For Immediate Release – Lawton, OK, Sept. 13, 2004
Cameron history professor to deliver lecture
on preservation of Lawton’s Central Junior High
Cameron University professor Dr. Sally Soelle will speak on the importance of preserving Lawton’s Central
Junior High School during a 7 p.m. lecture at the Museum of the Great Plains on Thursday, Sept. 16.
Soelle’s interest in the history and future of the building, which was originally constructed to serve as the
community’s high school, stems from her participation on the Lawton Community Task Force on Central
Junior High School, which met for a period in the mid 1990s to determine the future of the historic structure.
As a member of the Oklahoma Historical Society’s Preservation Committee, Soelle has been committed to
preserving similar historically important structures in Oklahoma communities. Her presentation is
particularly timely, since Lawton citizens last month voted to fund part of Central’s restoration.
Soelle, who is dean of the School of Liberal Arts and a member of Cameron’s history faculty, received a
Ph.D. in history at the University of Oklahoma and has been at Cameron since 1987. She taught a range
of courses in Western and Southwestern history, and developed and taught a museum studies minor in the
history and government department before embarking on a career in administration, first as associate dean
and currently as dean.
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soelle, ADD ONE
In addition to traditional scholarship, Soelle has been a consultant and/or research historian for a museum
exhibit on the economic history of Southwest Oklahoma at the Museum of the Western Prairie in Altus, an
exhibit on the Cross Timbers ecosystem at the Museum of Natural History at OU, and an exhibit of
Oklahoma Indian art for the Fruitlands Museums in Harvard, Mass.
Soelle has also served on several boards of directors in Lawton and at the state level, including the Lawton
Arts and Humanities Council, the Lawton Heritage Association and the Oklahoma Historical Society, where
she chairs the publications and membership committee and is a member of the preservation committee.
She has addressed numerous organizations in this region on topics in Western history, Cameron history,
New Deal art and women’s history.
The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, the CU Alumni Association and the City of Lawton have recognized
her for contributions as a faculty member and a citizen of the humanities.
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PR#04-197
Editors and Broadcasters: For details, contact CU Government & Community Relations at 580.581.2211. A
photo of Dean Soelle is available upon request.