Dr. Hartley was born and raised in Elkhart, Kansas, a small town in Southwestern Kansas, and graduated from Elkhart High School in 1962. Following High School he attended Fort Hays Kansas State College on a football scholarship. After two years, he transferred to the University of Houston where he earned a Bachelor Science Degree in Biology and Chemistry. Following college he began teaching and coaching football and track. The first year at Navasota, Texas then the next seven years in the Clear Creek ISD system.