Dave Cutler

Dave Cutler, a 1960 DeWitt graduate, earned 16 varsity letters in football, basketball, baseball and track, making him arguably one of the school’s best athletes.  His disciplined work ethic and leadership resulted in accomplishments in both academics and athletics.  As the football team’s quarterback and captain, he received All-League and All-State recognition during his junior and senior seasons.  On the basketball court, Cutler again served as the team’s captain, earning All-League and All-State honors as a junior and a senior.  As a senior, he led the Panthers to a Class D District Championship and scored 38 points and 26 points respectively in two regional games.  He also set DeWitt’s single-game scoring record with 42 points, a record that stood for 25 years.  In the spring, Cutler participated in two sports, earning four varsity letters each in baseball and track.  After graduating in the top five of his class, Cutler earned an academic scholarship and continued his athletic career at Olivet College.  Cutler was a member of the 1960 and 1961 football teams and was named Most Improved Player in the one season he played basketball for the Comets.  As the starting quarterback his sophomore year, he helped guide Olivet to a 5-0 start, and he ranked tenth nationally for total offense before injuries ended his athletic career.  The Cutler Student Event Center, named in his honor, serves as the central hub for the Olivet College athletic department.  After college, Cutler became a highly accomplished operating system designer.  He went to work for Microsoft in 1988 and has been there ever since.  He is universally acclaimed as the key technical mind behind the Microsoft Windows operating system and considered one of the top programmers in the world.  Cutler holds over 20 patents, received the 2007 National Medal of Technology and Innovation from President Bush and received the inaugural Microsoft Technical Recognition Award for Career Achievement.