List of Wichita State University people

The following is a list of notable people associated with Wichita State University, located in the American city of Wichita, Kansas.

University presidents

Fairmount College

• Nathan J. Morrison, 1895–1907[1]
• Henry Thayer, 1907–1914
• Walter Rollins, 1914–1922
• John D. Finlayson, 1922–1927

Municipal University of Wichita

• Harold Foght, 1927–1934
• William M. Jardine, 1934–1949, President of Kansas State University, Secretary of Agriculture, United States Minister to Egypt
• Harry F. Corbin, 1949–1963

Wichita State University

• Emory K. Lindquist, 1963–1968, Rhodes Scholar, historian, President of Bethany College
• Clark D. Ahlberg, 1968–1983
• Warren B. Armstrong, 1983–1993
• Eugene M. Hughes, 1993–1998
• Donald L. Beggs, 1999–2012, President/Chancellor of Southern Illinois University
• John W. Bardo, 2012–2019, Chancellor of Western Carolina University
• Jay Golden, 2020–present, Vice Chancellor of Research, East Carolina University

Faculty and staff

• H. Edward Flentje – professor and former director of Hugo Wall School of Public Affairs; interim president of Emporia State University in 2011
• Albert Goldbarth – only poet to win the National Book Critics Circle award two times (1991 and 2001)
• Bienvenido Santos – fiction, poetry, and nonfiction writer
• Hyuck Kwon - professor in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
• Karen Countryman-Roswurm - professor in the School of Social Work and director of the University's Center for Combating Human Trafficking

Sports

• Marcelino "Chelo" Huerta - head football coach for University of Tampa (1952–1961), Wichita University (1962–1964), Parsons College (1965–1967); first Hispanic coach in College Football Hall of Fame in 2002
• Gregg Marshall – head basketball coach for Winthrop University (1998-2007), Wichita State University (2007-2020); winningest head coach in WSU and Winthrop history with 331 and 194 wins
• Ralph Miller – head basketball coach for Wichita University (1951–1964), University of Iowa (1964–1970), Oregon State University (1970–1989); Basketball Hall of Fame in 1988
• Mike Vespoli – rowing coach for Wichita State University (1974-1977), founder of Vespoli rowing boat manufacturer

Academia

• Dale Allison – biblical scholar, professor at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary[2]
• M. Lee Pelton – current president of Emerson College
• Earl G. Yarbrough – former president of Savannah State University

Business

• Jim Bede – founder of Bede Aviation
• Gary Burrell – founder and CEO of Garmin
• Dan and Frank Carney – co-founders of Pizza Hut
• Vivek Lall – CEO of Reliance Industries
• Phil Ruffin – billionaire businessman, owns Treasure Island Hotel and Casino and Circus Circus Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, attended WSU
• T. Russell Shields - technology entrepreneur, former CEO of Navteq
• Dwane Wallace – former CEO and chairman of Cessna[3][4]

Government

Garner Shriver

• Valerie Baldwin – Assistant Secretary of the Army (Financial Management and Comptroller), 2004–06
• Robert Blackwill – diplomat, senior fellow at the Council of Foreign Relations, lobbyist, author
• Stanley Thomas Counts - United States Navy rear admiral[5]
• Rebecca Ediger – US Secret Service agent
• Walter Orebaugh – Foreign Service Officer
• Femi Pedro – Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Nigeria
• Riley Pitts, US Army – first African-American commissioned officer to be awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor
• Tom Sawyer – member of the Kansas House of Representatives, former House Majority Leader, 1998 Kansas Democratic Party nominee for Governor
• Garner Shriver – eight-term US Representative from Kansas
• Sandiaga Uno - Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy of Indonesia, previously Deputy Governor of Jakarta, businessman

Literature

• Craig Blais – poet
• Paul Dickey – poet
• Omar Khalidi – author, Muslim scholar[6]
• Michael McClure – poet, playwright, songwriter, and novelist
• Janet Peery – short story author and novelist
• Charles Plymell – poet, novelist, and small press publisher

Media

• James Pringle Cook – Western landscape painter
• Erin Dagon-Mitchell – actress, director, playwright
• Shirley Knight – Oscar-nominated actress
• Lance LeGault – actor
• Bob Peak – painter dubbed the "father of the modern movie poster"
• Kate Snodgrass – theatre director and playwright

Music

• Chris Arpad – solo steel pannist
• James Billings – operatic baritone, opera librettist, and opera director
• Karla Burns – Drama Desk Award and Laurence Olivier Award-winning actress and operatic mezzo-soprano
• Joyce DiDonato – opera star
• Kevin Kastning – modern classical composer and guitarist
• Samuel Ramey – opera star
• Michael Sylvester – opera star

Science and technology

• Lincoln LaPaz - astronomer at University of New Mexico, pioneer in the study of meteors
• Adisak Mekkittikul – computer engineer
• Harold G. White – Mechanical Engineer, Aerospace Engineer, and Applied Physicist known for promoting advanced propulsion concepts and is the Advanced Propulsion Team Lead for the NASA Engineering Directorate

Sports

Sportscaster

• Gary Bender – sportscaster

Baseball

Braden Looper

• Casey Blake – Major League Baseball player[7]
• Alec Bohm (born 1996) - baseball player in the Philadelphia Phillies organization
• Joe Carter – Major League Baseball player[8]
• Andy Dirks – Major League Baseball player[9]
• Darren Dreifort – Major League Baseball player with the Los Angeles Dodgers[10]
• Conor Gillaspie – Major League Baseball player for the Chicago White Sox
• Koyie Hill – Major League Baseball player
• Mike Lansing – Major League Baseball player[11]
• Don Lock – Major League Baseball player with the Washington Senators
• Braden Looper – Major League Baseball player for the Milwaukee Brewers and Saint Louis Cardinals
• Pat Meares – Major League Baseball player
• Doug Mirabelli – Major League Baseball player with the Boston Red Sox
• Charlie O'Brien – Major League Baseball player
• Michael Pelfrey – Major League Baseball player for the New York Mets
• Nate Robertson – Major League Baseball player for the Florida Marlins
• Phil Stephenson – former Major League Baseball first baseman, head baseball coach for Dodge City Community College
• Eric Wedge – managed Major League Baseball's Seattle Mariners, head baseball coach at WSU

Basketball

Gal Mekel

• Jamie Arnold – American-Israeli professional basketball player
• Ron Baker – NBA player with the New York Knicks
• Nate Bowman – known as "The Snake"; National Basketball Association player
• Cal Bruton – American-Australian basketball player, NBL Hall of Famer
• Antoine Carr – NBA player[12]
• John Cooper – head coach at Tennessee State University, assistant coach at Auburn University, University of Oregon, and University of South Carolina
• Cleanthony Early – NBA player most recently with the New York Knicks
• Warren Jabali – American Basketball Association player
• Cliff Levingston – NBA player
• Xavier McDaniel – NBA player
• Gal Mekel – Israeli basketball player formerly in the NBA and now with Maccabi Tel Aviv
• Toure' Murry – NBA player most recently with the Utah Jazz
• Joe Ragland (born 1989) - American-Liberian basketball player for Hapoel Eilat of the Israeli Basketball Premier League
• Dave Stallworth – NBA player
• Fred VanVleet – NBA player with the Toronto Raptors
• Gene Wiley – NBA player

Bowling

• Chris Barnes – PBA professional bowler (2007–08 PBA Player of the Year) and official USBC spokesperson
• Clara Guerrero – Colombian bowler
• Sean Rash – professional bowler

Football

• Margene Adkins – National Football League player for Dallas Cowboys, New Orleans Saints and New York Jets
• Sam Adkins – National Football League player for Seattle Seahawks, 1977–81; television personality for Seahawks broadcasts[13]
• Randy Jackson – National Football League player, 1972–74; survivor of the 1970 WSU football team plane crash; coached at Robinson Middle School in Wichita
• Bob Long – receiver for Green Bay Packers
• Scot McCloughan – General Manager of the Washington Redskins
• Bill Parcells – former Head Coach in the National Football League, former Executive Vice President of Football Operations for the Miami Dolphins
• Henry Schichtle – NFL and CFL player

Wrestling

• Paul Wight – professional wrestler known as "The Big Show" (freshman year only)

Other

• Dennis Rader – BTK serial killer[14]

See also

• Lists of people from Kansas

References

1. Men and Women of Kansas; Topeka Capital; 1905. Photo of Nathan Jackson Morrison.
2. "Dale C. Allison, Jr". Contemporary Authors Online. Detroit: Gale. 2011. Retrieved June 10, 2013.
3. "Dwane L. Wallace is Dead at 78, Pioneer Leader at Cessna Aircraft".
4. "Dwane Wallace is Honored".
5. "Obituaries: RADM Stanley Thomas Counts, USN (Ret) '49". The USNA Alumni Association San Diego Chapter Newsletter. The USNA Alumni Association (May): 2&3. 2015.
6. "2004 Press Releases: Dr.Omar Khalidi Visited Ufa and Chelyabinsk and Discussed Muslim Life in America". yekaterinburg.usconsulate.gov. April 18, 2004. Archived from the original on October 5, 2011. Retrieved August 27, 2011.
7. "Casey Blake Stats". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved October 30, 2012.
8. "Joe Carter Stats". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved October 30, 2012.
9. "Andy Dirks Stats". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved October 30, 2012.
10. "Darren Dreifort Stats". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved October 30, 2012.
11. "Mike Lansing". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved October 30, 2012.
12. "Antoine Carr". Basketball-Reference.Com. Retrieved October 30, 2012.
13. "Sam Adkins". database Football. Archived from the original on October 24, 2012. Retrieved October 30, 2012.
14. "Dennis Rader". Biography.

External links

• Wichita State University alumni association