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Photo: Steve Sweeney with his mother, "Midge." Midge passed away on March 16, 2024, surrounded by loving family. Steve dedicates this Spotlight to her.

Steve Sweeney '02 is what you would call an active guy. Growing up in Worcester, Massachusetts in a family of eight children, it was a busy household, and he hasn't slowed down much since then.

The eldest child in the family — six girls, two boys — Steve and his family lived in a veterans' housing project. "I didn't hang around the house much. We played outside year-round," he recalls. "I was an altar boy and a Boy Scout. I played Little League baseball and CYC basketball — I was always very active."

During high school, Steve set his sights on becoming an engineer. He focused on biology, chemistry and math classes in high school. His grades and SAT scores earned him acceptance into Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

But by 1969, in his senior year of college, the war in Vietnam was raging — and he drew a low draft number.

"I was struggling in college with the challenging curriculum, and the aerospace job market had bottomed out," Steve says. "I decided to enlist, serve my country, and eventually apply for the GI Bill after being honorably discharged."

His father, Richard, was always his inspiration and motivation. A highly decorated World War II Marine combat veteran, Richard received the Silver Star, Bronze Star and Purple Heart.

"He instilled in me a love of all things athletic. He was a high school basketball and football player before enlisting in the Marine Corps at seventeen," Steve says fondly. "He had me doing pushups at a young age before I even knew why I was doing them." It was his father who ultimately convinced him to join the Marines.

After completing basic training, he got an opportunity to apply for Officers Candidate School and was accepted in 1970. Despite four years of active duty, including three years as an officer, he never got sent to Vietnam. His first assignment was as a platoon leader at Camp Pendleton in California, but soon after, he had an opportunity to transfer to Camp Lejeune in North Carolina.

But higher education was calling. Steve left the Marines in December 1973 and immediately went back to Worcester Tech in January 1974.

"I redeclared my major to what was then called Management Engineering. Nowadays it would be called Industrial Engineering," he says. "In addition to rigorous engineering classes, I also had hands-on training in welding, machining, soldering, casting, you name it."

He earned his engineering bachelor's degree in 1975 and went to work for the Department of Defense, the beginning of a career that would span decades. Beginning as an entry-level line engineer, he rose through the ranks to staff engineer, engineering supervisor and ultimately chief engineer, working on programs for defense systems, satellites and missiles.

As a government employee, he served major defense customers from the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines. His duties involved working with government program managers and contractor program managers at industrial giants of the time, including General Electric, Martin Marietta, Lockheed Martin and General Dynamics.

Along the way, he began collecting degrees, earning an MBA from the University of Hartford and two master's degrees — one in Engineering Management and one in Mechanical Engineering — from Western New England College.

But the engineering world was changing.

"At this point, there were vital but less mechanical engineering applications in the defense programs at General Dynamics. It was primarily systems engineering and software," Steve says. "I thought, I want to stay here. I want to be relevant, be productive." That's when, in 1998, »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵ Community College entered the picture.

"»Æ¹ÏÊÓƵ was on fire then with its software programs. So, I inquired, and the next thing you know, I'm taking computer courses," Steve chuckles. He majored in computer science and earned his associate degree from »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵ in 2002, graduating with honors.

My education at »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵ Community College helped immensely in staying productive and relevant while I worked for the government at General Dynamics in Pittsfield. The valuable degree in computer science also helped me secure a promotion within the government at Lockheed Martin in Sunnyvale, California and work on programs of national strategic importance.

But there was more to »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵ than just earning another degree, Steve says.

"The »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵ experience was one of acceptance, patience and genuine caring from staff and teachers for the students as we navigated our way through a challenging and rewarding educational adventure," he says. In particular, two computer science teachers.

Robert Taylor and Michael Pelle — proved influential.

"Their courses' subject matter was impactful, and their patience and kindness were much appreciated," Steve says.

Patience and kindness are qualities not lost with Steve, who has been involved in his community for most of his life.

"I've always been involved in the community. I'm anxious if I'm not involved," he says. "I've always been people motivated." A religious educator for more than 20 years, he has served as a parish council chairperson, parish lector, usher and eucharistic minister. Currently, he volunteers his time with several organizations, including a men's faith group that ministers to incarcerated men in California prisons, serves meals to the needy and builds homes in Mexico for disadvantaged families.

Other volunteer efforts included serving as a team leader and fundraiser for Relay for Life (to find cures for cancer), at Our Daily Bread (a soup kitchen), and at Central »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵ Habitat for Humanity.

As if those activities were not enough to fill his time, Steve also has a wide array of personal interests and hobbies. He enjoys taking drawing lessons, dancing lessons, hiking, climbing mountains and running. Steve has completed eight marathons, including qualifying for and running three Boston Marathons. It's no wonder that his self-described life purpose is "to help others while living an active and healthy life."

But for all his academic degrees, all his career achievements, he still holds a special place for »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵ.

»Æ¹ÏÊÓƵ Community College is a local educational experience in every sense of the word. Any of my professors or classmates could literally have been my neighbor. I forged genuine relationships with some of my classmates and instructors.

As an older, nontraditional student at »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵ, Steve says he never felt alone.

"I was working, but a lot of the students were. »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵ catered to that," he says. "When I got my computer science degree, I became more relevant at work instantly. My job responsibilities definitely grew."

Now, with free tuition available at »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵ, which Steve calls a "game changer," there's even more reason to enroll.

"Every completed program at »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵ can become a solid foundation for a rewarding career. You can stay in your community, continue working and go to school to pursue a valuable education. Plus, upon graduation from »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵ, you can also transition your credits right over to a great four-year school and continue your education," he says. "I'm a big believer in the lasting value of community college, and I'm a big believer in »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵ."