner with the Taylor Burrage Law Firm in Claremore. He served two terms in the Oklahoma State Senate, representing Rogers and Mayes counties, during which he served as minority floor leader from 2011-14.
Under Burrage’s leadership, SE streamlined operations, including establishing a shared vice president position with Murray State College, and significantly increased both undergraduate and graduate enrollment. During his tenure as a state senator, Burrage represented approximately 80,000 constituents, authored or co-authored over 50 bills that were enacted into law, and served on several legislative committees and task forces, including the 2008 legislative task force on Oklahoma’s Promise.
Burrage has been a member of numerous boards and committees, including the State Regents’ Blueprint 2030 Strategic Planning Committee and the 2017 Task Force on the Future of Higher Education; Gov. Mary Fallin’s Education Advisory Committee; the Rogers State University Foundation; the University Hospitals Authority and Trust; and the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence. He served as associate bar examiner for the Oklahoma Bar Association and was named among the Best Lawyers in America and as a Super Lawyer, both designations conferred by his peers. He was a Litigation Counsel of America Fellow and an Aspen-Rodel Fellow in Public Leadership. In 2007, he was voted the Higher Education Alumni Council’s “Best Newcomer Legislator of the Year.”
“I am honored to have this opportunity to serve Oklahoma,” said Burrage. “Oklahoma public higher education must continue to adapt to ensure our graduates are equipped with the skills required to thrive in the modern workforce. I look forward to working with the State Regents, our institutions, and other stakeholders to create more educational and career opportunities for all Oklahomans.”
Born in Durant and raised in Antlers, Burrage is a member of the Choctaw Nation and holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting and a juris doctorate from OU. He and his wife, Julie, a Tulsa native and nonprofit consultant, have four sons.
To fill the position, the State Regents established a search committee, comprised of Casey, Regent Jeffrey W. Hickman, Regent Steven W. Taylor and Regent Courtney Warmington, who developed the position profile that outlined the qualifications sought in the next chancellor and conducted the national search.
The State Regents are the constitutional coordinating board for the 25 public colleges and universities of the Oklahoma state system of higher education. The State Regents prescribe academic standards of higher education; determine functions and courses of study at state colleges and universities; grant degrees; request appropriations on behalf of state system institutions; set tuition and fees; approve institutional allocations; upon review, provide final approval of institutional budgets following governing board approval and submission; and manage numerous scholarships and special programs. The nine citizens who comprise the board are appointed to nine-year terms by the Governor and confirmed by the state Senate.