Alumni Hall of Fame Inductees Announced

Goodwell, Okla. — The 2018 Panhandle Alumni Weekend including the Annual Meeting and Banquet of the Panhandle State Alumni Association is set for the weekend of April 13-14, 2018. You are invited to attend.

A full weekend is planned starting Friday, April 13, with the Grand Opening of the University House in the morning, a complimentary lunch for alumni at noon in the Student Union, an art show and vocal performance in the auditorium followed by an Alumni special discounted dinner at Hunny’s in Guymon that evening. Saturday events will begin with check-in, browsing and visiting session starting at 10:30 a.m. in the Oklahoma Panhandle State University Noble Center. Faculty and students will be there to visit with alumni about current campus activities. There will be a luncheon banquet, Hall of Fame Induction and the annual meeting at noon in the Noble Center. For more information or to reserve a seat for the Saturday banquet, please contact the Alumni Office at 580.349.1390 or you may purchase your tickets online at alumni-banquet.opsu.edu. Saturday banquet tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door. Student tickets are available for $5.

Hall of Fame Honorees this year are Dr. David Bryant and Jim and Sherry Quimby. They will be inducted into the Alumni Ambassador Hall of Fame during the luncheon banquet. Full bios can be viewed below.

Dr. David Bryant
Dr. Bryant was named the president of Panhandle State in 2003. He immediately confronted several major challenges at Panhandle State, including developing constituent and community support, renovating campus infrastructure, and engaging the Hispanic community. Bryant gave the university a new sense of direction and renewed sense of purpose with his leadership and dedication to the campus.

Dr. Bryant’s holistic approach was key to stabilizing and improving the institution and advancing the school’s stature as a major contributor to the social and cultural life of the region and as an essential ingredient enhancing northwest Oklahoma’s economic development potential.

Bryant started with a very basic approach to revitalizing the physical campus: making it beautiful. Dr. Bryant emphasized landscaping and attention to detail, replaced sidewalks and campus signage, paved formerly-dirt parking lots, and planted gardens all with the goal of making the university a pleasant, inviting environment in which students could live, work and study. Bryant made significant contributions in support of affirmative action, including paying strict attention to supporting and following equal opportunity guidelines in the hiring of faculty and staff, and advocating for the recruitment of women into undergraduate programs and administration.

Bryant also reviewed academic offerings and established new programs to reinvigorate students’ learning and interest. He developed several new associate degree programs including emergency medical technician, fire protection safety, and wind energy and maintenance training. These programs dovetailed with community needs and the industrial and energy sector growth in the Oklahoma panhandle.

Since the beginning of his academic career, Bryant has published dozens of articles on range management topics. He was a frequent presenter at academic conferences in his academic field, and consulted on allotment management plans in Arizona as a range extension specialist.

Dr. Bryant met his wife Diane on a blind date while working one summer for the U.S. Forest Service in La Grande, Ore. Diane was a loving partner and helpmate during their life together at universities throughout the western U.S. Diane passed in May, 2017. Their marriage spanned over 51 years and resulted in a daughter Amy, son John (passed) and two grandsons, Ryan and Tyler. Amy, Ryan, and Tyler all attended Panhandle State. Amy now teaches Spanish at the high school in Waldport, Ore.; Ryan is working on his PhD. in plant genetics at OSU in Stillwater; and Tyler is working on his MBA at West Texas A&M University.

Dr. Bryant’s educational history goes back to Lower Columbia College, where he earned an associate degree in zoology. He continued his studies at Washington State University, receiving his bachelor’s in range management. He pursued his master’s in range science at Texas Tech, and earned his doctorate in range management from the University of Arizona. Bryant’s administrative background in higher education began almost immediately after receiving his doctorate, when he served as chairman of the Department of Range Management at Humboldt State University in California from 1973-76. From 1982-87, he served as the head of the Range Resources Department at the University of Idaho and then as the Dean of the College of Agriculture and Biological Sciences at South Dakota State University from 1987-98. In 1998, Bryant became the Vice Provost as well as the Dean and Director of the extension service at Montana State University and served in this capacity until being named President of Oklahoma Panhandle State University in 2003.

Dr. Bryant said, “Serving the students, faculty, staff and community members of Oklahoma Panhandle State University as the President was the highlight of my working life. Over the years, I have worked with a number of dedicated faculty and staff members and wonderful students who recognize, as I do, the importance of having a fine public university located in the Panhandle of Oklahoma. Together we have accomplished a lot, and we have put this University on firm footing for the future.”

Jim and Sherry Quimby
Sherry Quimby was born in Muskogee, Okla. and lived in southwest Kansas for a number of years before her family moved to Dalhart, Texas where she graduated from high school in 1968. Sherry attended Oklahoma Panhandle State University after her high school graduation. She completed the two-year clerical program and was a member of the Aggie Cheer Team. In addition, Sherry worked for Oscar Williams and Jack Begley at the Field House.

Upon completion of the clerical program, Sherry began working at the Texas County District Attorney’s Office before moving to Nampa, Idaho and working for the Canyon County Clerk. In 1973, Sherry moved to Dodge City, Kan. where she worked for the Ford County Court Clerk. Her son Daniel Kimsey was born in Dodge City in 1977 before she moved back to Dalhart and worked at an accounting firm. After a couple of years in Dalhart, Sherry moved to Oklahoma City and worked for General Business Services as a bookkeeper for 27 accounts. In 1992, Sherry moved to Guymon and worked at the Bank of the Panhandle for 22 years before she retired.

Sherry is currently serving as the President of the Guymon Chamber Ambassadors and was named the 2014 Ambassador of the Year. Sherry is a member of the Victory Memorial United Methodist Church and she serves on the Pastor Parish Relations Committee, the Administrative Council and volunteers at the clothing ministry at the church. Sherry is a founding board member of Oklahoma Panhandle Partners that helps raise funds for cancer patients in Cimarron, Texas, and Beaver Counties.

Jim Quimby was born and raised in Hugoton, Kan., on a small farm and ranch. He graduated from Hugoton High School in 1972 as an Outstanding Ag Student. Throughout high school, he won medals livestock judging in FFA. In addition, during his junior and senior years he served as an FFA officer, first as Sentinel and then President. Jim served as the District FFA Treasurer for both those years. He also won the District Beef Judging Contest and District Dairy Judging Contest as a senior.

Jim attended Garden City Community College (GCCC) graduating in 1974 with an Associate’s Degree. As a student at GCCC, he went to numerous Livestock Judging Contests and had the privilege of being on a very successful team. He began taking classes at Panhandle State in the Fall of 1974 and graduated in 1976 with a bachelor’s degree in Animal Science. Jim was on the Livestock Judging Team at Panhandle. Personally, his best performance was at the Houston Livestock Show where he was the second high individual in sheep and tenth high individual overall.

Jim said, “I had a lot of fun at OPSU and many fond memories of professors, friends and acquaintances. Being a small college you were able to make friends everywhere on campus no matter whether they were involved in ag, athletics, business, fine arts or rodeo. The Block & Bridle Club used to show a lot of OPSU angus and Hereford cattle at the Panhandle Exposition in Guymon every fall. Several of us worked a lot of hours to prepare for that by halter breaking and showing the cattle and sheep. One of my favorite things has always been supporting OPSU and attend sporting and other events as time allows, especially the tailgating for OPSU football the past 2 years.”

After graduation, Jim began work as a herdsman for Kramer Herefords at Hugoton, Kan. through a connection made at the Panhandle State Bull Test. After a decision to sell the cowherd at Kramer’s, Jim was involved in a farming and ranching partnership for the next ten years in Boise City before going to work for the Farmers Home Administration in Boise City in November 1985. Jim got transferred to Beaver the next year when the County Supervisor there passed away, and was able to move to Guymon as the County Supervisor, in May 1990. In September of 1996, Jim got the opportunity to go to work for Bank of the Panhandle in Guymon and has been there for the last 21 years as a loan officer.

“It has been an amazing opportunity to be able to work for a Bank that is locally owned and be surrounded by wonderful employees each day. Bank of the Panhandle believes in giving back to the community they serve, both monetarily and physically. We have numerous employees that are part of organizations, boards and volunteer their service. Being able to give back to the community has enabled me to be a good volunteer and involved in numerous projects. This satisfied my need to help people and make this community a better place to live.”

Jim was a member of Class XI of the Oklahoma Ag Leadership Program, a two-year program that is culminated by a 10-day international trip. He traveled to Holland, Poland, and Germany in what was the trip of a life time. Jim is a founding board member of Oklahoma Panhandle Partners, which helps raise funds for cancer patients in Cimarron, Texas, and Beaver Counties. Additionally, he has been a member of the Guymon Chamber of Commerce where he served 2 terms as president and is a Guymon Ambassador. He also is a long-time member of the Rodeo committee and served as Chairman in five separate years.

Jim also served as past Chairman and a current board member of Artist Incubation that oversees the “All Fired Up Gallery” in Guymon where Panhandle State art students show and sell their artwork. He was in Leadership Guymon in 1997, was named the Guymon Ambassador of the Year in 2008, and was named Volunteer of the Year in 2006, 2012 and 2016. He was named Citizen of the Year by the City of Guymon in 2016. Jim is a past President of the Great Plains Bankers Association and a long-time member of the Guymon Elks Lodge. He is a member of the Victory Memorial United Methodist Church and currently serves on the finance and administrative council committees at church. Jim has one daughter, Lacey and her husband Bobby, and three grandchildren, Rainie, Reise, and Ryleigh. Jim and Sherry have been happily married for over 21 years and have lived in Guymon over 27 years.

“I consider all the Oklahoma Panhandle, adjoining counties in Kansas, and north part of Texas as home and believe this is the best place that anyone could live. The friendliness and hospitality of the people in this area is second to none. One of my favorite sayings is that you can never have enough friends, you never know when you might need one.”