Osbourne A. McKay Headshot

2020 Distinguished Alumni Award

College of Liberal Arts

Osbourne A. McKay

BS '88

Deputy Commissioner, Correctional Industries, Compliance Standards & Diversity New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision 


Deputy Commissioner Osbourne McKay has executive oversight for Correctional Industries, Compliance Standards & Diversity for the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS). He has served in this capacity since August 2008, where he oversees the Department’s inmate manufacturing employment program (Corcraft), the Accreditation Program, Bureau of Internal Controls, and the Office of Diversity and Inclusion. In 2012, he appointed the agency’s LEAN Champion to promote continuous process and improvement. 
 
Deputy Commissioner McKay has been married for 28 years to the former Lisa L. Jackson and they have one daughter, Amber, age 23, a graduate at Cornell University. A native of Jamaica, West Indies; Deputy Commissioner McKay, his parents and six siblings immigrated to Albany, New York in 1974. In 1988 Deputy Commissioner McKay received his Bachelor of Science degree with Honors in Criminal Justice and Business Management from RIT, in Rochester, New York. Considering a career in law and government, in 1990, Deputy Commissioner McKay spent a summer semester at Albany Law School studying state and local government and labor law. In 1994, Deputy Commissioner McKay received a master’s degree in urban and environmental studies and management and technology from the Lally School of Management at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York. 
 
Deputy Commissioner McKay began his state service in 1987 as an intern with the Department of Transportation (DOT) in Albany. Deputy Commissioner McKay transferred to DOT’s Regional Office in Rochester for his senior year in college. Upon graduation from RIT, Deputy Commissioner McKay spent a short time with the State’s Attorney General’s Office in the Bureau of Consumer Fraud. 
 
In 1990, Deputy Commissioner McKay joined the Governor’s Budget Division, and subsequently transitioned to the Workers Compensation Board. In 1997, Deputy Commissioner McKay joined a statewide Occupational Medical Firm where he spent two years as a Senior Executive. 
 
Deputy Commissioner McKay is a member of numerous civic organizations, a devoted member of the Macedonia Baptist Church, a Life Member of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., and a board member of the George Biddle Kelley Educational Foundation. He is also a sponsor and Cabinet Member for Big Brother-Big Sisters of the Capital Region, a member of the American Correctional Association, New York State Minorities in Criminal Justice, and also the New York State Corrections and Youth Services Association. Deputy Commissioner McKay is the recipient of numerous awards including, but not limited to: The Alpha Men of Distinction Award, the New York State Minorities in Criminal Justice Berthlynn J. Terry Founder Award for Justice, Equity & Fairness and the RIT School of Criminal Justice Contributions to Justice Award. Deputy Commissioner McKay has a strong commitment to his faith, family, and community. He enjoys traveling, golfing, mentoring, promoting fairness and equity and affording everyone an opportunity to be their very best.

2020 Distinguished Alumni Award

College of Liberal Arts

Osbourne A. McKay

BS '88

Deputy Commissioner, Correctional Industries, Compliance Standards & Diversity New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision 


Deputy Commissioner Osbourne McKay has executive oversight for Correctional Industries, Compliance Standards & Diversity for the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS). He has served in this capacity since August 2008, where he oversees the Department’s inmate manufacturing employment program (Corcraft), the Accreditation Program, Bureau of Internal Controls, and the Office of Diversity and Inclusion. In 2012, he appointed the agency’s LEAN Champion to promote continuous process and improvement. 
 
Deputy Commissioner McKay has been married for 28 years to the former Lisa L. Jackson and they have one daughter, Amber, age 23, a graduate at Cornell University. A native of Jamaica, West Indies; Deputy Commissioner McKay, his parents and six siblings immigrated to Albany, New York in 1974. In 1988 Deputy Commissioner McKay received his Bachelor of Science degree with Honors in Criminal Justice and Business Management from RIT, in Rochester, New York. Considering a career in law and government, in 1990, Deputy Commissioner McKay spent a summer semester at Albany Law School studying state and local government and labor law. In 1994, Deputy Commissioner McKay received a master’s degree in urban and environmental studies and management and technology from the Lally School of Management at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York. 
 
Deputy Commissioner McKay began his state service in 1987 as an intern with the Department of Transportation (DOT) in Albany. Deputy Commissioner McKay transferred to DOT’s Regional Office in Rochester for his senior year in college. Upon graduation from RIT, Deputy Commissioner McKay spent a short time with the State’s Attorney General’s Office in the Bureau of Consumer Fraud. 
 
In 1990, Deputy Commissioner McKay joined the Governor’s Budget Division, and subsequently transitioned to the Workers Compensation Board. In 1997, Deputy Commissioner McKay joined a statewide Occupational Medical Firm where he spent two years as a Senior Executive. 
 
Deputy Commissioner McKay is a member of numerous civic organizations, a devoted member of the Macedonia Baptist Church, a Life Member of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., and a board member of the George Biddle Kelley Educational Foundation. He is also a sponsor and Cabinet Member for Big Brother-Big Sisters of the Capital Region, a member of the American Correctional Association, New York State Minorities in Criminal Justice, and also the New York State Corrections and Youth Services Association. Deputy Commissioner McKay is the recipient of numerous awards including, but not limited to: The Alpha Men of Distinction Award, the New York State Minorities in Criminal Justice Berthlynn J. Terry Founder Award for Justice, Equity & Fairness and the RIT School of Criminal Justice Contributions to Justice Award. Deputy Commissioner McKay has a strong commitment to his faith, family, and community. He enjoys traveling, golfing, mentoring, promoting fairness and equity and affording everyone an opportunity to be their very best.