Click here to read more Cougar Corner profiles AYLWIN LEWIS COUGAR CEO Aylwin Lewis (1976, 1990) is the president and chief executive officer of Potbelly Sandwich Works, a job he accepted after serving in the same capacity at Sears Holdings. Lewis graduated from the University of Houston with degrees in business management and English literature. Prior to his appointment at Potbelly Sandwich Works, and before leading Sears/Kmart, Lewis led YUM! Brands for 13 years. That company includes KFC, Long John Silver's, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell restaurants. When Sears/Kmart officials came calling, Lewis was eager to tackle a different industry. “I believe at the age of 50 I'm redefining myself," said Lewis, who as head of Sears Holdings, lead the nation's third largest retailer. The native Houstonian has come a long way from the working class neighborhood of South Park where he was raised. Lewis' mother was a housewife and his father was a blue-collar worker who also served as a deacon at church. Lewis graduated from Jesse Jones High School before attending UH. To pay for his education, Lewis cleaned rugs full-time for four years and his boss tailored Lewis' work schedule around daytime classes. "I was a typical commuter student," Lewis recalled. As an undergraduate, he planned to become a college professor, specializing in the works of Ernest Hemingway. To that end, he pursued a degree in literature. But he also obtained a business degree because he wanted as complete an education as possible. "I think in dualities," he explained. "I wanted to get a soft degree that I thought I would use. But I wanted a hard degree to understand the world." His business degree obviously proved essential for the executive, but he said his literature degree also taught him how to do research and write. "I would recommend to anyone that they get a liberal arts degree," Lewis said. “That training in my mind has helped me throughout my career." Lewis also obtained his master's in human resource management from Houston Baptist University and an MBA from the University of Houston. ( more )