Courses Taught
MGMT 752 Developing Effective Management and Team Skills
MGMT 753 Leadership
Education
Retired Colonel, U.S. Army
Ph.D. Management, University of Phoenix
M.A., Management, Webster University
B.A., Mercer University
Academic Areas
Leadership
Biography
Steve Boylan is the Director of Graduate Programs – Leavenworth and a Professor of the Practice at the University of Kansas Business School. He brings decades of leadership, academic, and military experience to his role, having served in key positions across the U.S. Army and higher education.
Boylan graduated from Mercer University in 1984 with a Bachelor of Arts in Communications and a dual minor in Journalism and Broadcast & Film. He also received a commission as an Aviation Officer. He earned a Master of Arts in Management from Webster University in 1997 and completed his doctorate in Management at the University of Phoenix in 2017. His doctoral research focused on organizational leadership, specifically examining leadership development within the U.S. Army.
From 2010 to 2012, Boylan served as an Associate Professor in the Department of Command & Leadership at the Command and General Staff College. He focused on leadership instruction and developed curriculum for more than 1,200 students on media and public affairs. He co-authored the core curriculum module Inform and Influence Activities and authored the advanced leadership module Risk and Adaptability. He also led national media panels to help students gain insight into military-media relations.
Boylan is a published author with work appearing in respected journals and media outlets. His article, “Developing Organizational Adaptability for Complex Environments,” appeared in the Journal of Leadership Education (JOLE) in April 2017. He has contributed to Military Review, Small Wars Journal, Foreign Policy (“Another View from Leavenworth: We’re Doing Better than Professor Murray Thinks”), and Military Times (“Accountable Abusers”). His book reviews include All In: The Education of General David Petraeus and Leading the Narrative: A Case for Strategic Communication. His most recent article in Small Wars Journal explores adaptability and risk in complex environments.
Boylan retired from the U.S. Army as a Colonel in 2010 after a distinguished career in Army Aviation and Public Affairs. He later retired from the Department of the Army as a federal employee in 2022. In recognition of his excellence in teaching, he was named the 2025 Outstanding Online MBA Educator.