January 2020

2020: David Sterling '01 & '04

DEGREES:
BS, Geography & Geosciences Salisbury, MS Geography Virginia Tech
Henson School

CURRENT EMPLOYER
Royce Geospatial Consultants, Inc.

CURRENT OCCUPATION
Founder, CEO

DESCRIBE YOUR CAREER PATH
I grew up in Crisfield, MD and my father was a commercial fisherman. Initially, I thought I wanted to work on the water for the Department of Natural Resources and major in Marine Biology or Environmental Science. I discovered Geography as an elective and eventually Geographic Information systems (GIS). This was really interesting and made sense to me because I was familiar with nautical mapping from my experiences on the water. I quickly learned about vast opportunities within GIS in the Department of Defense, Federal Government and National Security. After graduation from SU, I applied and was offered a graduate assistant scholarship at Virginia Tech where I earned an MS in Geography. Receiving a scholarship at a nationally recognized research institution was a direct result of the academic training I received from Dr. Mike Scott and others at SU. I was coached on how to apply for assistantships and how to prepare for graduate level research. I truly value the individualized attention and guidance I received during my time at SU.

After graduate school, I worked for the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency and Everest Technology Solutions (that was acquired by KeyW Corporation), where I led development of Geospatial programs supporting national security initiatives. In 2015, I founded my own company, Royce Geospatial Consultants Inc. With 80+ employees, we provide expertise in Geospatial Information Technology, Analytics and Intelligence. Our clients include the Department of Defense and the Intelligence Community. Our employees are deployed across the US east coast and Midwest, also including an employee presence worldwide, stationed in the Far East, Middle East, and Africa.

MOST IMPORTANT THING YOU LEARNED WHILE ATTENDING SALISBURY UNIVERSITY
I learned the science of how to solve a problem and putting in “hard work” to see large projects to completion. I learned to understand “The Why” and theory of the process of learning geospatial science

WHAT CAMPUS ACTIVITIES/ORGANIZATIONS WERE YOU INVOLVED WITH?
I was part of the SU Geography Club and the Mapping Science group which eventually evolved into what is now the Eastern Shore Regional GIS Cooperative. I also played intramural soccer and softball in the fall and spring.

BEST COLLEGE MEMORY
My best memory from college was graduation day. I was very enthusiastic about the degree I had earned and how all the hard work came to a perfect end, eventually getting me into graduate school on a full scholarship. I felt really good about having had such a positive experience at SU and about the comradery shared within the Geography Department.

WHY DID YOU CHOOSE SALISBURY UNIVERSITY?
I chose SU because I had family who attended SU. It was also close to home so I was able to continue working on the bay and stay close to great fishing in the fall.

IF YOU COULD DESCRIBE SALISBURY UNIVERSITY IN THREE WORDS, WHAT WOULD THEY BE AND WHY?
Eager to help and dedicated faculty. The Faculty at SU, specifically the Geography Department, proactively made an effort to ensure that I and many of my fellow students were headed in the right direction. It was a very hands-on community of people who were invested in our success.

FAVORITE VACATION SPOT AND WHY?
Key West is my favorite vacation spot. The weather is awesome 12 months a year, the pace is a bit slower and the fishing is phenomenal.

GREATEST ACCOMPLISHMENT
First and foremost, being a husband and dad. Second to that, I am very proud of the fact that I was able to earn a full ride to graduate school at Virginia Tech. This was a direct result of the hard work and perseverance during my undergraduate work at SU. After that, everything work-related, like where I went in my career and starting my own company was a direct product of having a great academic foundation and work ethic gained at SU.

WHAT IS SOMETHING PEOPLE DON'T KNOW ABOUT YOU?
In middle and high school I played six different instruments.

HOBBIES/OTHER INTERESTS
When I’m not in my office, I’m outdoors fishing or hunting.