Four COCC High Achievers Selected for All-Oregon Academic Team

April 8, 2026

Central Oregon Community College is proud to announce that students Julian Hasbun, Amanda Payne, Colton Sachs and Talia Stockwell have been selected to represent the college on the Oregon Community College Association’s 2026 All-Oregon Academic Team, which honors high achievement from Oregon’s 17 community colleges.

The students will be celebrated at OCCA’s All-Oregon Academic Team luncheon event on Friday, April 17, at Chemeketa Community College in Salem, with community college presidents, board members, faculty and state legislators in attendance.

To earn the distinction, students must demonstrate academic excellence and intellectual rigor combined with leadership and service. A minimum 3.5 cumulative GPA and completion of at least 54 credits is required. Nominated by a faculty member, finalists undergo a review process by the college’s committee for academic excellence.

As an addiction counseling and behavioral health student, Hasbun is setting out to help others by becoming a Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor in Oregon, and also planning to pursue a Qualified Mental Health Associate credential. His goal is to transfer to a university for a bachelor’s degree in either social work or psychology. Hasbun was student lead for a grant-funded, student-led initiative focused on promoting harm reduction and wellness among college students through reducing binge drinking behaviors.

Payne, a nursing student, spearheaded a mentorship program that pairs new COCC nursing students with students in their second year to support learning outcomes. Serving as nursing club president, she is regarded as a natural leader and caring student by her faculty, contributing to the development of regional clinical partnerships. She was named a 2026 New Century Workforce Pathway Scholar — representing all of Oregon — in a national scholarship program sponsored by the Coca-Cola Foundation and Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society.

Sachs, studying physics, was awarded a full scholarship from the University of Oregon’s Oregon Pathways to Industry Research Careers program. In addition to serving as a student member of COCC’s student affairs and sustainability committees, he has conducted a summer engineering internship with a biomedical company, served on the institutional review board for a biomechanical research project at Oregon State University-Cascades and volunteered at Pine Mountain Observatory.

Stockwell, whose passion lies in climate and disaster resilience, is an economics student planning to pursue a bachelor’s degree in planning and public policy. Serving as president of the Associated Students of COCC, Stockwell also volunteers with the Central Oregon Pet Evacuation Team, providing hands-on assistance during area wildfires. They won first prize in COCC’s 2025 Writing Contest in the academic nonfiction category.

Payne and Hasbun, as career and technical education students, will also receive COCC Foundation scholarship support.

The All-Oregon Academic Team is part of the All-State Community College Academic Team program that started in 1994 in the states of Mississippi and Missouri. Today, 38 states host All-State Academic Team programs each year, focusing on two-year colleges and recognizing exceptional students. The OCCA sponsors the annual event, in partnership with the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, which awards some $37 million in scholarships nationally to community college students.

Image: COCC's 2026 All-Oregon Academic Team, clockwise from top left: Julian Hasbun, Amanda Payne, Talia Stockwell and Colton Sachs.