Catching up with Kirk Schulz – K-State’s 13th president shares memories from his time in Manhattan
By Tim Schrag '12
The K-State Wildcats will take on the Washington State University Cougars in football on Sept. 12 at Bill Snyder Family Stadium. Ahead of the game, we caught up with Kirk Schulz who served as the 13th president of K-State from 2009-2016. He recently retired from Washington State as its 11th president.
What were some of your favorite K-State memories?
I have many K-State memories of our time in Manhattan. It is hard to know where to start - but winning the 2012 Big 12 Football Championship with Collin Klein ’11, ’19 as our quarterback was near the top. We also remember the overall magical 2012-13 year when we won men’s championships in football, men’s basketball and baseball as well. The atmosphere in Bramlage when Sandstorm was rocking the house when we beat KU. Finally — being able to participate in some major renovations to Bill Snyder Family Stadium, the construction of the Indoor Practice Facility, a large addition to the Engineering Complex and building a new Business Building are all lasting projects and memories.
At the end of the day - it was really about the people at K-State - faculty, staff, students and alumni. A university is all about pulling exceptional people together and watching what they can do.
What are you doing in retirement?
I retired as president of Washington State University in 2025 after nine years. WSU is really K-State’s long-lost twin. Like K-State it is a land-grant university located in a quintessential college town — a faculty, staff and student body with a “can do” attitude.
I work with CSA Search and Consulting [link to: https://csasearch.consulting/] on athletic and academic searches as a part-time position — and spend the remainder of my time with Scouting America and the Tri-Cities Angel Alliance. I also serve on a couple of boards and have continued to RV around the west. I am as busy as I want to be!
Have you had any encounters with K-Staters recently?
In short - YES! Two occasions come to mind. My wife, Noel, and I did a Viking Christmas Cruise in Germany in December 2024 going to different Christmas markets. The river cruise ship had about 150 or so passengers - so not very large. One morning I was fixing a cup of coffee and one of the other passengers asked if I was Kirk Schulz — the former K-State president! He and his wife were K-Staters and currently lived in Wichita.
The second was a couple of years ago in Spokane, Washington. I was in a Lululemon store looking at some pants — and I heard “President Schulz!” It was a K-Stater from the Salina campus I had worked with - and she had relocated to Washington.
It is always fun to run into K-Staters — and I am sure I will have many more interactions in the future.