Villa Duchesne Senior Gets Opportunity to Shadow County Executive

Jordan Kuchan, an incoming senior at Villa Duchesne, has chosen a unique way to spend some of her free time this summer. With the help of her college counselor Colleen Murray, Kuchan was able to shadow Charlie Dooley, the St. Louis County Executive, for an entire business day on June 14.

Throughout her day that lasted from 9:00 am to 6:30 pm, Kuchan got to see the inner workings of preparing a press release and sitting in on different meetings. One meeting that she found particularly interesting was one that was held at the end of the day. At this meeting, several county representatives gathered at the Clayton office to pass and negotiate different bills.

Although Kuchan admits that the things going on around her were a bit over her head at times, the overall excitement of the day was what kept her so interested. "When we had time for a break to go out to lunch, he had several people come up and greet him by name even though he didn't know them. It was really cool to see that he has made an impact on the people around him," says Kuchan.

Kuchan, who is very interested in studying international relations and government in college, really gained a lot from her day with Charlie Dooley.  “The whole shadowing experience was very enlightening and it definitely reassured me of my interests. There was so much going on throughout the entire day that the learning opportunities were endless,” Says Kuchan.

There are a few different factors that have sparked Kuchan’s interests in international relations and government. She has always known that she was interested in international relations after having lived in Singapore. However, her recent interest in government was brought on by her AP Government class at school. Her hopes are to major in international relations with a possible minor in government at a college in the Washington, D.C. area.

After having such a positive experience shadowing the St. Louis County Executive, Kuchan has been working with her college counselor to create more shadowing opportunities. In the near future, she plans on meeting with Paul Fingerhut, the Alderman in Des Peres.