Inspirational Women Administrators

Cleo Gillis Hester

(Registrar, 1927-1960)

Cleo Gillis Hester was the first full-time Registrar hired at Murray State Teachers College, now known as Murray State University, serving from 1927 until her retirement in 1960. Previously, Hester received her Bachelor and Masters degrees from the University of Kentucky. She then taught in public schools from 1915 to 1927. During those years, Hester held administration positions at institutions in Oklahoma and Kentucky before finally settling at Murray State. Cleo Hester retired from the Registrar's Office in 1960, leaving her long career behind. In 1967, the new residential building on the university’s campus was named Hester Hall in honor of Hester’s contribution to the university. Hester became an active member of the community, served as a founding member of the Business and Professional Women’s Club of Murray. She authored the historical work: A History of the Gillis Family of Anderson County, Kentucky. Hester passed away on June 26th, 1980.

Vivian M. Hale

(Administrative Secretary, 1945-1986)

Vivian M. Hale was a near lifelong resident of Murray, Kentucky. She was the daughter of Ruth Skinner Hale, a traditional homemaker, and Leone Hale, an employee of Kentucky’s State Highway Department and a real estate agent. She attended Murray State in 1942 as a student, less than a year after the United States joined World War II. Due to the war effort, there were not many men on campus apart from those enrolled in the Navy Pre-flight Training Program. Hale attended school year-round, including summer classes, allowing her to graduate in only three years with a degree in Accounting and Bookkeeping in 1945. Hale then left Kentucky to teach business and clothing at a school in Shelbyville, Illinois. Upon returning to Murray, Hale worked in Murray State's Registrar’s Office, later transitioning toward the blossoming Continuing Education program on campus. Before her retirement, she worked as an Administrative Secretary, keeping records for Murray State University.

Ruth E. Cole

(Nursing Department Chair, 1954-1977)

Dr. Ruth Elizabeth Cole was an active chairperson for the Nursing Department at Murray State Teachers College from 1954 to 1977. In 1939, Dr. Cole enrolled at the Teachers College, where she was able to partake in a three-year nursing program under the National Youth Administration. Dr. Cole transferred to Nazareth School of Nursing at St. Joseph Hospital in 1941, earning her nursing diploma in 1944. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Dr. Cole joined the Red Cross, returning as a 4a nurse and eventually a 1a nurse by 1945. Dr. Cole joined the Nurse Navy Corps and was called into active duty near the end of the World War II. After the war, Dr. Cole accepted a position as one of the first faculty members of the newly founded Nursing Department at Murray State Teachers College. In the summers of 1948 and 1949, Dr. Cole attended the University of Texas, where she received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing Education. Not long after, Dr. Cole was called back into active duty during the Korean War in 1951, where she served on many stateside Naval Bases and served aboard the U.S.S. Darby. Afterwards, Dr. Cole attended Columbia University, where she received a Masters of Arts in Nursing Education before returning back to Murray State in 1954 as the newly appointed chairperson of the Department of Nursing. In 1973, Dr. Cole officially received her Doctorate in Higher Education from Indiana University, and was named Nurse Educator of the Year by the Kentucky League of Nursing in 1977. In 1978, she accepted a position at Harding University, where she stayed until 1980. Dr. Cole later returned to Murray State University to serve as the Program Director for the Murray-Calloway County Hospital Hospice program before retiring in 1981. The Murray State University Nursing Auditorium was named in honor of Dr. Cole in 1988, and in 1994 she was inducted into the Alumni Association Nursing Hall of Fame at the University of Texas. Though Dr. Cole passed away on November 6th, 2014, her hard work and dedication to the past and future nurses will never be forgotten.

Kala M. Stroup

(President of Murray State University, 1983-1990)

Kala M. Stroup was the first female president at Murray State University, serving from 1983 to 1990. Her appointment was doubly significant as she was the first female president to serve full-time in a Kentucky higher education institution. Through her term, Stroup opened the National Scouting Museum of the Boy Scouts of America on Murray State’s campus. She also represented Murray State University at the Washington office of the American Association of Colleges and Universities during her final year working at Murray State. Not only was Stroup the first female president at Murray State University, but she was also the first woman to lead the Presidential Council of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC), a college athletic conference that competes in the NCAA Division I. During her time in the OVC, she was recognized by the conference as a pioneer in Title IX compliance, which helped create equality among men and women’s sports, especially on the collegiate level.

Nita Head

(Women’s Tennis Coach and Administrator, 1967-1982)

Nita Head was the Women's Tennis Coach at Murray State University between the years of 1967 and 1982. Head founded the women’s tennis program back in 1967 with a budget of only $300, establishing results that far exceeded expectations. She led the team to undefeated seasons in 1967, 1968, and 1973, with '67 and '68 being her first two seasons with the program. Head’s team would end up compiling a 204-67 win/loss record, which was enough for a .753 winning percentage. In 1979, Nita Head was named the Murray State University Athletic Coordinator For Women. In 1981, Head’s team finished with a school record of 30 victories, including a Kentucky Women’s Intercollegiate Conference (KWIC) Tournament at the University of Kentucky, as well as having been named the KWIC Coach of the Year for the Ohio Valley Conference. Head retired from her coaching and administrative duties in 1982, and was the second woman to be inducted into the Murray State University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1987. Nita Head passed away on March 11th, 2017.

Ora Kress Mason

(Nursing Educator and Board of Regents Member, 1928-1934)

Ora Kress Mason was a physician, nursing educator, and hospital administrator who served on the Murray State Board of Regents from 1928 to 1934. Born in Flint, Michigan, Mason (then Kress) attended the Women’s Medical College of Pennsylvania, earning a degree in the medical field. After her marriage to Dr. William Mason, she moved to Murray, where she became the superintendent of the nursing school. She also practiced medicine at Murray Surgical Hospital, later named Mason Memorial Hospital. Known to the community as ‘Dr. Ora’, Mason continued to run the hospital’s nursing school for several years until it was sold in 1947. During that time, she was also a delegate to the 1924 Republican National Convention, ran unsuccessfully for an open House seat in Congress, retained the presidency at the Murray Woman’s Club, and served at Murray State's Board of Regents. In 1957, Dr. Ora retired from active practice and later died on September 20, 1970. Murray State honored her work by naming their new nursing education building, Mason Hall, in the namesake of her and her husband.