The Road to ITS: Andrew Lee

May 9, 2008 at 8:28 am | In Features, People

Andrew Lee beat the odds. By all accounts, he should be working as a certified public accountant in South Africa. Instead, Lee serves as associate director for Information Security at UNC-Chapel Hill ITS.

Born to a South African father and a British mother, Lee was raised in the town of Ladysmith in the uThukela district of KwaZulu-Natal, which is 227 miles south of Johannesburg. Three thousand feet above sea level, Ladysmith’s grasslands and thorn bushes rest by the Klip River at the foothills of the Drakensberg mountains.

Starting at the age of 11, Lee attended year-round boarding school for five and a half days a week until graduating high school. The summer between his junior and senior year, Lee met some of his parent’s friends at a local nature preserve and he “took a shine” to a young lady named Rosemarie. They chatted with each other, and Lee obtained her address. A pen pal relationship blossomed to a prom date. Lee was smitten.

College Years

But in January 1981, after high school, Lee was selected as a Rotary International Youth Exchange Student. He traveled to Sardis, Miss., deep in the Mississippi Delta, to spend a semester of high school and a semester of community college.

After his year abroad, Lee returned to South Africa. His choice was either college, or the draft. He chose college, attending the University of the Witwatersrand - one of the most liberal institutions in South Africa. Change was sweeping the country.

Despite the tear gas and riots outside the lecture rooms, Lee focused on his education.

“My father was a CPA and therefore my path was set,” said Lee. “I didn’t like accounting though. After four years, I decided to leave college and complete my two years of service, during which I completed my Bachelor of Commerce, majoring in Business Law and Economics.”

Career Days

However, Lee had never forgotten Rosemarie, and they reconnected. By December 1987, Lee was demobilized - and engaged. A month later, Lee and Rosemarie married.

Lee worked for the accounting firm Deloitte & Touche while continuing his college accounting courses part-time, but finally decided to leave accounting behind. For a fresh start, Lee went to work at Toyota South Africa as a computer auditor.

“I didn’t really have any experience, but it was a good job, with a pay increase and a company car,” said Lee. “That’s when I was able to obtain certification in information systems auditing.”

And then it was time to beat the odds.

Back to the States

In 1994, for the first time, South Africans were allowed to participate in the green card lottery or Diversity Visa program.

“The odds weren’t great. Millions worldwide could participate; 55,000 would be chosen and only about 3,700 South Africans would be granted visas. We only had 30 days to apply and complete the huge amount of necessary paperwork,” explained Lee.

Lee’s father, Rosemarie and Andrew all applied. Andrew won the lottery. In November 1995, Andrew and Rosemarie arrived in Batesville, Miss., where Andrew knew people from his year in the U.S. But by January 1996, a work opportunity took them to Little Rock, Ark.

“Rose told me that when we moved, please let us move to a place without snow or hurricanes,” laughs Lee. “Our first day in Arkansas, it snowed. Later, the tornadoes came.”

His new job meant extensive travel - three of every four weeks was spent on the road. Lee wanted more home time and met with a headhunter - a UNC-Chapel Hill graduate.

A Tar Heel at Last

“North Carolina had everything we wanted (except for the occasional snow, ice and hurricanes) and I had always wanted to get into the IT world, so after a short stint at the Central Carolina Bank, I came to UNC-Chapel Hill,” said Lee. “No day is ever the same; it’s never boring. My biggest challenge is keeping up with changing technology and the associated security issues.”

Together with Rosemarie and his two sons, Nathan and Michael, Lee will celebrate ten years of UNC-Chapel Hill service in May. In his off time, Lee enjoys photography, gardening and tinkering with computers. Most of all, he is a family man who recently celebrated 20 years of marriage.