George Esper

George J. Esper was inducted into the inaugural College of Applied Human Sciences Hall of Fame in 2025. He was previously inducted into the College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences Hall of Fame in 1988 and was named CPASS Outstanding Alumnus in 1995.

Born in Uniontown, Pa., in 1932, Esper graduated from West Virginia University in 1953 with a degree in physical education. While at WVU, he managed the freshman football team, worked in the Sports Information Office, and began his journalism career writing for The Daily Athenaeum. In his senior year, he also served as a sportswriter for the Morning Herald in Uniontown.

Esper joined The Associated Press in 1958 and spent more than 30 years with the organization, earning the distinguished title of Special Correspondent in 1981—an honor held by few in the AP’s history. Much of Esper’s most notable reporting took place in Indochina during the fall of the South Vietnamese government. He was one of very few journalists who remained in the country after its collapse. Over the course of ten years, he covered Allied forces in the Vietnam War and later took part in U.S. peace missions in Bosnia and Somalia. In addition to his international work, Esper also reported on major domestic stories, including Hurricane Andrew and the Great Midwest Floods.

In 2000, Esper returned to West Virginia University to teach writing, reporting, and journalism history at the Perley Isaac Reed School of Journalism. That same year, he was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University. He retired in 2010.

Esper’s contributions were recognized through his induction into the WVU Academy of Distinguished Alumni and the presentation of The President’s Award from the Press Club of Western Pennsylvania. He also authored The Eyewitness History of the Vietnam War.

Esper passed away on February 2, 2012.