Dr. John Wesley Raley (1903–1968) was an author, president of

Oklahoma Baptist University Oklahoma Baptist University (OBU) is a private Baptist university in Shawnee, Oklahoma. It was established in 1910 under the original name of The Baptist University of Oklahoma. OBU is owned and was founded by the Baptist General Convention of ...

for 27 years, a member of the

Oklahoma Hall of Fame The Oklahoma Hall of Fame was founded in 1927 by Anna B. Korn to officially celebrate Statehood Day, recognize Oklahomans dedicated to their communities, and provide educational programming for all ages. The first Oklahoma Hall of Fame Induction Cer ...

and of the

Oklahoma Higher Education Hall of Fame Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New M ...

. Dr. Raley moved to

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

in 1931, when he became pastor at First Baptist Church of Bartlesville. In 1932 Dr. Raley was elected as chairman of the board of trustees of

. In 1934 Dr. Raley was elected as president of the University, beginning the longest tenure of any OBU president. Dr. Raley received an

honorary doctorate An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hon ...

from OBU in 1935. In 1958 he was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame and later inducted into the Oklahoma Higher Education Hall of Fame. In 1961 Dr. Raley resigned his position as president of

, citing reasons of health. He was elected chancellor, serving until his death in 1968.

Major Accomplishments

Among the buildings constructed during Dr. Raley's presidency were: *Brotherhood Dormitory-In 1999 it was renamed Agee Residence Center in honor of OBU's 13th President Bob R. Agee and his wife, Nelle. *Mrs. W.S. Kerr Dormitory *Thurmond Hall *Clark Craig Fieldhouse-Building torn down on January 26, 2006. RAWC(Recreation and Wellness Center) currently occupies the location of former building *President's Home *Raley Chapel, OBU's signature building on the Shawnee campus Raley Chapel in Winter

Raley Chapel on Oklahoma Baptist University campus

Family

Dr. Raley and his wife Helen Thames Raley had two children, John Wesley Raley Jr. and Helen Thames Raley Weathers. John Wesley Raley Jr. served in the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage o ...

and later became the mayor of Ponca City, Oklahoma, then served several years as a judge. The Raleys had three grandchildren, John Wesley Raley III, Rob Raley, and Sandra Nash as well as five great grand children: Chris, Laura, Kate, William and Wesley.

References

OBU Archives

{{DEFAULTSORT:Raley, John Wesley 1968 deaths Presidents of Oklahoma Baptist University Year of birth unknown 1903 births 20th-century American writers 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American academics