Hi! I want to welcome the students of ITEC 610 to my class blog. Your first "mini-project" assignment will be to create a blog and include your first post...a bio just like what's in the next few paragraphs. Add pictures please. During subsequent weeks, you and I will add posts in our blogs containing reflections from the past week.
So, allow me to introduce myself...
I was born in beautiful Hawaii and I attended Farrington High School and the University of Hawaii at Manoa where I received a bachelor's degree in Engineering. I joined the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) in 1975. My first "mainland" assignment was in Washington (the state, that is), then, I worked in Kentucky, Nebraska, and Utah.
While with the FHWA, I attained a Masters degree at the University of Nebraska (Go Big Red!) in Lincoln. The university is recent national football champions! (But...did you know that the "N" on the side of their helmets means knowledge???!!!)
I went on to receive a Ph.D in Engineering from the University of Utah which is located in Salt Lake City. I much enjoyed the climate, people, and the living environment there! Clean living, that's for me!!!
In changing careers, I attended the MBA Program at the University of Maryland at College Park. My concentration was Management Information Systems. Maryland has the best program academically and in terms of athletics. Fear the turtle!!!
I married the former Janet Lee on May 28, 1983 whom I will cherish forever. She is gainfully employed as a clinical pharmacist. She loves chocolate candy, Chinese and Korean food, University of Texas, and her family (not necessarily in that order).
In 1987, we were blessed with Laura Meghan Eun Hae (blessing from heaven) Pang. She is a hard-working student at the University of Pennsylvania. She loves playing the piano, playing the violin, and just playing. There's a video of her at a recent recital (she's in the middle).
After a short stint at the Federal Aviation Administration, I joined the National Defense University in February 1995. I worked in the Information Resources Management College as a Professor of Information Systems Management. In January 2008 and after 33 years of federal service, I finally retired and moved on.
I am presently the Program Director of the Database Systems Technology (DBST) concentration in the University of Maryland University College's Graduate School of Management and Technology. I am also a Collegiate Professor teaching kewl courses on information technology and homeland security.
I truly enjoy my job, particularly, interacting with the students and working with my esteemed colleagues. They all have a lot to share!
I love to run and it seems like the song "Running on Empty" is very appropriate for me. Some of my running accomplishments include the Marine Corps Marathon, Baltimore Marathon, Montgomery County Marathon-in-the-Parks, Honolulu Marathon, B&A Trail Marathon, Howard County Striders' Metric Marathon, River Rumble Half-Marathon, Army Ten-Miler, Cherry Blossom Ten-Miler, Annapolis Ten-Miler, Governor's Bay Bridge Run (one of my favorites), Pike's Peek (in Rockville, not Colorado), and many others. See Les in a video at the National Marathon!!!
My latest interest is being a paddler in Dragon boat racing. I enjoy this sport with my daughter, Laura. Here is a short video on the sport!
My lifelong goal is to be the best professor that I can be and to light the flame of knowledge among everyone I encounter...(corny but true!)
