Forging a New Path

Amidst the high-rise buildings and hustle of New York City, Andrew Franco, a 2025 Master of Science in Organizational Leadership program graduate, dreamed of sprawling beaches and clean air. 

“My friends and I used to joke around saying we're gonna leave New York. We're gonna go to Hawaii and hang out on the beach every single day,” said Franco.  

Now, after a 15-year journey that took him across the U.S. and eventually around the world, Franco is closer than ever to making this idyllic dream a reality by using skills from the Organizational Leadership program to one day join the United States Pacific Command in Hawaii.

Hitting Dead Ends

Growing up in a single-parent household with his mother and sister, Franco faced numerous difficulties at home and school. 

“I grew up watching my mom work three to four jobs. She had her main job and she had three side jobs just to make ends meet to be able to survive in New York City. It was very hard,” said Franco. “I started rebelling somewhere around junior high school, hanging out with the wrong crowds. A lot of people around the neighborhood were doing petty crimes or were into drugs.”

“Once I got into high school and I got into football, that kind of kept me away from everything, because I was preoccupied with practice, or playing. I actually excelled while growing up in football.” 

Though he was scouted by Stony Brook University and Rutgers, Franco struggled to apply himself in his final year of high school, letting his grades and scholarship opportunities slip. 

“I didn't really know what I was gonna do in my life. You know, 18 years old in New York City, if you're not into fashion, or if you're not into the stock market, there isn't really much for you to do, so I was kind of at a dead end trying to figure out what I was going to do with my life.” 

Seeking direction, Franco attended a local community college and graduated with an associate’s degree in liberal arts in 2013. But in spite of his credentials, Franco didn’t have a clear path forward. 

“I was working as a warehouse worker. My job was in New Jersey, so I would travel across state lines to work. It was brutal. I would be working about 70 hours a week and it was just nothing but work for me and that was what motivated me to say that I need to leave. I need to actually do something with my life, not be a warehouse worker for the next 30 to 40 years until retirement.”

Culture Shock

Franco’s search for guidance and purpose led him to the military after he was encouraged to enlist by an ROTC recruiter. 

“I needed a change of scenery, something that would give me peace of mind, not just seeing the same skyscrapers, the same crowded subway every single day,” said Franco.

Saying goodbye to his family and friends, Franco headed to Fort Sill in Lawton, Oklahoma to complete 10 weeks of basic training and then 10 weeks of advanced individual training as a missile launching station operator. From there, Franco transferred to White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico.   

“Going from an area that had nine million people down to 20,000 [in Lawton] to White Sands Missile Range, which had less than a hundred people, it was a huge culture shock for me.” 

Franco’s service took him to Fort Bliss, Texas, Fort Carson, Colorado and eventually to Okinawa, Japan—a journey that would catalyze his interest in World War II history and reignite his academic pursuits. 

“While I was in Japan, I decided that after four years, after seeing all of the World War II sites and all of the history in Okinawa, I wanted to go back to school to get my bachelor's in World War II history.”

Franco earned his bachelor’s in 2020 from Excelsior College while serving on active duty in Japan and South Korea.  

A New Path

After being medically discharged from service for a hip injury, Franco gradually transitioned back to civilian life—a move that proved harder than anticipated.

“After the army I went down to New Mexico where I was a police officer for two years. Then a buddy of mine called me and said there was a job in Colorado Springs, so I moved back in 2022,” said Franco. ”Two years later in 2024, I decided I needed to go back to school, because at the time my life was not in the greatest state. I was twice divorced, diagnosed depressed and honestly borderline alcoholic because of all the things that were going on.”

“My son was three and I felt like a failure as a parent. So I needed to do something in my life, turn it around, get it on a positive track,” said Franco. 

Determined to do better for his son, Franco began to plan. 

“I was able to use my veteran benefits to get mental health services and treatment for alcoholism. Instead of looking to alcohol for comfort, I started going to the gym,” said Franco. “These steps fueled my decision to go back to school and get my graduate degree. I wanted to not only prove to myself that I can do better, but also show my son that I can do better and that I am a better person.” 

Enrolling in the Master of Science in Organizational Leadership program at the University of Colorado Boulder while employed as a non-military space operations specialist at United States Space Command on Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado Springs, Colorado was the next step in his plan. 

Out of five specialized tracks, Franco chose to pursue the Organizational Leadership track, designed for students who want to customize their degree to obtain broad exposure to the field of organizational leadership, in order to get a feel for all the tracks available and meet the demands of his position. 

For his capstone project, the final course of the Organizational Leadership program where students apply their knowledge and skills to address actual challenges facing an organization, Franco was able to leverage his experience to make a real-world impact on base. 

“The position I'm in now is somewhat newly reformed, so it was up to the personnel on base to recreate standard operating procedures, testing guidelines and recertification guidelines. I was able to use that problem for my capstone project. I interviewed professionals in my field and eventually gave my capstone project to our training professionals, so I'm excited to see if it’s going to get implemented,” said Franco.

After months of dedicated work, Franco walked away from the program with his long coveted master’s, skills that were immediately applicable to his position and a much improved outlook. 

Franco, center, was joined by his father-in-law Eugenio, left, wife Berenise, center, son Xavier, center, and mother-in-law Elvira, right, after graduating from the MSOL program. 

“Although I started the program alone, during a time when I was trying to make some changes in my life, I ended on a very positive note. While going through the program, my ex and I started to work things out after being divorced three years. So when I graduated from the program, I not only accomplished my goal of getting a degree, but I also got my family back.”

Joined by fellow Organizational Leadership program graduates, his in-laws, his son and his wife, Franco celebrated how far he had come with the people that had been with him since the beginning. 

His story is far from finished, however. In addition to pursuing a PhD one day, Franco wants to live life with his family and create new memories at Camp H.M. Smith in Hawaii—a move he hopes will be supported by the skills he gained through the Organizational Leadership program. 

“I am a civilian on base dealing with a lot of military personnel and a lot of by the book procedures. So completing the MSOL program and studying organizational leadership falls in with my career field where I have to be a leader, communicate and try to motivate others to do better so that we can meet the mission,” said Franco.

With his goals rooted in both personal growth and professional purpose, Franco sees his journey as a shared one.

“My next accomplishment won’t be just for me, but for my son and his mom,” said Franco.