By Katy Coakley
Hosted by the Office of Career Programs and Employer Relations, the Career Fair allows students to meet with employers from different organizations like One Earth and Sassetti to discuss interesting internships.
The fair took place in the Igini Sports Forum on Sept. 26.
Angelica Kuca, a tax analyst at ITW, said the company is constantly looking for new talent “to covert interns to full-time staff.”
“We are a tax department, so there’s a big need for our work,” she explained. “We are always busy [and] looking [for work].”
Colin McCubbins, another tax analyst at ITW, said that senior programs are like “pipelines” when it comes to working for the business.
“Both Angelica and I had interned two to three years ago at [ITW],” he said. “I have moved up since then, but we found a lot of success in our intern pool. That’s why we attend these career events to look for new applicants.”
McCubbins hopes to provide a good opportunity to give students “good work experience” as well as networking opportunities.
“We’re a manufacturing Fortune 200 company, so we specifically work for our corporate office in Glenview,” he explained. “Not only do [students] come and work for us, but there are [a ton of] intern days and outings. They [don’t just] work with the team they are assigned to, but also a wide range of different things in our company.”
Luis Cordova Jr., a bilingual recruiter for Maryville Academy, said the nonprofit organization’s goal is to provide travel-based careers to communities such as social services.
“We have a program that focuses on helping moms who are trying to [escape] substance abuse,” Cordova stated. “Instead of going to the jail system, they actually move into a program with their kids. Our staff helps out with the kids.”
Maryville also has a school for children with disabilities and a facility that provides support for children with medical conditions and whose parents cannot afford to raise them.
“[The parents] hand [their children] over to the state,” he said. “We house them and provide medical care around the clock for them.”
The programs Cordova works for are under the Office of Refugee Resettlement, where he helps house minors who arrive at the United States-Mexico border without an adult.
“We have four programs for that and within 24 hours, we [give them] mental health assessments,” he explained. “Every program has a program director and a licensed clinical social worker [as well as] case managers. The goal of those programs is reunification. Our case managers do great work [to make sure] that the minors do not go into human trafficking or child labor.”
Cordova believes the organization will help students learn how to give back to the community.
“My mom and I came to the country when I was 12-years-old, but we didn’t have any of the services” he explained. “I think [Generation Z] always wants to find the cause and that’s very rewarding.”
Gold Odedele, a senior majoring in neurobiology, promoted her own fashion business by selling colorful purses.
“[This business] is to help people in Nigeria,” she stated. “People who learn this craftmanship will learn the opportunity to find a job. It’s also elevating people’s style because beaded bags are unique, and I like to make them comfortable to people’s taste.”
Freshman Belen Guzman is undecided about her major, but said she thinks the career fair will help her find future career paths.
“I want to explore different opportunities with different careers and look at [what’s here],” she said. “There’s new things I can learn [while I’m here].”
