My background

I was born into a military family; my father was career Army and until I left the home at eighteen, that’s the only life I knew. Although I consider Natchitoches, Louisiana as my hometown, the truth is that I grew up in Harker Heights (TX), Schofield Barracks (HI), Fayetteville (NC), Frankfurt and Hanau (Federal Republic of Germany) and ended my childhood years in my father’s hometown of Gulfport, Mississippi.

After a failed attempt in college at the age of 18, I joined the U.S. Army and enlisted in the 11X program, basically an infantry training program designed to train young men to meet the ever-changing needs of the Army. I volunteered for Airborne and Air Assault training, Ranger training, and had decided that the military was where I was going to be until retirement. In 1989, because of injuries, I was reclassified and trained as a legal specialist and performed those duties for nearly five years. After nearly seven years of active duty service, I was medically discharged for injuries sustained in the line of duty in 1996.

Without any real life plans at this point, I began to consider higher education. When I entered college this time, I decided that it was not going to be a repeat of my first efforts. I was going to study, I was going to learn, and I was going to go with a purpose. I graduated in May 1999 with a Bachelors of Arts from Northwestern State University of Louisiana. Since then, I have taught junior high school, served as a district executive in the Boy Scouts of America, and a few other odd jobs and positions.

Academic and Educational Background

I am currently an adjunct instructor of history at Henderson Community College, a member of the Kentucky Community and Technical College System.  I have taught at the community college and university level since May 2004. In the past, I have taught as a graduate assistant at Southern Illinois University and as an adjunct instructor for Mid Continent University and the University of Southern Indiana.

The courses that I have taught range from U.S. History to and since 1865, Kentucky History, World Civilization to and since 1500, European History since 1300, and U.S. Foreign Policy to and since 1900.  The courses are presented in either traditional classroom format, hybrid using lecture and online materials, and Internet based courses depending on the needs of the community college at the time the semester’s schedule is actually planned.

I hold a Bachelors of Arts from Northwestern State University of Louisiana with a major in Ancient History and a minor in Sociology.  I graduated from NSU in 1999 and did not begin my Masters of Arts program with an emphasis in U.S. History to 1865 and U.S. Foreign Policy at Murray State University until 2001. In 2004, I entered the Ph.D. program at Southern Illinois University focusing on U.S. History to and from 1865 and U.S. Policy History.

Courses Taught:

Survey Courses

• World Civilization to 1500
• World Civilization since 1500
• Western European History since 1300
• U.S. History to 1865
• U.S. History since 1865

Specialty and Upper Level Courses

• Kentucky History
• U.S. History since 1945
• History of U.S. Foreign Policy to 1900
• History of U.S. Foreign Policy since 1900