More than 30 Higher Education Administration and Policy students and alumni gathered on December 7 for an alumni panel and reception titled "Perspectives on the Practice: An Evening with Higher Education Administration and Policy Alumni." Seven alumni panelists from five different Chicagoland institutions reflected on their first years as higher education practitioners. They shared career advice as well as insights into current issues dominating the field.
Panelists included Nancy Dunham (MS05), Assistant Dean for Water Tower Campus Academic Programs, Loyola University Chicago; Shannon Kennedy (MS06), Coordinator for Academic Affairs, College of Architecture, Illinois Institute of Technology; Kim Laczynski (MS06), Assistant Director for Change Management, University of Illinois at Chicago; and Sean O'Neil (MS02), Technical Advisor - Internal Control, Financial Control and Accounting, BP America.
The three alumni panelists on staff at Northwestern were Susanna Calkins (MS05), Senior Program Associate, Searle Center for Teaching Excellence; Joan Trimuel (MS04), Associate Director, Auditing Operations; and Tedd Vanadilok (MS04), Director, Asian/Asian-American Student Affairs.
Panelists shared many ideas on how to build and strengthen a career in higher education, from learning how to differentiate oneself with the MSEd degree to building relationships with mentors and understanding how one's role impacts the big picture of an employer's operations.
"It's important to understand the skill set you're building and how it applies to many different environments," O'Neil says. "I may work in finance, but a big part of my job is rolling out training to business units across the globe."
Regardless of the institution type or specific job, Laczynski advises higher education professionals to understand the politics of their departments and institutions. "It's important to be a diplomat," she says. "We all need to be change agents."
Several panelists addressed the importance of building and nurturing the relationships within a professional network. According to Vanadilok, relationship building is essential to success in being a publicist for yourself and your department as well as being the consummate professional and colleague. "Make yourself indispensable to others," he says.
Students in attendance were encouraged by the diversity of higher education jobs represented by the panelists. Panelists and attendees alike had an opportunity to network and glean insights from one another during a wine and cheese reception following the panel.
Additional alumni panels will take place in the coming year. For anyone interested in learning more about the Higher Education Administration and Policy Program, the next information session is 5:30 p.m. on March 14 at 303 Annenberg Hall.
Caption:
Panelists were (from left) Nancy Dunham, Shannon Kennedy, Tedd Vanadilok, Kim Laczynski, Sean O'Neil, Susanna Calkins and Joan Trimuel.
Last Modified: 8/14/09