Department of History
Faculty

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McCombs, Virginia
Professor/Dir Honors Program/Hist Chair
T: 405-208-5457
F: 405-208-5200
PCAS WC 229
vmccombs@okcu.edu

Education:
B.A., M.A., Ph.D., University of Oklahoma

Background:
Dr. Virginia McCombs is Professor of History and Chair of the History Department at Oklahoma City University. She was born in Oklahoma City and earned both undergraduate and graduate degrees in History from the University of Oklahoma and also did graduate work at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. As an undergraduate Dr. McCombs received the Gold Letseizer Medal as the outstanding senior woman at the University of Oklahoma. During graduate school she was awarded graduate assistantships at both the University of North Carolina and the University of Oklahoma, and she won the Gordon Christensen scholarship award while pursuing her Ph.D. She has published several biographical essays, including a World War II memoir co-authored with her mother and twice has been selected as a member of Who's Who Among America's Outstanding Teachers. ?In 2005 she attended the Oxford Round Table on the topic of Women’s Leadership.
Prior to her arrival at Oklahoma City University in 1990, Dr. McCombs was a faculty member at St. Mary’s College in Leavenworth, Kansas, and Casady School in Oklahoma City. She also has been an instructor at the University of Oklahoma and numerous colleges in both the Kansas City and Oklahoma City areas.

In addition to her work with the History Department, Dr. McCombs serves as Director of the University Honors Program. In 2005 she served as President of the National Collegiate Honors Council, an organization that represents over 800 Honors programs and colleges across the United States. She currently is a member of the editorial board for the journal, Honors in Practice. Dr. McCombs also has been president of the regional Honors organization, the Great Plains Honors Council.

In 2000 Dr. McCombs was named History Day District Coordinator of the Year in the State of Oklahoma and she has served as the Associate Dean of the Petree College of Arts and Sciences. She has taught Politics, Economics, America, and the Future in Oklahoma City University’s international programs since 1995.

Beyond the classroom and away from her administrative responsibilities, Dr. McCombs enjoys reading, traveling, scuba diving and spending time with her family--a wonderful husband, three adult children (who she proudly declares are all gainfully employed), two rescued Huskies and an adopted grand-dog.