By Wendy Sledd
Special to Leader-Press
KILLEEN, TX (October 14, 2026)--For Les Ledger, teaching business is about more than profits and balance sheets. It is about people, service and helping students build successful futures.
Ledger joined Central Texas College in 1995 as a full-time instructor in the Business Administration, Paralegal, Hospitality and Real Estate Department. Today, as a department chair, he draws on decades of business experience and a family legacy of education to prepare students for success.
“I love education and teaching that business is the engine that drives the American economy,” Ledger said.
His path to the classroom began long before his teaching career. Ledger started working in his family’s businesses at age 9, sweeping floors, dusting furniture, delivering furniture, hauling hay, milking cows and helping manage rental properties. He later served as president of Ledgers Inc. from 1968 to 2007 while his wife, Linda, managed daily operations.
With his parents aging and his sons preparing for college, Ledger decided to pursue full-time teaching, a career that allowed him to share his business knowledge while supporting his family.
At CTC, he quickly discovered that his favorite part of the job wasn't limited to the classroom.
“Enjoyment working here comes from the people with whom I work,” Ledger said. “Platonically, I love every one of them!”
He credits his colleagues with helping him serve students and takes pride in the strong relationships among full-time faculty, adjunct instructors and staff.
Ledger's leadership philosophy is rooted in lessons from his parents, Lovett and Lea Ledger, who taught him that “the purpose of business is service.” He also embraces a principle attributed to former Southwest Airlines leader Herb Kelleher: “The business of business is people.”
“Take care of your people, and they take care of the customer,” Ledger said, describing the philosophy that guides his department as his faculty works to serve the needs of students both in and outside the classroom.
For Ledger, the greatest measure of success comes when former students apply what they learned at CTC to their own careers and businesses. He points to entrepreneurs in Copperas Cove and Killeen who have built businesses after taking his classes.
Beyond the classroom, Ledger has supported student organizations dedicated to entrepreneurship, free enterprise and social responsibility, including Students in Free Enterprise, Enactus and CTC's award-winning Net Impact organization.
His commitment to service also extends to his personal life. Ledger lives near Copperas Cove on family farmland once owned by his maternal grandparents, Martha and Leslie Thompson. Their history connects him to families displaced when Camp Hood was established, adding another layer to his longstanding ties to Central Texas.
After decades in business and education, Ledger continues to measure success by the people he serves and the opportunities he helps create.
His message to students remains grounded in the same principles that shaped his career: build strong relationships, serve others and use business knowledge to make a difference.
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