Walter M. Sharp PhD

Walter M. Sharp, PhD of New Albany, Ohio, born November 23, 1929 to Blanche Louise Lewis Sharp and Walter M. Sharp, Sr. in Charleston, WV passed away on February 8, 2023 at Johnstown Pointe in Johnstown, Ohio.

He was married to Nancy Rhodes Douglas Sharp for 65 years until her passing in 2016.

Dr. Sharp is survived by daughter Stephanie Sharp Fraim and her husband John P. Fraim III; son Douglas Lewis Sharp and his wife Julie Leigh Sharp; grandchildren Stephen Douglas Sharp (wife Megan), Andrew Sharp Ullman (wife Kelly), Sarah Nancy Gutting (husband Casey), Daniel Douglas Sharp and Ryan Leigh Sharp; and great grandsons Chase Zachary Sharp and Owen Sanford Ullman.

Walter attended seventeen different high schools during the Great Depression as his family moved frequently to find work and manage expenses. In his senior year of high school, he met a vivacious young majorette named Nancy Rhodes Douglas, who he would later marry in 1951. He graduated from South Charleston High School, WV in 1948 where he was Student Council President. After graduation from high school he spent a short time as a disk jockey at a local radio station.

He started his college career at Marshall University in Huntington, WV in 1949. In 1951, after two years of college, he joined the Navy and served four years on the USS Cadmus during the Korean War. When Walt finished his Navy responsibilities, he returned to Marshall and completed his degree receiving a BA in Secondary Education.

In 1956, the family moved to Columbus, Ohio where he taught at North High School from 1956-1961. During this period, he earned his Masters Degree in Education from The Ohio State University. Walter also taught evening classes at Franklin University at this time. He taught typing and business education at Walnut Ridge High School in Columbus from 1961-1967 and was an administrator in Business and Office Education at Eastland Vocational School from 1967 to 1971.

In the early 1970's, he patented the Diatype Analyzer, which analyzes typing technique and improves keyboarding skills. He partnered with Battelle Memorial Institute to market and distribute Diatype. Battelle went on to obtain fifty-two patents world-wide on the Diatype Analyzer. The device was bought by over six thousand schools all over the world. At this time, Walter also received a patent on the Word Pacesetter, which was one of the early examples of voice recognition technology.

Walter returned to OSU, where he obtained a PhD in 1984. He served as Professor of Business Practices for the medical and law schools. In 1985, he became an Educational Consultant to the World Bank for developing programs at the College of the Bahamas in Nassau, Bahamas.

Dr. Sharp was the author of six books on the Diatype Analyzer program, co-author of the software program Key Champ, and co-author of a series of five books called Wall Street for South-Western Publishing Company.

In recognition of Walter's "significant and outstanding achievement" in the field of vocational-technical education, he was awarded the Centennial Award by The Ohio State University.

Services honoring Walter's life will be held at Schoedinger Northeast Funeral Home, 1051 E. Johnstown Road in Gahanna on Friday, February 17, 2023. Visitation will be held from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM, with a memorial service following at 1:00 PM. Services will conclude with interment at Maplewood Cemetery in New Albany,.

Dr. Sharp requested that donations go to the Lettuce Work Foundation, a non-profit organization in New Albany founded by his son Doug and daughter-in-law Julie Sharp to help young adults with autism. Donations can be made online at www.lettucework.org or mailed to Lettuce Work, 14985 Fancher Rd., New Albany, Ohio 43054.