President – Jim Gillett (
Bond 215, Iron Phi Bond 215, B.S. Mathematics 1986 ESU, M.Ed. Counseling 1993 WSU, Higher Learning Commission Certification 2023)

Jim joined Phi Delta Theta in the Spring of 1984 after turning down two prior bids. He was also heavily involved in campus organizations including RHA, Kappa Kappa Psi (Symphonic Wind Ensemble 1 semester & Marching Band all 4 years), Spurs (Treasurer), and Xi Phi (VP & chair of the Bloodmobile). After serving his first active semester as Historian, Jim was elected President for Spring ’85, then Vice-President for both Fall ’85 and Spring ’86.

Now wrapping up his 39th year teaching mathematics at Cheney High School, Jim shows no signs of slowing down. He taught 7th and 8th grade math for 33 years before expanding his role to include Calculus I, College Algebra, and Statistics as an adjunct faculty member with Kansas Newman University, alongside intro to engineering and middle and high school robotics. Among his proudest educational achievements: his robotics teams have qualified for Worlds six of the last eight years, competing in both Louisville and Dallas; he created and ran “Home Sweet Box” at Cheney Middle School, where each year for seven consecutive years students raised funds for the homeless and spent one night sleeping in boxes; and he is entering his 40th year coaching MS boys basketball (39th as head coach) with a remarkable record of 440-185, numerous league championships and runner-up finishes, and the 2015 KBCA Middle School Coach of the Year award..

Jim was named the Kansas Engineering Society Teacher of the Year in 1993, received the Wichita Chamber of Commerce Teaching Award in 1995, and presented at the National Council of Teachers of Math convention in Boston that same year. Most recently, in 2023, he was named one of two Region Four (Wichita area) Secondary Level Semi-Finalists in the Kansas Teacher of the Year Competition, finishing behind only that year’s state winner. Over the years, he has spoken at four state and local math and education conventions and served as the math expert on the North Central Accreditation team for Goddard Discovery/Challenger Middle School.

In fraternity service, Jim served as VP on the committee that re-started the alumni club in the early ’90s, then created and chaired the original “No Caddy Classic” golf tournament from ’94–’98. He later re-chaired the event — along with the Phi Newell 3-on-3 tournament — when it was renamed in honor of Oliver Samuel (’12–’15), and is extremely proud it continues in its various forms today. When his son Matt enrolled at ESU as BN532, Jim joined the alumni association as activities chair, serving from ’13 to 2015. He was elected VP of the Merchant Housing Corporation on July 21, 2012, and has served as President from 2014 to the present.

Beyond education and fraternity life, Jim worked as a native grass seed buyer from ’06–’18, purchasing and harvesting seed across several states, contracting with ranchers, and overseeing daily operations involving up to three combines and a crew of six. He and his family also founded Paintbrush Properties, LLC, buying, renovating, and selling homes in Cheney since 2013.

Jim wishes to thank Ks Eps for not giving up on him — a sentiment he extends equally to his wife, Shari Bolton, who also attended ESU and was an active member of the Azure Stars. He credits his accomplishments to her unwavering support. Jim and Shari have two children: Ashley (ESU ’13, Chi Omega), who teaches English at Cheney High School just a few classrooms away from her dad; and Matthew (BN532, ESU ’18, B.S. Criminal Justice), a Staff Sgt. in the Army at Fort Hood, Texas, married to Taylor and father to Emery Kaye, 6, and Odin Taylor, 3 months.