Community Professionals Take Part In Maple School Career Day

From District 30: On March 1, Maple School’s annual Career Day began with a hand shake and ended on a high note, for eighth-grade students at Maple School. This one-day workshop was designed to help them learn about the connection between what they are learning in their classroom and real-life careers/professions. For most of the kids, this began with a handshake, eye contact, and a big smile. Many were observed practicing these gestures with each other prior to participating in mock interviews with professionals during the morning periods. In addition, everyone was “dressed for success” in board room attire.

In the morning, generous community professionals (many district parents) volunteered their time to participate with the students in mock interviews included Russ Larsen, Wintrust Banking, Dr. Videsha Kulkarni, Glen Medical Associates, John Finan, Glenbrook North High School, Susan Swidler, Keshet, Joel Fliegel, Wealth Enhancement Group, Jenny Deloy, Marcum, Jeff Sommer, XPO Logistics, Christie Hartbarger, Strategy Source, Marcy Carl, Crate and Barrel, Nick Tryfonopoulos, Exelon, Tom Artz, Society of the Divine Word, Jeff St. John, Sheridan Road Financial, Melissa Carr, Dominican University, Michael Shmarak, Sidney Maxwell Public Relations, Jeffrey Zuercher, U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, and Dr. Nate Carter, Maple School Principal. In the afternoon, eighth graders attended presentations by another group of dedicated professionals, who offered wisdom and valuable insights about their professions/careers, as well as their individual journeys. They discussed personal stories about their career paths in an interactive, hands-on approach.

The kids heard about a a variety of career choices: Emergency room physician, insurance executive, marketing expert, technology pro, physical therapist, foundation co-founder, crystallographer, restaurateur, and more! These individuals included Superintendent of District 30 Schools, Dr. Brian Wegley, Dr. Elyse Esrig, physician at Northwestern University Hospital, Hollie Williams, social worker, Amy Abrahams, owner, Efficiency Media, Jill Factor, attorney, senior managing director, Guggenheim Partners, Dr. Yanina Purim Shem-Tov, emergency physician, Rush University Medical Center, Maya Devakiamma, senior technology leader, Discover Financial Services, Thomas Yang, general attorney, Department of Treasury, Snehal Mehta, physical therapist, Optimum Physical Therapy, Chuck Gitles, senior vice president in commercial lending, First Bank of Highland Park, Keith Karchmar, owner, insurance/finance, Diana Semmelhack, co-founder of the Up Foundation, Charlotte Stern, staff crystallographer, Department of Chemistry, Northwestern University, Dori Mages, social worker/author, Chris McDermott, founder, The Pasta Bowl, Kevin Houston, operations at REM-Fit, and Nick Effler, architect at Crate and Barrel. Principal Dr. Nate Carter and Assistant Principal Betty Holzkopf said, “Thank you to our wonderful community volunteers and PTO Committee chairs Zivit Blonder and Bobbi Miller for organizing Career Day."

Images via District 30