Building a K-State engineering legacy

By Grant Guggisberg

Ray Buyle has spent the majority of his life as a K-Stater.

As part of the Buyle family honored as K-State’s 2021 Family of the Year, he’s an alumnus and has spent most of his career living and working in Manhattan, Kansas, and the surrounding area. It’s not a surprise, then, that he is actively building up the GE Johnson Department of Architectural Engineering and Construction Science, where he has spent the last 17 years.

As head of the department since 2017, Buyle has worked tirelessly to increase the resources with which his department operates and to give students the best opportunity for success, both at K-State and in the workforce after they graduate. The fruits of that labor are easy to see walking through the west side of Seaton Hall, where an $8.5 million renovation was completed in 2023. But Buyle’s investment goes well beyond the physical infrastructure of the department.

Set up initially in 2018, Buyle created a fund with the KSU Foundation to help recruit and retain department faculty who were underpaid relative to similar positions at other institutions. The plan was to invite companies to invest in the fund and directly pair them with students through company visits to campus, creating opportunities for engagement between the two groups and helping students land jobs and internships. Buyle did the manual work of arranging these visits and coordinating the program, which has proven to be a successful endeavor for all involved.

“Ray’s hard work over the years has been extremely beneficial to both the college and the department,” said Matt O’Keefe, dean of the Carl R. Ice College of Engineering. “So many of the extra things he’s done have helped build up and reinforce the faculty, which is especially important for a group that brings so much valuable industry experience.”

Buyle’s accomplishments were recognized by the university community earlier this year when he received the Presidential Award for Outstanding Department Head from K-State president Richard Linton. The award noted his remarkable commitment to projects beyond academia, including his annual volunteer service trip over spring break with students that focuses on rebuilding or repairing facilities damaged by natural disasters.

To honor Buyle’s service to the department, the KSU Foundation is renaming its fund after Buyle to help recruit and retain faculty. If you would like to donate to this fund, contact the engineering development team at engineering@ksufoundation.org or visit the giving page.