Biographical Text
Assistant Professor Emeritus of Computer Information Systems Richard S. "Stan" Wilkinson, Jr., (October 26, 1941-) graduated from Central Piedmont Community College, Charlotte, North Carolina, in 1973 with an A.A. degree in liberal arts. He received his B.S. and M.A. degrees in business education and economics from Appalachian State University in 1975. Wilkinson holds the North Carolina (A and G) Teacher's Certifications. He has also received multiple certifications from courses taken in the process of staying abreast of new technology in the computer world. From 1959 to 1964 Wilkinson was employed at the First Union National Bank of North Carolina in Charlotte, where he held the positions of computer operator and data processing coordinator before being drafted into the United States Army. He served in the Army during the Vietnam conflict (1964-1967) as the administrative assistant to the chief of staff of the First Armored Division. In this position, he was responsible for the scheduling of staff meetings and for information processing. He also was involved with the training of troops and was a member of a tank team. After his discharge from the Army with the rank of Specialist 5, Wilkinson became a cost accountant for Sealtest Foods, a division of Kraft Foods, Incorporated, in the Denver, Colorado office. From 1968 to 1971, Wilkinson was employed as a computer data processing coordinator for Celanese Corporation. He is a member of the board of directors of SOFTECH, Incorporated. Professor Wilkinson then accepted a position with Appalachian State University. He was an assistant professor of computer information systems in the Department of Computer Information Systems from 1974 to 2004, and he helped establish the Computer Information Systems (CIS) major/ minor. Wilkinson served on numerous committees within his department, including the Chair Search Committee, the Faculty Search Committee, the CIS Curriculum Committee; he was chair of the CIS-2990 Textbook Committee. Wilkinson has been a member of the Data Processing Management Association, now known as the Association of Information Technology Professionals (AITP), from 1977 to the present. He served as chair of the Education Committee of AITP and was a member of the committee's board of directors. He also served seven years as the Appalachian State student chapter advisor. Wilkinson is a member of the International Association for Computer Information Systems, the National Business Education Association, and the International Business Education Association. He is, as well, a life-long member of Alpha Chi, National Senior College Scholarship Society (Appalachian State), and of Phi Theta Kappa, National Junior College Scholastic Society (Central Piedmont Community College). During his career, Wilkinson co-authored the following publications: • Computers and Information Processing, also the study guide, instructors manual, applications workbook, transparencies and the computerized test bank which accompanied this publication. Minneapolis, Minnesota: West Publishing Company, 1988. • "University Students on the Internet: An Analysis of Students' Online Activities" Journal of Computer Information Systems (Spring 1998). • "Using CICS Extended Attribute Bytes with Mainframe CICS and CICS Emulation Software Products." Interface (Summer 1992). • "A Solution to a Compatibility Problem Between CICS and CICS Emulation Software Products." Interface (October 1991). • "A Problem in OnLine System Development." Interface (Winter 1990-1991).• "CIS/DPMA Model Curriculum: A Methodology for Incorporating Current Business Interactive Software Into the Classroom. The Journal of Computer Information Systems (Fall Issue, 1990). • "How to Teach IBM Skills in a Non-IBM Environment." Interface (Summer Issue, 1989). During his tenure at Appalachian State, Wilkinson organized and coordinated many conferences and seminars relating to computer information systems, including two that featured Admiral Grace Murray Hopper, who is affectionately known as "Grandma COBOL" and as the "Queen of Computer Software." Wilkinson was granted assistant professor emeritus status in June of 2004, and the R. Stan Wilkinson, Jr., Business Scholarship was created in the Walker College of Business in the same month. In his retirement, Professor Wilkinson enjoys skiing, bowling, hunting, fishing, football, basketball, baseball, music, CB radio, consulting, and traveling. Wilkinson proclaims, "Retirement and life are good." Sources: Appalachian State University files and correspondence. -Patti Levine-Brown
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