Mike Minihan, Henryetta High School Class of 1979 graduate, was guest speaker at a special assembly held Monday in the HHS Auditorium.

Three key points discussed were:

• Mindset of going into college in which Minihan encouraged students and told them not to give up.

• How you’re judged in corporate America by your speaking skills.

• Be the best version of yourself that you can be, spiritually, emotionally and physically.

A current resident of Dallas, Texas, Minihan has held engineering and management positions within the Information Technology field for over 35 years.

He grew up in Henryetta, the son of a Hall of Fame football coach.

In 1985, he graduated from East Central University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics. A year later, he earned his Master of Science degree from Amberton University in Garland, Texas in Computer Management. Over the course of his career, he

Over the course of his career, he has been employed by several Fortune 500 companies including AT&T, Nortel Networks, Sun Microsystems, Raytheon Technologies and Lennox International in various places including Ontario, Canada; Quito, Ecuador; Cork, Ireland; London, England and Paris, France.

In 1987, Minihan began his second career as an adjunct professor at several local colleges within the Dallas area, teaching Computer Science and College Algebra.

During his tenure, he was nominated for the “Outstanding Adjunct Teacher of the Year” in 1996 and in 2003 and was asked to be a member of the Departmental Advisory Board.

While on the board, he shared current corporate expectations of new graduates and how to apply the practices to each curriculum.

Minihan said his proudest honor came in 2008 when he received the “Superior Performance Award” from the United States National Geospatial Intelligence Agency in Washington, D.C.

For six years, from 2005 through 2011, he held a position in Intelligence with Top Secret clearance with the United States Department of Defense. Four of the years were served under the Bush administration and the other two were under the Obama administration.

Today, Minihan is a part-time college Math professor and also a Career Navigator for Paris Junior College in Paris, Texas.