Steven Kisley:
CLASS OF 1977
West High SchoolClass of 1977
Wichita, KS
Falls Church High SchoolClass of 1977
Falls church, VA
Oakton High SchoolClass of 1977
Vienna, VA
Wilbur Middle SchoolClass of 1973
Wichita, KS
Poe Junior High SchoolClass of 1973
Annandale, VA
Steven's Story
Life
Although my specialty is information technology, my passion is life science and the diverse complexity regarding the interactions between people and processes.
I am the fortunate husband of a wonderful and beautiful woman who has given me the pleasure of five dynamic and wonderful children.
Lisa (Phelps - BCHS - class of 78) and I have two girls and three boys (Erin, Ryan, Collin, Dustin, and Katelyn). I work for a hospital corporation and Lisa is a school teacher. I guess you can say I am "Hot for Teacher." In 2007 we will celebrate 22 years of a wonderful marriage.
School
I went to 11 schools in 12 years. I never graduated from HS but did get my GED. My biggest regret is not having a high school experience. I want to feel connected. Wichita West High School was my last experience and the one I look at as my best experience as a child. I identify myself with West High and would like to have the opportunity to show my classmates that even though I was a waste then, I made up for it later.
While the other students attended school, I would sit across the street in my 71 Mustang Mach-1 and watch. I was so stupid then.
My most memorable friend was Brett Budd. He remained my friend until we lost track of each other when we were about 23. I have seen him only once since then. Brett, if you see this, you were a great friend - thank you. You never gave up on me.
College
All I can say is that Lisa and I had children number 4 and 5 while I was completing my undergrad and graduate degrees. Working 60 hours a week and studying until 2AM just to get the work done, thank God it is over. Now, I get to watch our children strugle with working 20 hours a week and staying up until 2AM texting about school. What a difference the years have made.
While at WSU, I remember sleeping in my car in the parking lot with an alarm clock.
At Kansas Newman, I would write papers that just seemed indifferent to the Catholic faith just to get a rise out of the nuns.
At Friends, I just wanted to getter Done!
Workplace
I started working when I 13, at a car wash just outside Washington D.C. That only lasted a few weeks. While I was vacuuming a...Expand for more
late model Mustang, it slipped off the chain drive and rolled backwards through a wooden fence.
At 15, I worked at Earl Shibe's prepping cars for the paint booth, Denver, CO.
At 15, I worked as a dishwasher at a dinner club in Fairfax, Virginia.
At 16, I worked as a cook at an Italian sandwich shop.
At 16, I worked as a dishwasher at Kitchen's Restaurant in Wichita.
At 17, I worked at Pizza Hut as a whatever.
At 17, I worked at Taco Tico - Kellogg and Ridge - Wichita.
Dropped out of HS - Wichita West.
At 17, I worked at Doonan Peterbuilt - lot boy, Wichita.
At 17, I worked at Wyle Bausch, changing auto tires, Wichita.
At 17, I joined the Air Force (NSA), Florida, Japan, and McConnell.
At 21, I worked at Systematics - data processing, Wichita.
Back to School - dropped out after three years.
At 27, I worked at Air Products and Chemicals - Tech, Wichita.
Back to School.
Graduated with BS at 37.
At 38, I worked at Rent A Center Corp HQ - Developer, Wichita.
Back to School.
At 40, I worked at Precision Pattern - IS Manager, Wichita.
Graduated with MBA at 41.
At 42, I worked at Kansas Heart Hospital - IS Director, Wichita.
At 47, I began working for CHA - VP Information Technology, Wichita.
As you can see, I have had a lot of job experiences. My recommendation to others is to stay in school, work part time, and get a good education. However, nothing beats practical experience. If you can't think in critical terms you will never succeed in business.
Military
I joined the Air Force at 17. Basic San Antonio, technical school in Pensacola, FL, stationed in Misawa, Japan, and finishing up in Wichita, Kansas.
While still 17, my green military ID card helped me get served alcohol as they did not look at the birth date. Trained in cryptology, I spent most of my time in Japan. Cross training to imagery, I became a topology analyst looking for bad guys from high above.
I played the drums in a rock band while stationed in Japan. I played football 3 years for Trick-1 as Trick-4 didn't have enough players. It was fun to legally hit officers.
These experiences would be the foundation upon which I would build my career.
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