Leaders in Service

Leaders in Service Hall of Fame for the Social Sciences

The Southwestern College Leaders in Service Hall of Fame for the Social Sciences was established in 2009 in order to honor alumni and friends who have shared significant achievements in the social sciences as represented by the fields of political science, history, religion, philosophy, leadership, anthropology, and psychology.

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2025 Leaders in Service Hall of Fame Ceremony

Inductees

Greg Cole `10

Ina (Turner) Gray

Thad Leffingwell `92

2025 Inductees

Greg Cole `10 graduated from Southwestern College with a Master’s Degree in Leadership in addition to an Executive Leadership Certification. Greg Cole served in the United States Army and National Guard from 1975 to 1999. After retiring he became the Director of Training and Operations for numerous Fortune 500 companies including Pizza Hut and Burger King. Greg co-authored the state’s first food service curriculum. He also co-authored the military doctrine for effective time management. In 2010, he created Good Life Company, LLC, he serves as CEO and Chairman, and in 2014 it became a national distributor. Greg is a Certified Civic Leadership Coach of the Kansas Leadership Center. Cole serves on the Board of Trustees for Southwestern College, Board of Directors for the Kansas Grown Farmer's Market and Past President of the Heartland Black Chamber of Commerce. Greg is a frequent guest speaker and motivational facilitator throughout the state of Kansas. Greg can be seen frequently on PBS Network for several television programs.

Ina Turner Gray earned her Master of Arts from Scarritt College, Nashville in religious education and church history and she completed postgraduate work in sociology at the University of Hawaii.

While it was her husband Dr. Wallace Gray’s position as a member of faculty that brought the family to Winfield, Ina also got to work, spending her professional life developing learners and building community.

For twenty years she served as the Executive Director, Pi Gamma Mu, International Honor Society in Social Science, retiring in 1996. She offered thoughtful and creative leadership to Pi Gamma Mu – a society that has offered enrichment to thousands of faculty and students. Notably Pi Gamma Mu was founded at Southwestern College in 1924 by Dean Leroy Allen.

While on a teaching trip with Wallace in Hiroshima, Ina started tutoring Japanese students, helping them with the English language. When she returned to Winfield she continued tutoring English to Japanese and Chinese students at Southwestern.

She co-taught the Pacific Area Seminar which took 22 Southwestern students to Hawaii during the 1966 airline strike. Ina also co-taught January terms at Southwestern on Hawaii, Japanese language, and culture. An advocate for the preservation of history, Ina worked many hours in Deets Memorial Library on campus as the first Director of Archives of the Central Kansas Methodist Conference. She also managed the First United Methodist Church Winfield archives and helped organize the Cowley County Historical Museum archives, where she also served on the board from 2002 to 2012.

These days, Ina continues to help others learn and grow, as she enjoys spending her time reading to the Little Vikes preschoolers at Cumbernald Village.

Dr. Thad Leffingwell `92 graduated from Southwestern College and went on to earn a master’s degree from the University of Arizona in 1995 and a doctoral degree from the University of Washington in 2000. He then joined the Oklahoma State University faculty and is now a Professor of Psychology. His proudest accomplishments are the 15 graduate students he mentored on to doctoral degrees and amazing careers. He has held several leadership positions at Oklahoma State including Director of Clinical Training, Department Head, and currently Assistant Dean in the College of Arts and Sciences. Dr. Leffingwell won the Beverly Thorn award for Distinguished Service from the Council of University Directors of Clinical Training. He also earned both the Regents Research and Regents Teaching awards from Oklahoma State University. As a first-generation college graduate from a rural community in Kansas, Dr. Leffingwell fell in love with the magic of college campuses at SC and continues to find ways to offer the same life-changing opportunities to students.

Criteria

Candidates for induction into the Southwestern College Leaders in Service Hall of Fame will be considered for induction based on a high degree of professional achievement in the social sciences. A high degree of achievement is one in which the exceptional skills and abilities of the candidate are exemplified by, but not limited to, the following measures: tenure, leadership position, board membership, publications, graduate degrees, firm partnership, and sacrificial service. Candidates must have been a student at Southwestern College or have given service to Southwestern College.

Nomination

Nominations will be received from alumni and friends of the college. In order for a nomination to be formally accepted, a completed nomination form must be submitted to the nominations committee. Nominations will be sought via college publications and communications. Once an individual is formally nominated, that name will remain eligible for selection for induction for five years. After that time has passed, if not selected, the given individual must be formally nominated again to be considered for selection. The nomination pool will be managed and maintained by the alumni department.

Leaders in Service Hall of Fame Nomination Form

Selection

Determined by Social Sciences Division.

Number of Inductees

The number of inductees for the inaugural year will be seven, of which a maximum of three may be inducted posthumously. After the inaugural year of the Southwestern College Leaders in Service Hall of Fame for the Social Sciences, the maximum number of inductees per year will be three. A maximum of one posthumous inductee is allowed per year.

Members of Leaders in Service Hall of Fame for the Social Sciences

Southwestern College alumni who have made significant achievements as leaders in service are recognized annually in this hall of fame. Beginning with the inaugural year of 2009, many notable Moundbuilders will be honored by having their names placed here.

2025 Inductees
Greg Cole `10
Ina (Turner) Gray
Thad Leffingwell `92

2024 Inductees
Paul Bean `85
Claudia Geer (retired faculty)
Willie Williams `68

2023 Inductees
Velma Grier ‘53
Joe Sherman ‘72
David Nichols ‘60

2022 Inductees
Dr. Wallace Gray
Mona Klein '74
Rev. James Reed '64

2019 Inductees
C. Michael Lennen ’67
Stephanie Sharp Bruyn ’98
J. Michael Medina ’72

2018 Inductees
General Dean Strother '29
Mary (Briscoe) Jarvis '87
Dr. Kelly Bender '68

2017 Inductees
Theodore S. "Ted" Hresko, class of 1973
Roy L. Smith, class of 1908
Richard B. Wilke, Bishop in Residence

2016 Inductees
Randy E. Eshelman '07/'09
Barbara (Johnson) Isely '64
Mabel Madeline Southard, class of 1899

2015 Inductees
F. David Froman '68
Sandra Gasca-Gonzalez '94
John William "Bill" Todd '61

2014 Inductees
Bishop Bruce Blake
Harry H. Dunn '23
Pedro M. Esquivel '62

2013 Inductees
Scott C. Hecht '90
Carl M. Metzger '71
Victor C. Sherring '41

2012 Inductees
Larry D. Eason '55
Eugene L. "Gene" Lowry '55
J. Myrne (Richards) Roe '58

2011 Inductees
M. Kristine (Lange) Cheatum '59
Forrest J. Robinson '44
James M. "Jim" Shultz '61

2010 Inductees
Billie A. Day '60
Lyman S. Johnson '28
Hon. C. Darnell Jones II '72

2009 Inductees
A. J. "Jack" Focht '57
Hon. Loy W. Henderson '15
Carl E. Martin '60
M. Kim Moore '71
F. James "Jim" Robinson '80
Edward H. Salm
Hon. David H. Swartz '64