I grew up in Dodge City, and after completing two years at the Community College, I transferred to Ft. Hays State as a Junior. I completed my undergraduate degree in Business Administration (1971) and an M.S. in Business (1973) with an emphasis in accounting. Upon graduation, my wife and I moved to Kansas City where I was employed as a CPA in public accounting for 12 years and also in the banking business for the next 27 years. At the time of my retirement from banking, I was serving as the CEO of a multi-bank holding company, headquartered in Kansas City, which owned six banks and operated in multiple states throughout the U.S. During that time, I was privileged to serve two terms on the board of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. I spent the next five years working part-time as a consultant working with local attorneys in a litigation support role as well as consulting on various real estate and bankruptcy matters. I currently live in Olathe with my wife Sharon, also a FHSU graduate with a B.A. in Psychology (1970) and M.S. in Psychology (1972). We have two sons and one daughter (ages 39, 38 and 36) who live in the area and work in the professions of public accounting, law and marketing.
What do you now do for a living? How did you end up choosing this career path?
Recently, I fully retired and plan on spending time with our family, including our two grandchildren, serving as a volunteer including the finance committee and other activities with our church and as a member of the Advisory Board of the FHSU Robbins Banking Institute. I chose the public accounting career path because I wanted an opportunity to learn about different types of businesses and thought that as a CPA, I would always be able to find a good job doing something that I would enjoy.
Why did you choose to attend FHSU?
The decision to attend FHSU was an easy one for me. I liked the friendly, down-to-earth atmosphere and tuition and living costs were affordable. During college, I was in the Kansas Army National Guard and assigned to a unit in Dodge City, so being close to home for monthly travel to Guard meetings was also a plus.
What are your favorite memories from your time as a student?
I enjoyed the opportunity to meet new people, make good friends and just be in a new environment. I found that Hays had a very friendly, social environment. I was a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity and I have good memories of the fellowship and sense of belonging that came from fraternity membership. I was fortunate to be a Graduate Assistant for three semesters and really enjoyed the opportunities to teach beginning courses in accounting. My wife and I met at FHSU and were married while in graduate school.
What advice do you have for current or prospective FHSU students?
While college can be a lot of fun, most of us attend so that we can get a good job and provide for ourselves and our families for a lifetime. Students should put much thought into the selection of a major and not only follow the old adage of “find something you will love to do” but combine that with doing some research to find career paths that likely will be in demand in the future and that have a reasonable chance of providing the economic benefits necessary to provide the lifestyle you envision for yourself. Students should take every opportunity available to obtain internships and real world experience in their desired fields.
Tell us about someone at FHSU who has left a lasting impression:
Dr. George Wall was the one person who did the most to help me achieve my goal of becoming a CPA. Dr. Wall afforded me the opportunity to continue my education by selecting me as a Graduate Assistant in the Business Department. The stipend of $1,000 per semester was very important at that time in helping finance the additional coursework and additionally, he was my primary professor teaching the advanced accounting and CPA Exam preparatory classes that were so helpful in passing the CPA Exam after graduation.
In what ways are you proud to be a Tiger?
I am proud that the leadership at FHSU has built a legacy of continuing effort to grow the student population, expand the course offerings and strive for continuous improvement over the years. While FHSU serves thousands of students both on campus and online, its importance to western Kansas cannot be overstated.