Kansas State University

The K-State Alumni Fellows Program, sponsored by the Alumni Association, the President’s Office and the Deans Council, recognizes alumni who have distinguished themselves in their careers. We are pleased to count Woody Leel (Bachelor in Geology, class of 1966) as a recipient of this prestigious fellowship. Well done Woody!

Since 1983, the program has brought successful alumni back to campus to meet with students and faculty and share their expertise in the classroom and at informal settings.

Fellows are chosen by each college to return as distinguished guests and as mentors, friends and counselors. They are honored in recognition of the ultimate measure of a university – not curricula, facilities or programs, but the quality of its alumni.

Learn more about Woody Leel

Woody Leel, Plano, Texas, is a consulting petroleum geologist and owner of Woodruff G. Leel, Jr. consultancy.  He has worked as a geologist in the oil industry for over 50 years. He served in the U.S. Army Corps. of Engineers. After leaving the military, Leel worked for Getty Oil Company and several small independent oil companies, exploring and developing oil and gas prospects in the U.S.A. In 1988, he moved to Triton Energy Ltd. where he was exploration manager for all international exploration, which included South America, Southeast Asia and New Zealand.

After the discovery of the Cusiana and Cupiagua Fields in Colombia, South America, he became manager of development geology and represented Triton Energy Ltd. in the development of these two fields. He also coordinated and monitored the exploration of the Joint Development Area in the Gulf of Thailand by Carigali-Triton Operating Company. After Triton discovered the Ceiba Field in Equatorial Guinea, West Africa, he was involved in the development geologic operations of that field. Since 2003 Leel has been a consulting petroleum geologist. His current project involves the Cooper and Eromanga Basins of South Australia. Leel is a certified petroleum geologist with the American Association of Petroleum Geologists, a former board member of the Society of Independent Professional Earth Scientists, a licensed professional geoscientist in Texas and a member of the Dallas Geological Society. Leel is an annual participant in Plano elementary school career days.

Leel supports K-State through the Department of Geology’s Advisory Council. He served as chair of the Advisory Council Executive Committee from 2007-08, 2009 and 2017-18. In 2018, he and his wife, Lynne, established the Woody and Lynne Leel – Vanier K-State Family Scholarship.

Leel earned a bachelor’s degree in geology in 1966.