About eight times each year, alumni take time out to participate in career panels, sharing their professional experiences and insights.
Hosted by the UNC Alumni Association, Norma Juarez, assistant director of Alumni Relations, says the panels are part of a range of resources available to alumni. “The Bear Network gives you access to thousands of UNC alumni career connections. This network exists to support your career after college through industry insight and valuable introductions.”
Panels are offered in-person or via Zoom.
“The virtual platform gives alumni around the world the opportunity to participate, which they wouldn’t be able to do if we only hosted in-person events,” Juarez says. “Last fall we had an alumnus join us from the Czech Republic. How cool is that?”
The panels are open to alumni and students interested in gaining understanding and insights for their careers and work life. Panels have ranged from “Understanding Your Worth” to “Careers in Government.”
The Zoom screenshot above was from one of last year’s panels, “Diverse Identities at Work.”
Alumnus, UNC Alumni Association Board Chair and financial representative for Modern Woodmen of America, Quinston “Q” Daugherty (‘97, ‘00, Music with a master’s in Theory and Composition), facilitated the conversation with participating alumni:
- Kevion Ellis ’18, International Affairs with a Political Economy emphasis, and minors in Africana Studies and Economics. Ellis is a lobbyist at Education Minnesota (the State of Minnesota’s public teachers union).
- Elise Flores ’15, Communication Studies with a minor in Sociology. While serving on the panel, Flores was a workforce specialist for Arapahoe Douglas Workforce Center and a career coach for the Douglas County Youth Employment program.
- Tim Hernández ’19, English with emphases in Secondary Education and Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL). Hernández is associate manager of the high school leadership program for the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute and an English and emerging multilingual teacher at North High School in Denver Public Schools.
- Stephanie Moir ’06, Sport and Exercise Science with a minor in Dance. Moir is a community initiatives and training coordinator for Hawai‘i Public Health Institute.
- Flor Varela ’13, ’19, Spanish Education with Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CLD) and Bilingual Bicultural Education endorsements and a master’s in Foreign Language: Spanish Teaching. Varela teaches Spanish at Greeley Central High School.
–Debbie Pitner Moors
