List of Central Washington University people explained

This page lists notable students, alumni, and faculty members of Central Washington University.

Sports

Football

• Adam Bighill — CFL Linebacker of the BC Lions
• Keith Gilbertson — NCAA football coach formerly of the University of Idaho, University of California, Berkeley, University of Washington. Played football for the Wildcats for one season in 1967, later graduating in 1971^[1]
• Jon Kitna^[2] — NFL quarterback of the Seattle Seahawks, Cincinnati Bengals, Detroit Lions, and Dallas Cowboys. Led the team to an NAIA Div. II championship in 1995
• Greg Olson — NFL offensive coach, as of February 2022 for the Los Angeles Rams
• Mike Reilly — CFL quarterback of the Edmonton Eskimos, Formerly of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Green Bay Packers, St. Louis Rams, Seattle Seahawks

Baseball

• MLB pitcher Dave Heaverlo — San Francisco Giants, Oakland Athletics, Seattle Mariners
• MLB outfielder Billy North — Chicago Cubs, Oakland Athletics, Los Angeles Dodgers, San Francisco Giants

Basketball

• Joe Callero — Head men's basketball coach at California Polytechnic State University and former head coach of Seattle University

Other

• Miesha "Cupcake" Tate — former Strikeforce Women's Bantamweight Champion, former Ultimate Fighting Championship^[3] Bantamweight Champion
• Bryan Caraway — UFC bantamweight fighter, ex-boyfriend of Miesha Tate^[4]
• Matt Hume (business) — retired mixed martial artist; founder and head trainer at AMC Pankration in Seattle,^[5] V.P. of Operations at ONE Championship
• Anthony Hamilton — professional MMA fighter in the UFC's Heavyweight Division^[6] '

Government or military

• Ann Anderson (politician) — member of the Washington State Senate
• Bryan Christopher Black — US Army Special Forces soldier killed in action during the Tongo Tongo ambush in Niger on October 4, 2017.
• Brigadier General John R. Croft — Chief of Staff of the Wisconsin Air National Guard
• Duane Davidson — Washington State Treasurer^[7]
• Brigadier General Myron N. Dobashi — Commander of the Hawaii Air National Guard
• General James N. Mattis^[8] — United States Marine Corps. Class of 1972. Commander of the United States Central Command 2010–2013. Secretary of Defense under President Donald Trump.
• Dorothy M. Metcalf-Lindenburger — astronaut assigned to the crew of STS-131, her first expedition.^[9]
• Douglas Albert Munro — only member of the United States Coast Guard to have received the Medal of Honor, the U.S. military's highest decoration. (October 11, 1919 – September 27, 1942)
• Craig Olson, Lieutenant Commander, Navy Blue Angels — Demonstration #5 Lead Solo Pilot. A Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet instructor pilot at Naval Air Station Lemoore. Decorations include: Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, three Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medals, and various personal and unit awards.^[10]
• Ron Sims — Former Deputy Secretary of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (under President Barack Obama) and former King County Executive.^[11]
• Doug Sutherland — former Washington State Commissioner of Public Lands

Business

• Christine M. Day — CEO of athletic sportswear company Lululemon Athletica
• Stephen L. Nelson — author of "Quicken for Dummies" and 150 other books in the series, over 5 million copies sold worldwide. Named "most prolific computer book writer" by Wall Street Journal
• Shelley Powers — computer book author and technology architect
• Raymond Conner — former vice chairman of The Boeing Company and president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes
• Jon Browning — CEO, Global Mentorship Initiative

Other

• Ry Armstrong — musician and actor
• David L Boushey — American stuntman and the founder of the United Stuntmen's Association, the International Stunt School, the Society of American Fight Directors, and is a member of The Hollywood Stuntmen's Hall Of Fame.
• Dr. David Boyd — trauma surgeon, and developer of Regional Trauma Emergency Medical Services (EMS).^[12]
• Mary Jo Estep (1910-1992) — teacher, sole survivor of the Battle of Kelley Creek
• Sadistik (Cody Foster) — Hip Hop Artist
• James L. Gaudino — president of Central Washington University from 2009 to 2021
• W. Hudson Kensel — historian of the American West.
• Quigg Lawrence — Anglican bishop
• Daniel D. McCracken — prominent computer scientist.^[13] He was a Professor of Computer Sciences at the City College of New York, and the author of over two dozen textbooks on computer programming.
• Craig T. Nelson — star of sitcom Coach^[14]
• Susan Elaine Rancourt — American murder victim. Rancourt's name was given to university's Barto Hall residence hall.^[15]
• David L. Soltz — Provost of the university, 2001-2007^[16]
• Allan Byron Swift — Emmy Award-winning broadcaster, served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1979 to 1995. He represented the Second Congressional District of Washington as a Democrat.
• Brian Thompson — known for his work in action films and television series
• Wanz — featured singer on Macklemore and Ryan Lewis hit song "Thrift Shop"

Notes and References

1. Web site: Player Bio: Keith Gilbertson . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20081031231114/http://gohuskies.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/gilbertson_keith00.html . 2008-10-31 . 2010-01-18 . Gohuskies.cstv.com.
2. Web site: Central Washington University. U.S. News & World Report.
3. Web site: Miesha Tate UFC Bio. 2014-01-01.
4. Web site: Bryan Caraway UFC Bio. 2014-01-01.
5. Web site: Matt Hume MMA Bio. 2014-01-01.
6. Web site: Ready to Rumble: Redmond's Hamilton wants to grab CageSport heavyweight title - Redmond Reporter. redmond-reporter.com. 28 November 2012. 2016-12-04.
7. Web site: Benton County treasurer sets sights on the state job. Tri-City Herald. 2016-11-09.
8. News: Morrison. Sid. Op-ed: State has gone from passing to failing on higher education in past 50 years. The Seattle Times. September 8, 2012.
9. Web site: 1975-05-02 . Astronaut Bio: Dorothy Metcalf-Lindenburger (06/2010) . 2012-08-20 . Jsc.nasa.gov.
10. Web site: LCDR Craig R. "Merlin" Olson – #5 Lead Solo . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110303112025/http://www.blueangels-usn.org/05_05olson_bio.html . 2011-03-03 . 2012-10-12.
11. News: Sims leaving HUD, says he's not running for governor. The Seattle Times. 2017-10-13.
12. Boyd DR. Cowley RA. 1983. Comprehensive regional trauma emergency medical services (EMS) delivery systems: the United States experience.. World Journal of Surgery. 7, (1). 1. 149–157. 10.1007/BF01655923. 6837054. 22681971. free.
13. News: Lohr. Steve. Daniel D. McCracken, Expert on Computers, Dies at 81. New York Times. August 12, 2011.
14. Web site: TV.com – Craig T. Nelson Biography . Tvguide.com . 2010-01-18.
15. Web site: Barto Hall garden dedicated to student who was killed in 1974.
16. Web site: CWU Provost Accepts Position as New President of Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania . Central Washington University . August 13, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160304051441/http://www.cwu.edu/~web/cwu_news/News.php?ArticleID=1259 . March 4, 2016 . dead . November 13, 2007.