List of Central Washington University people

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

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
 * Jon Kitna — 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 Bantamweight Champion
 * Bryan Caraway — UFC bantamweight fighter, ex-boyfriend of Miesha Tate
 * Matt Hume (business) — retired mixed martial artist; founder and head trainer at AMC Pankration in Seattle, V.P. of Operations at ONE Championship
 * Anthony Hamilton — professional MMA fighter in the UFC's Heavyweight Division '

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
 * Brigadier General Myron N. Dobashi — Commander of the Hawaii Air National Guard
 * General James N. Mattis — 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.
 * 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.
 * Ron Sims — Former Deputy Secretary of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (under President Barack Obama) and former King County Executive.
 * 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).
 * 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. 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
 * Susan Elaine Rancourt — American murder victim. Rancourt's name was given to university's Barto Hall residence hall.
 * David L. Soltz — Provost of the university, 2001-2007
 * 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"