FSCC to Honor Outstanding Alumnus, Award Honorary Degree at May 15 Commencement
Fort Scott Community College will honor two distinguished individuals, Christian Goedde and Jack Gilmore, during its commencement ceremonies on May 15, along with a special reception at 10:30 a.m.
Goedde, named the college’s Outstanding Alumni, will serve as the keynote speaker for the 9 a.m. graduation ceremony. A proud alumnus of Fort Scott Community College, Goedde attended in 1994–1995 where he played baseball under Coach Jeff Curtis. During his time at Fort Scott, he also served in the United States Army Reserves as a Military Intelligence Analyst.
He went on to serve a total of eight years in the Reserves, including a deployment to Panama, where he was assigned to the Directorate of Intelligence on a counter-drug mission with Special Operations Command South.
Following his military service, Goedde earned a bachelor’s degree in speech communications from Texas State University. He married his college sweetheart, Melissa Jacobs, in 2002. The couple has two daughters, Tess, who attends the Savannah College of Art and Design in Savannah, Georgia, and Lila, who plans to attend Concordia University Texas, where she will play softball.
Goedde currently serves as CEO of RSC Riverside Construction, a construction and real estate development company based in Houston, Texas. His wife, Melissa, is an elementary physical education teacher of 24 years and is nearing retirement.
Gilmore, who has been named the Honorary Degree Recipient, will speak at the 12 p.m. graduation ceremony. He built a 40-year legacy at Fort Scott Community College from 1968 to 2008, following nine years of teaching at Fort Scott High School. Over the course of his 49-year career in education, he taught biology, zoology, botany, anatomy and physiology, and ecology, impacting thousands of students.
Raised on a farm in Overbrook, Kansas, Gilmore developed a strong work ethic through farm responsibilities and 4-H activities. He later earned a Bachelor of Science in Biology from the College of Emporia and a Master of Science in Biology from Emporia State University, continuing his education through graduate coursework at several institutions.
Gilmore and his wife, Jean, have three children and six grandchildren. The couple will celebrate their 67th wedding anniversary this summer. Now semi-retired, Gilmore continues to live on his family’s 150-year-old farmstead, where he remains active in caring for cattle.
A joint reception honoring Goedde and Gilmore will take place at 10:30 a.m. on campus, providing an opportunity for the community to recognize their achievements and contributions.
Fort Scott Community College invites the public to attend the commencement ceremonies and reception in celebration of the Class of 2026 and these two honorees.