Growing up, Jeremiah Owoh, Sr., M.S. ’12, D.P.S. ’24 had two options for the future. “My mom told me and my siblings, ‘either you go to school or you go to the military,’” he remembered. Owoh chose both.
Last year, these intertwined paths culminated in two major milestones. Owoh retired from the military and graduated from the iSchool with a doctor of professional studies (D.P.S.) in information management—as his mother, sick with cancer, watched online. “She lived just long enough to see me receive my degree,” he said.
The road to that moment stretches back to Owoh’s native Arkansas. After earning a B.B.A. in business from the University of Central Arkansas in 2003—while training through ROTC and serving in the Army Reserve—he quickly found himself on the move. Less than a year after graduation, he was deployed to Iraq, the first of two combat tours. In the following 21 years, his service would take him around the world, including two postings in Korea and a 15-month NATO assignment in Turkey.
A partnership between the Army Signal School and the iSchool first drew Owoh to Syracuse, where he earned an executive master of science in information management in 2012. Nearly a decade later, he jumped at the chance to return for the revamped D.P.S. program. “I’d considered doctoral programs before, but with my schedule as an Army officer, it just wasn’t realistic,” he said. The new cohort-based format—mostly online with short campus residencies—made it possible even during his deployment to Korea.
Working alongside classmates from across industries, Owoh found the model collaborative and energizing. “We encouraged each other and were able to leverage one another’s strengths,” he said. His dissertation, advised by professor of practice Scott Bernard, M.S. ‘98 examined how the pandemic accelerated videoconferencing adoption within Army signal brigades.
Earning the degree enhanced both his military work and the start of his civilian career. “Your military rank doesn’t carry over into civilian life,” he said. “But the doctorate basically replaced my lieutenant colonel rank and allowed me to compete for jobs at the same level of expertise.”
Since retiring, Owoh has taken on a portfolio of roles. He is an associate principal and system architect with Astrion, supporting the Department of the Air Force, and teaches in the cybersecurity engineering program at St. Philip’s College in San Antonio. At the same time, he mentors aspiring cybersecurity professionals through his consulting firm, iSpeak Techy and supports veterans by serving on the board of Heroes United to Heal Foundation—which raises awareness about veteran suicide—and by speaking about his own PTSD.
Through it all, he hopes to model to his three children the values of public service, education, and persistence. “The inspiration for why I do what I do is my mom,” Owoh said. “I want my kids to see that no matter where you are in life, you can always strive to be better.”