Million-Dollar Swing
Ken Coleman
Golf is Ken Coleman’s passion. A student in the Business Marketing program, Coleman, 32, is set to earn a Business Marketing Specialist A.A.S. degree in spring 2011. His long-range goal is to work as a marketing executive at a country club or golf equipment manufacturer.
Coleman put his career plans on hold when he joined the Minnesota National Guard shortly after 9/11. He deployed twice during Operation Iraqi Freedom. His first deployment lasted 15 months and took him to southeastern Baghdad as a Humvee driver with the 1st Battalion, 151st Field Artillery (1-151 FA) out of Montevideo. “We had intense situations on a daily basis,” he said, “but you adjust and get the attitude you need to do your job.”
Coleman’s second deployment took him to Kuwait for a year as a sergeant and team leader of an M1151 Enhanced Armament Carrier (an improved version of the standard Humvee) on convoy security. His battalion completed 591 combat missions traveling 1.9 million miles in a war zone without serious accident or injury.
Sgt. Ken Coleman on deployment in Kuwait during Operation Iraqi Freedom
During R&R on his first deployment, Coleman got the chance to play at the Doha Golf Club in Qatar. One of the most spectacular PGA courses in the world, Doha requires millions of gallons of water to keep the fairways green and the dunes in the desert. For Coleman, playing Doha ranks as one of his best golfing memories.
Coleman currently works at Kocina Branding & Marketing Companies as an intern in Mid-America Meeting & Expos. Marketing Instructor Carie Statz ranks Coleman as one of the top students in her Business Marketing program, which can be taken fully online. “With a combination of his military background and marketing knowledge, Kenneth is able to apply his amazing organizational and business skills in a marketing firm even before he graduates,” Statz said.
After graduating from DCTC, Coleman plans to transfer to Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota to earn a bachelor’s degree in marketing with a minor in sales. Originally from Mahtomedi, Minn., he resides in Apple Valley with his wife, Amanda, and the couple’s two-month-old daughter, Piper.
Contact Instructor Carie Statz at 651-423-8622 for more information about the following DCTC Marketing programs:
- Business Marketing | Offered fully online
- Marketing Design
- Marketing Design Specialist | Offered fully online
- Sales Management | Offered fully online
- You can also check out the Marketing & Sales blog
Ken Coleman with wife, Amanda, and baby daughter, Piper
