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.

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.

University presidents

John Bardo, 13th president of WSU

William Jardine, 6th president of WSU

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 (WU)

• Harold Foght, 1927–1934
• William M. Jardine, 1934–1949, previously was Professor/Dean (1910-1918) and President (1918-1925) of Kansas State University, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture (1925-1929), and U.S. Minister to Egypt (1930-1933)
• Harry F. Corbin, 1949–1963, previously was Associate Professor of Political Science at WU

Wichita State University (WSU)

• 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, responsible for major building expansion at WSU
• Jay S. Golden, 2020–2020,^[2][3] Vice Chancellor of Research, East Carolina University
• Richard Muma, 2021–present, served as interim president from September 2020 until he became president on May 6, 2021

Academia

• Dale Allison – biblical scholar, professor at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary^[4]
• 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^[5][6]

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^[7]
• Rebecca Ediger – US Secret Service agent
• Jeff Longwell - 102nd Mayor of Wichita, Kansas
• Walter Orebaugh – Foreign Service Officer
• Femi Pedro – Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Nigeria
• Riley Pitts – US Army soldier, 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
• Matt Schlapp — political activist, lobbyist, and chairman of American Conservative Union
• Garner Shriver – eight-term US Representative from Kansas
• Sandiaga Uno – Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy of Indonesia, previously Deputy Governor of Jakarta, businessman
• Brandon Whipple - 103rd Mayor of Wichita, Kansas
• Lily Wu - 104th Mayor of Wichita, Kansas
• David Younger - member of the Kansas House of Representatives

Literature

• Craig Blais – poet
• Paul Dickey – poet
• Omar Khalidi – author, Muslim scholar^[8]
• 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"
• Rosé – drag queen
• 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
• Matt Wilson (jazz drummer) - Jazz drummer

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; Advanced Propulsion Team Lead for the NASA Engineering Directorate

Sports

Sportscasting

• Gary Bender – sportscaster

Baseball

Braden Looper

• Casey Blake – Major League Baseball player^[9]
• Alec Bohm (born 1996) – baseball player in the Philadelphia Phillies
• Joe Carter – Major League Baseball player^[10]
• Andy Dirks – Major League Baseball player^[11]
• Darren Dreifort – Major League Baseball player with the Los Angeles Dodgers^[12]
• Conor Gillaspie – Major League Baseball player for the Chicago White Sox
• Koyie Hill – Major League Baseball player
• Mike Lansing – Major League Baseball player^[13]
• Don Lock – Major League Baseball player with the Washington Senators^[14]
• 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 (born 1975) – 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 (born 1961) – NBA player^[15]
• 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
• Cleo Littleton — First-team All-MVC (1952–5) and AP Honorable mention All-American (1954-5)
• Xavier McDaniel – NBA played
• Gal Mekel (born 1988) – 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 Holon of the Israeli Basketball Premier League
• Landry Shamet – NBA player with the Phoenix Suns
• Grant Sherfield (born 1999) – basketball player in the Israeli Basketball Premier League
• Dave Stallworth – NBA player
• Fred VanVleet – NBA player with the Houston Rockets
• Gene Wiley – NBA player

Bowling

• Chris Barnes – PBA bowler (2007–08 PBA Player of the Year), USBC spokesperson
• Clara Guerrero – PWBA bowler
• Francois Lavoie – PBA bowler
• Jake Peters - PBA Bowler
• Sean Rash – PBA bowler
• Rocio Restrepo – PWBA bowler

Football

• Margene Adkins – NFL player for Dallas Cowboys, New Orleans Saints and New York Jets
• Sam Adkins – NFL player for Seattle Seahawks, 1977–81; television personality for Seahawks broadcasts^[16]
• Jim Bausch — running back, All-American and member of College Football Hall of Fame (also Olympic Decathlon champion, 1932) 1927 then transferred to University of Kansas
• Jumpy Geathers – defensive tackle, played for the New Orleans Saints, Washington Redskins, Atlanta Falcons, and Denver Broncos, won two Super Bowls
• Randy Jackson – NFL 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, Atlanta Falcons, Washington Redskins and Los Angeles Rams; three-time NFL champion (1965, 1966, 1967)
• Scot McCloughan – General Manager of the Washington Redskins
• Bill Parcells – Pro Football Hall of Fame coach, played linebacker at WSU
• Henry Schichtle – NFL and CFL player
• Nelson Toburen – linebacker for the Green Bay Packers; two-time NFL champion (1961, 1962)

Wrestling

• Paul Wight – professional wrestler known as "The Big Show", played basketball at WSU

Crime

• Eyad Ismoil – a perpetrator of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.
• Dennis Rader – BTK serial killer^[17]

See also

• Biography portal
• Kansas portal
• Lists portal

• Lists of people from Kansas