The Missouri Community College Association has selected the Honorable Kacey Proctor as its 2026 MCCA Distinguished Alumni Award winner.
“I am very humbled and honored to be recognized as the 2026 MCCA Distinguished Alumni,” Proctor said. “I want to thank Dr. Wesley Payne and the Three Rivers Board of Trustees for the nomination and for the tireless work they do for our community. Without Three Rivers College, I would not be where I am today. I would further like to extend my gratitude to the MCCA for selecting me for this award.”
Proctor, the Presiding Circuit Judge of the 36th Judicial Circuit, is a respected leader in the Butler County community. He has served his community and country as a prosecutor, a Captain in the National Guard, and now as a Presiding Circuit Judge.
After graduating from Three Rivers in 2005 with an Associate of Arts degree, he went on to earn a bachelor’s degree from Southeast Missouri State University, and a Juris Doctorate from St. Louis University. He was named Prosecutor of the Year in 2022 by the Missouri Association of Prosecuting Attorneys before former Missouri Governor Mike Parson appointed Proctor as Presiding Circuit Judge in 2023.
He is widely recognized for his hard work, professional integrity, fair-mindedness, and leadership in the community.
College wasn’t in the cards originally. When Proctor graduated from high school in 2003, he wanted to join the military. Less than two years prior, America was attacked on Sept. 11, and he wanted to serve his country. Proctor eventually did just that, serving 13 years in the National Guard, deploying to the Middle East, and eventually earning the rank of Captain. Initially, his waiver to join was denied by the military due to torn knee ligaments from football injuries.
“This is a great place to come and explore and figure out what you want to do. Because I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life when I started college here,” Proctor said.
Proctor bought some tools, got a job helping build houses, and took classes part-time as part of the A+ Scholarship program. He recalls skipping a biology exam one day because it was nice outside, and he needed to go pour concrete. The professor should have failed him. Instead, they understood he was trying to make ends meet while attending school. Proctor got a second chance to take the exam, got one of the lowest scores of his college career, but passed the class.
“College wasn’t a priority for me at first. It wasn’t until I took a Philosophy class and fell in love with education,” Proctor said. “The Philosophy classes, along with the English classes, really built a good foundation for law school.”
College was all Proctor wanted to do after that Philosophy class. He sold his tools and started attending Three Rivers full-time.
“Keep going. Don’t stop,” Proctor advised current and future students. “I know sometimes college drags on, and it feels like there is no end. But there is an end, and it will be there before you know it.”
After graduating from Three Rivers in December 2005 with an Associate of Arts degree. He earned a Transfer Scholarship to Southeast Missouri State University, and all his credits transferred seamlessly. Around his junior and senior years, he began exploring law school as a possible career path. He scored well on the LSAT, and coupled with his GPA, he was accepted to law school at St. Louis University and graduated with his Juris Doctorate.
“Nobody in my family had ever gotten a four-year degree. My parents didn’t even graduate from high school,” Proctor said. “After coming to college and being inspired by some of the teachers that were here, it made me want to continue my education and go as high as I could go.”
Proctor recalls a professor telling him in 2004 that they could see Proctor running for public office one day. He dismissed it then, but was reminded of that day when he filed to run for Butler County Prosecuting Attorney in 2018. Now a Presiding Circuit Court Judge, he regularly sees the positive impact Three Rivers can have on those seeking to turn their lives around.
“Three Rivers has programs where you can learn to be an electrician, learn HVAC skills, get a Nursing degree, all at a low cost with quality education. You can pick yourself up with your bootstraps,” Proctor said. “Anything you can do to help someone break the cycle is amazing.”
