Sam Stitt, retired Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Air Force Mays MBA Class of 1998

When I retired from the Air Force, I only knew I wanted to leave working for the government and plant roots in Texas. I had a Master of Public Administration degree, but I thought it best to go back to school full time and “retool” and obtain an MBA from a strong business school.

Sam Stitt served 20 years on active duty as an officer and pilot in the Air Force. He retired as a Lieutenant Colonel and Command Pilot with more than 3,000 flying hours in the B-52 bomber and T-37 jet trainer. He served in Hawaii, Oklahoma, Texas, the upper peninsula of Michigan, upstate New York and the Pentagon. He served in many positions, including roles as B-52 instructor pilot, T-37 instructor pilot and flight examiner, Soviet political affairs officer at Headquarters, Pacific Command, squadron commander, and speech writer and executive assistant to the general officer in charge of human resources for the Air Force.

Since earning his MBA at Texas A&M in 1998, Sam has worked for only one company, United Services Automobile Association (USAA) in San Antonio. USAA is a AAA rated Fortune 200 company (2006 ranking – 189 with total revenue of $11.98B) of more than 21,000 employees that provides a full range of financial products and services to the U.S. military community. Over the majority of his seven years with the company, he has directly supported the CEO and his management team and the USAA board of directors and its advisory panel. He currently works directly for the COO performing the same tasks for the CEO and the board in addition to supporting the COO's special projects.