After graduating with his degree in physical education, Elmer F. Leonard spent many years as a teacher and administrator, eventually retiring in 1983 as superintendent of schools for the East Valley School District in Moxee.

The Leonards estimate that 18 close relatives have attended college in Pullman, beginning with the first Elmer Leonard, who started in 1915 but was killed in World War I prior to graduating. His name is engraved on the WSU Veterans Memorial, a lasting tribute to the first in a long family tradition of Cougs.