Oregon’s College Possible Ambassador Board, in partnership with AmeriCorps members, hosted five virtual career panels that were open to AmeriCorps members and College Possible students to learn more about potential career paths. The panels offered were:
Education
- Emily McCaffrey, Oregon Department of Education
- Erin Cathcart, program manager at ELSO Inc. (Experience Life Science Outdoors)
- Katrina Machorro, partnerships director for Portland Workforce Alliance
- Highlight: Attendees were invited to reach out to panelists following the event for more one-on-one questions and further networking.
Master of Business Administration/Entrepreneurship
- Danny Dietz, CEO of Longevity Labs
- Annie Driscoll, senior financial analyst at Kona Brewing
- Paulina Apone, MBA candidate for social entrepreneurship and impact management at Brandeis University
- Will Fruhwirth, former admissions officer and an MBA graduate
- Highlight: Panelists provided an impressive list of local organizations that can be great for small businesses to get acquainted with. They talked in depth about the importance of networking and making your name known to get your business on people’s radar.
Medical School
- Brianna Mishler, pediatric nurse at OHSU
- Erin Nacev, OB/GYN resident at OHSU
- Helen Beshoar, cardiovascular registered nurse at OHSU
- Highlight: It was helpful to hear insights about applying to med school, the importance of clinical rotations, how one can leverage experiences to land a job, and what kind of flexibility can be offered based on various pathways.
Law School
- Nicole Elgin, attorney/partner at Barran Liebman
- Jake Weigler, founder of Praxis Political
- Scott Vingos, chief diversity officer at Oregon State University
- Highlight: Panelists provided terrific insights about the LSAT and had clear ideas about the benefit of exploring options outside of law school. It was great to hear about the very different paths these individuals took to get where they are.
Wellness/Master of Social Work (MSW)
- Amanda Ramirez, psychologist at Portland State University
- Elizabeth Kennedy, sexual violence prevention specialist at Oregon State University
- Aryan Sharif, Master of Public Health student
- Highlight: Each of the panelists got into their field because of their desire to change the system based on their own experiences in social work.
Panelists on all five panels shared their individual career journeys and how they got where they are today. They also answered questions from students and AmeriCorps members, describing the personal roadblocks they faced and suggesting potential strategies to consider.
Attendees who responded to a follow up survey had only positive thoughts to share like, “I thought the panelists were really well rounded, knowledgeable and had a ton of experience in their fields. Very inspiring!”
Thank you to the Ambassador Board members who helped organize these panels, to our AmeriCorps members who led the effort to offers these and to all the panelists who graciously donated their time and expertise for the College Possible Oregon community. We are so appreciative.
