After graduating from East Saint Louis Senior High School in 1982, Karl immediately joined the United States Army, serving honorably for over twenty years. Immediately upon his retirement from the armed forces in 2005, he became a civil servant and served honorably until his second retirement from the federal government on November 1, 2019. Karl holds an Associate's degree in psychology from Troy State University, a bachelor's degree from the Southern Illinois University - Carbondale in Adult Education, and a master's degree from Illinois University, Champaign Urbana in Global Human Resources Training and Development. He currently serves on the board of directors for two organizations. Karl is also an HR consultant, certified professional coach, and the founder and CEO of Karl Whorley Life Coach LLC.