I spent my formative years in Nebraska. Upon graduating high school in 1973, I enlisted in the United States Navy. While stationed in Norfolk, Virginia, I met Charlotte Decker, the woman of my dreams (that is what she told me to call her) and we were married in 1976. After my enlistment was up, we moved to Texas where I attended Baylor University, receiving my B.A. in philosophy in 1983. We then moved to Auburn, Alabama, in 1986 after Charlotte earned her Ph.D. in management from Texas A&M. Finding the university life attractive, I earned my M.A. in speech communication from Auburn University in 1989, and then went on to earn my Ph.D. in speech communication from the University of Georgia in 1994. We have had two children: Scott, a graduate of the Savannah College of Art and Design, and Alison, a senior at The University of Georgia.