Colby Community College
COLBY — The 2025 Colby Community College Hall of Fame class has been announced and includes All-American distance runner Wesley Banguria Kiptoo, former instructor and administrator Gracemary Melvin, and former livestock judging coach Dr. Don Woodburn.
A reception will be held in their honor beginning at about 5:30 p.m. at the conclusion of the men's basketball game on Saturday, Dec. 6, at the Colby Event Center. A brief ceremony is also scheduled at halftime of the men's game.
The CCC Hall of Fame was established in 2012. In June each year, a committee selects individuals or couples who have made substantial contributions to the college through their personal time, effort, and interest, or have significantly impacted the lives of others after being part of Colby Community College. Previous inductees are listed at www.colbycc.edu/hof.
Wesley Banguria Kiptoo
One of the most decorated CCC athletes ever, Kiptoo has continued to shine on the national stage, building on an unprecedented distance running career that began with the Trojans in 2018.
During his two seasons in Colby, the Eldoret, Kenya, native was named the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) National Male Athlete of the Year after winning every race of the 2019 season, including the NJCAA Division I National Championship, where his 22:55 finish made him just the fourth runner in NJCAA history to break 23 minutes. He also captured individual titles at the Region VI Championships, the Fort Hays State Tiger Open, the Emporia State Invitational, and the Colorado College Invitational.
Kiptoo earned four USTFCCCA National Athlete of the Week honors, the most ever by a Colby athlete, and set an 8K course record of 23:11.8 at Fort Hays State. His accomplishments helped elevate CCC’s cross-country program to consistent national prominence.
Following Colby, Kiptoo transferred to Iowa State University and became one of the most accomplished runners in program history. He won the 2021 NCAA Indoor 5,000-meter national championship, earned seven All-America honors, and captured seven Big 12 Conference titles across cross country and track events. Kiptoo also finished second overall at the 2021 NCAA Cross-Country Championships and helped Iowa State to a runner-up team finish, its best in nearly three decades.
Twice named the Big 12 Men’s Cross-Country Runner of the Year, he graduated in 2021 holding school records in the indoor 3,000 and 5,000 meters, as well as the outdoor 10,000 meters and steeplechase.
That same year, he launched his professional career by signing with HOKA NAZ Elite in Flagstaff, Ariz. Since joining the team, he has captured several major road-race titles, including three consecutive Pittsburgh Half Marathon crowns, victories at the Cherry Blossom 10-Mile Run, and the Philadelphia Distance Run. Along the way, he has recorded personal bests of 1:00:34 for the half-marathon and 2:08:54 for the full marathon.
In October 2025, Kiptoo distinguished himself as the second American finisher at the Chicago Marathon.
Gracemary Melvin
Melvin began her career at CCC in the summer of 1970 as an instructor in the business department. Over the next two decades, she became a respected member of the faculty known for her professionalism, compassion, and dedication to students.
In 1991, she was appointed dean of instruction, a position she held until her retirement in 2005. During her tenure, the college expanded healthcare offerings and added academic programs, including dental hygiene, and oversaw a period of enhanced classroom technology. She played a significant role when CCC joined five other western Kansas community colleges to cost-share and form EduKan, one of the nation's first consortia to offer online education.
“I loved working at CCC as an instructor and the academic dean,” Melvin said. “The people I worked with were great. The students were wholesome, for lack of a better word, and the town was very supportive.”
In recognition of her outstanding service to the College and the community, Melvin was awarded the Colby Community College Honorary Associate Degree in 2011.
A native of the Midwest, Melvin earned her undergraduate degree from Eastern Michigan University and a master’s degree from Fort Hays State University. Outside of education, she was co-owner of a Hallmark store in the early 1970s and later The Golf Shop in the late 1980s.
She has also been a licensed real estate professional since 1983. She continues her career with Coldwell Banker Executive Realty, where she is a member of the National Association of Realtors, Kansas Association of Realtors, and Western Kansas Association of Realtors, and serves as chair of the Professional Standards Committee.
Deeply involved in her community, Melvin participates in several groups within St. Nicholas of Myra Catholic Church and continues to contribute to professional and civic organizations in western Kansas.
Family remains the cornerstone of her life. She is the mother of three sons, Lonnie, Lucas (and his wife Angela), and Len, and the proud grandmother of eleven. Her family now includes four great-grandchildren, with another expected soon. “I could talk about them forever,” she said, “so I will leave it at that.”
Dr. Don Woodburn
Arriving at Colby Community College in 1972 as an instructor of agriculture and coach of the livestock judging team, Woodburn led CCC students to national prominence during his six-year tenure.
Under his leadership, Colby teams participated in approximately 10 regional and national shows per year, winning first place in 28 contests over a six-year period.
“I had the opportunity when I was at Colby to work with the finest young livestock people in the world,” Woodburn said. “I was the coach, but they were the judges.”
After leaving Colby in 1978, Woodburn’s career spanned more than four decades across higher education and the livestock industry. He served as an animal science instructor and judging coach at Auburn University (1978-79) and Colorado State University (1979-81). After relocating to California, he was dean of agriculture at Los Angeles Pierce College (1981-83); vice president of Lassen Community College (1983-89); and professor of animal science at California State University, Fresno (1989-91).
Woodburn also led the California Pork Company as chief executive officer from 1991 to 1995, before returning to academia as dean of the University of Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture (1995-2004).
He later served as president of Coffeyville Community College (2004-2011) and Dodge City Community College (2011-2016). During his presidential tenures, he raised and contributed millions of dollars for institutional growth and student success. In recognition of his impact at Dodge City, the Student Union was renamed the Don Woodburn Student Union.
A native of Roswell, N.M., Woodburn’s early passion for agriculture was evident long before his professional success. In eighth grade, he was named the outstanding history student and exhibited the grand champion steer at the New Mexico State Fair. As a high school student, he won the state FFA public speaking contest, was named the outstanding chapter member, and served as a student Rotarian.
While attending community college, he exhibited four champion steers at national shows, including the Arizona National, Cow Palace, Great Western, and San Antonio Livestock Show. He continued his education at Oklahoma Panhandle State University, where he participated in football and livestock judging, earning top individual honors at several national competitions. Notably, he achieved high individual honors in cattle, sheep, and oral reasons at the Houston competition, and a top-10 individual finish at the National Finals in Chicago.
Throughout his career, Woodburn judged livestock shows for close to 20 years at regional and national levels and served as president of the National Community and Junior College Livestock Judging Coaches Association, where he authored the organization’s bylaws. He was also part of a research team at Colorado State University that contributed to changes in USDA feeder cattle grading standards.
His honors include the University of Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture Exemplary Service Award, Garden City Community College Outstanding Student Service Award, and recognition for his leadership in higher education and community development. A longtime member of Rotary International and multiple chambers of commerce, Woodburn also served as president of the South Platte Chamber of Commerce.
Woodburn and his wife, Cathy, have been married for 55 years and are the proud parents of four children, 13 grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.