Alumni Highlights

 

“They taught you about the correct forks to use and all the behaviors you are supposed to consider. I found it to be really helpful,” Grzywa said. “I still use so many of my experiences at Kishwaukee College. Even just a broad knowledge of what they taught me helps me every day, even though I am no longer a mechanic.”

Vermeer Midwest is a community partner with Kishwaukee College, participating in the College’s DPT advisory committee and providing internships to current students. Kishwaukee College is one of Vermeer Midwest’s main pipelines for certified technicians, and Grzywa said he works closely with the company’s interns who are looking to break into the industry.

“What we tell all our interns is how important continuing education is. A lot of people think you stop learning when you get out of college, and that is the furthest thing from the truth. Kish gives you this great set of base skills that you can take into the workforce and build on that can really take you far in life,” Grzywa said.

Learn more about Kish’s Diesel Power Technology program at kish.edu/dpt.

It was at Kishwaukee College that Meghan Jurgaitis, née Sharp, decided to change her career path. She originally wanted to be a nurse. Jurgaitis was a Certified Nursing Assistant. Her grandmother was a Registered Nurse. Her mother was a Registered Nurse. But a microbiology class taught by Biology Professor Tania Nezrick changed her calling.

 “Tania’s passion for the subject made me fall in love with science in a new way,” Jurgaitis said. “It was during my time at Kish that I flipped my career path and decided I didn’t want to go into nursing. I was more interested in scientific theory and laboratory work.”

Jurgaitis now works as a Physician Assistant and the Rockford area Regional Clinical Director for WellNow Urgent Care. Her role combines her passion for helping patients and instructing new health care workers. Her time at Kish, both as a student and instructor, helped forge her path to becoming a key figure in the regional health care network.

As a working mother, Jurgaitis took classes at Kish off and on for several years. In 2013, she committed to pursuing an advanced degree, starting with general education courses at Kish. As she discovered a passion for biological sciences, Jurgaitis gained experience as a lab assistant at Kish, working under instructors who helped outline potential job opportunities.

 “It really helped me see behind the scenes and know what kind of options I had, and I was able to solidify what I wanted to do for my career,” Jurgaitis said.

Jurgaitis graduated from Kish with an Associate in Arts and Associate in Science degree in 2014. With the help of Kish Advising, she transferred to Northern Illinois University on a five-semester plan and earned a Bachelor of Science in biology with a minor in chemistry. After, she earned her Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies from Rush University in 2017. After her education, Jurgaitis spent many years working as a physician assistant, seeing patients. Still, she carried a passion for teaching that drove her to apply for an adjunct instructor role at Kishwaukee College. In the Fall 2023 and Spring 2024 semesters, she taught biology courses at Kish.

“It was a little bizarre to be the one leading the class at first. But I could draw inspiration from the instructors who helped me,” Jurgaitis said. “Teaching is absolutely an end goal for my career. I don’t think I will ever stop seeing patients, but instructing and lecturing are my passion.”

As an adjunct instructor at Kish, Jurgaitis gained the expertise to meet the job description of her current role as Regional Clinical Director, where she is responsible for hiring, onboarding, educating, and instructing approximately 30 clinicians across 11 clinics. For any aspiring health science students starting at Kish, Jurgaitis encourages keeping an open mind on your educational journey.

“Be constantly curious. Health care is not just about science and medicine. It’s about being human and having empathy for how a person interacts, thinks and feels. The more curious and independently driven you are to learn makes you a better professional in your role,” Jurgaitis said.

Learn more about Kish’s Health Science program options at kish.edu/healthcareers.

 

When Oswego High School fans stormed the football field after the Panthers defeated Lockport High School to reach the Illinois High School Association Class 8A State Finals, Matt Anderson was swept up in the jubilation. Students rejoiced by giving their science teacher high-fives, handshakes and even hugs.

“The greatest part of being a teacher is hearing the kids’ goals and being a small part of them when they achieve. You get to be a part of those small victories and see them grow into the people they want to be,” Anderson said.

These moments — big or small — have shaped Anderson’s path as an educator. More than two decades ago, Kishwaukee College provided him with a launchpad to pursue his career.

After graduating from high school, Anderson initially wanted to pursue a career in pharmacy, starting at Northern Illinois University (NIU). However, he found university lecture hall classes to be a tough transition from high school and registered for courses at Kish to utilize the smaller class sizes.

“I had such a good experience at Kish that I stayed another year and a half,” Anderson said. “I wasn’t ready to be at NIU at that time. There was a lot that I needed to grow into, and Kish was a really important part of that. When I went back to NIU, I was much more prepared to do what I needed to be successful.”

Affordability and stability were key highlights of Anderson’s Kish experience. He said he appreciated the close-knit environment between instructors and students, recalling an anatomy and physiology class where cadavers earned the nicknames Ichabod and Eileen due to certain missing body parts. Anderson graduated from Kish with an Associate in Science in May 2002. He completed his bachelor’s degree at NIU and worked as a pharmacy technician throughout college. However, shortly after completing his degree, Anderson was coaching soccer at a small private school in Sycamore when a science teaching position became available.

“They needed a teacher, and I was looking to do something different. I knew the classroom was the right place for me,” Anderson said.

Anderson returned to NIU to earn his teaching credentials. After a few years of teaching, he stepped away from the profession to help navigate challenges for his terminally ill father. During this period, Anderson completed his master’s degree and studied abroad in Brazil, where he participated in golden lion tamarin research. He also served as a product manager and content creator for education products at Flinn Scientific in Batavia, where he helped write labs for the Savvas textbook “Experience Chemistry” and assisted in creating several tools and models, such as a digital dissection tool for students who opted out of physical dissection labs.

“While working at Flinn, I traveled the country presenting workshops at major science conferences and created resources that are still being used in science classrooms around the world. It was a great experience, and I am very proud of what I accomplished, but something was missing. I noticed I was experiencing a sense of sadness in late August each year. I was missing the new faces pouring into my classroom, sharing their stories and struggles. I was also missing the old faces popping in to update me on life after biology and watching them cross the stage in May. I knew it was time to go back,” Anderson said.

Anderson returned to teaching in the Oswego school district and has been at Oswego High School for the past six years. At Oswego, Anderson teaches biology and honors biology. He assists with the Environmental Action Club and the Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) program, which supports students who aspire to attend college. Anderson also teaches in higher education at NIU as an adjunct instructor in their teaching program, helping prospective educators learn how to build lesson plans and write objectives.

“Teaching is a phenomenal profession. Every day is different, but you get to truly make a difference. I have learned that teaching isn’t just what you do. It’s who you are,” Anderson said.

Outside of education, Anderson is a decorated disc golfer, earning one world and six state championships through the Professional Disc Golf Association (PDGA). He continues to hold ties to Kish through his wife, Jessica, the Director of Marketing and Kish Store Services.

Anderson expressed deep gratitude for all the educators who believed in him and inspired him throughout his time as a student in the DeKalb Community Unit School District, Kishwaukee College and NIU. He also expressed appreciation for the talented and inspirational staff he works with at Oswego and NIU.

It was 1999 when John Boesche received an unexpected phone call about a teaching opportunity at Kishwaukee College. He thought it was a mistake.

“I laughed and told them they had the wrong number,” Boesche said.

However, he followed up on the opportunity, and the more he looked into it, the more it made sense. Now, with more than 25 years of teaching under his belt, Boesche is an Assistant Professor of Diesel Power Technology at Kish, where he can pass along some of the same wisdom he received as a Kish student nearly 40 years ago.

Boesche started in Kishwaukee College’s agriculture mechanics program (now the Diesel Power Technology program) in 1986, even though he had not originally intended to pursue higher education.

“To be honest, I did it to make my mom happy. My mother was a strong advocate for education beyond high school, but I was the type of person who did not like school. We found something at Kish that caught my interest — the ag-mechanics program. It was some of the best grades I ever got in school because it was finally something I wanted to learn about,” Boesch said.

As a student, Boesche recalls instructors like Don Moudy and Arnold “Butch” Griswold providing exceptional hands-on training in their mechanics labs. When Boesche completed the Kish program in 1988, teaching was not a consideration. He initially took an internship with a farm equipment dealership and later farmed and ran an equipment repair business on the side. Boesche kept up with training and technology to meet customer demands and built a reputation that prompted Kish’s Dean of Agriculture/Horticulture/Automotive to reach out about an adjunct faculty position.

“When I went in for the interview, I ran into Butch Griswold, and he offered words of encouragement,” Boesch said. “The interview went really well, and before I was leaving the office, they had offered me the job.”

Boesche started as an adjunct faculty member in Fall 1999 and was made a full-time instructor in Fall 2000. During his time as an instructor, he emphasized the importance of staying up to date with new developments in the field of Diesel Power Technology.

“Since I have been back, it’s been training at every opportunity. You have to remain current with the technology. The thing I try to stress to my students the most is that they will never be done learning. They will have to learn new technology. It’s part of this industry,” Boesche said.

When creating his curriculum, Boesche reflects on his time as a student and on how his instructors made lessons impactful.

“When I am working on developing new lessons, I try to keep in mind what it was like to be a student. Does the material have enough interactive components? How can I make it as relatable as possible?” he said.

Boesche said he is also aware he might be inspiring a new generation of instructors at Kish.

“The desire to give back and help people is something you need as a teacher. If someone is interested in teaching, we encourage them to pursue their dreams. If we can be of assistance in getting anyone started, we’ll help anyway we can,” Boesch said.

Learn more about Kish’s Diesel Power Technology program at kish.edu/dpt. See more Kish alumni highlights at kish.edu/alumnihighlights.

Friendly. Cool. Welcoming. The community-focused Fargo Skateboarding has many positive descriptors thanks to a culture cultivated by owner and Kishwaukee College alumna Ariel Ries. Located in downtown DeKalb’s historic Fargo Theatre building, Fargo Skateboarding is home to an indoor skate park, skate shop and event space. Ries’ innovative vision for constructing her skating hub has roots in her time at Kish.

“The entire time I was working on my associate degree at Kishwaukee College, I had creative outlets. That is where my heart is in making art. I love creating and building,” Ries said.

Ries graduated from Kish in 2005 with an Associate in Science degree before transferring to Northern Illinois University (NIU) to complete a bachelor’s degree in business. Tasked with choosing full-time employment or a college education after graduating from high school, Ries said her time at Kish was an important building block in figuring out her future.

“Going from high school to Kish to NIU, Kish was small enough that it felt like I had support. I could talk to the counselors and the teachers. They helped prepare me for NIU. I don’t know if I would have finished my degree if I had gone to a four-year college right away. It was an important steppingstone for what I needed at the time,” Ries said.

While Ries’ focus in school was to complete a business degree, she remembers her time at Kish fondly for having the opportunity to take electives — specifically art classes. She credits her former art instructor, Michael Bennett, as the most influential person in her education, teaching her about processes and techniques in metalworking that she has been able to apply in many facets of life and business.

“I still make jewelry out of broken skateboards. Breaking down what happens in what order and mapping it all out, it still helps me to this day,” Ries said. “I would spend so much time in the art studio at Kish learning about metalwork. It would be a Friday night, and I would stay until the doors closed because that is where I wanted to be.”

Ries’ love of skateboarding dates back to her childhood, when she and her best friend discovered a couple of old skateboards in a basement and immediately took to the sport. She first turned her hobby into a business venture while attending NIU, opening Smalltown Skate Shop in a DeKalb storefront in 2007 with a business partner. Living in northern Illinois, skateboarding is limited by winter weather. So, when the cavernous Fargo Theatre became available to rent, Ries and several friends pooled their money to create a private space where they could skate during the cold months. The results were positive, and Ries realized that with the proper planning, the skate park could become a public asset. She collaborated with the local Illinois Small Business Development Center to prepare the space, and it opened to the public in 2016. Now, the Fargo building is home to the skate park, skate shop, and the Fargo Venue, which can host galleries, studio space and events. The skate park also specializes in teaching skateboarding for all ages and works with many local park districts to offer programs.

For current Kish students, Ries recommended following what sparks your curiosity to build a well-rounded education.

“I think going to Kish is one of the biggest opportunities to go inward and explore yourself and see what you want to do. Do something that fires you up and do it for fun. You might just need to see things from a different perspective,” she said.

Learn more about Fargo Skateboarding at fargoskateboarding.com. See more Kish alumni highlights at kish.edu/alumnihighlights.

You may have seen her artwork on boxes and wrappers in ALDI or other stores. Her designs are on towels, blankets, stationery and other apparel. The artwork of Kishwaukee College alumna Cecilia Jane is all over, and she credits her time at Kish for helping her develop as an artist.

“I really enjoyed all of my classes at Kish. I lived in the art room. The community was so warm and inviting. Because of that strong community, Kish gaveme the space and time to grow as a person and a professional,” Cecilia said.

Starting at Kish in Fall 2018, Cecilia Schmitt — who goes professionally by Cecilia Jane — was looking for a fresh start from her high school experience, which she described as a bit chaotic and overwhelming with many Advanced Placement courses. She had done freelance artwork in high school and knew she wanted an education in art and design. Wanting to meet new people, Cecilia’s initial goal was to go to college in Los Angeles.

“Being 18 years old, I did not really understand how college or loans worked. I ended up pivoting to Kish, which was such a blessing in disguise,” Cecilia said. “Not only did I save money, but I got money from the state to develop as an artist. There was a lot of flexibility. It was really what I needed at the time."

At Kish, Cecilia embraced an opportunity to try new things while developing her art skills. She credits Miles Halpern, Associate Professor of Art & Design, for passing along skills and theory she still uses in her professional work today. She participated in art shows and extracurriculars like the Table Tennis Club, making connections with peers from various backgrounds.

“I just really appreciated the diversity of people having different experiences than me. Finding that community and being active all helped contribute to being a better future Cecilia,” she said. 
In 2020, Cecilia transferred to Columbia College Chicago, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in illustration. While not officially completing a degree or certificate at Kish, Cecilia said she had a seamless transfer to Columbia thanks to Kish.

“I think Kish really sets you up to move on to your next step. I am grateful that the College does what is necessary to make sure everything is transferable,” she said.

Following her time at Columbia College, Cecilia continued with freelance artwork but wanted to work in a space with other artists. In February 2023, ALDI hired her as a surface designer and in-house illustrator.

“I really enjoy my job because I like creating artwork that is accessible to people. People can afford it and have it in their home. It feels special to create art that people can own and cherish,” Cecilia said.

Additionally, Cecilia co-founded Her Artist Collective with her coworker Karla Santana. Based out of Chicago, the collective aims to amplify new artists, especially female-identifying artists, by helping sell work, create prints, and offer workshops and events to build a community. Cecilia said gallery preparation skills she learned helping with the Kishwaukee College Art Gallery have been instrumental in helping run the collective.

For aspiring art students, Cecilia recommended being open to trying new things, not waiting around for the perfect time to start your work, learning how to handle rejection, and having fun living life.  

See more Kish alumni highlights at kish.edu/alumni. Learn more about Kish’s Art program at kish.edu/art.

For 29 years, Andy Sullivan has served the community through his work at the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office. Sullivan’s tenure with DeKalb County started from an opportunity he discovered through Kishwaukee College’s Criminal Justice program.

“I got into law enforcement through Kish. One of my Criminal Justice program courses was an internship. When I completed my internship, I was Andy Sullivanoffered a role at the Sheriff’s Office due to the contacts I made,” Sullivan said.

Now serving as the DeKalb County Sheriff, Sullivan has worked his entire career with the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office, starting in the corrections department in 1996. By 1998, he transferred to the patrol division and began working as a K-9 handler in 2001. Sullivan was promoted to Patrol Sergeant in 2008, Patrol Lieutenant in 2012 and Chief Deputy in 2015. In 2021, he was appointed Sheriff following the retirement of longtime DeKalb County Sheriff Roger Scott. Sullivan was elected to a four-year term as Sheriff in 2022. While having opportunities to work elsewhere, he realized early on that he wanted to serve in his hometown area.

“This has been my one and only police job. I realized this is where I want to be. This is the community I grew up in, and it is the community I want to serve,” Sullivan said.

A 1993 graduate of DeKalb High School, Sullivan entered Kish’s Criminal Justice program in the mid-1990s and credits the hands-on training opportunities for helping guide his career.

“The instructors I had, and the instructors to this day, are phenomenal. They give you real-world experiences, and it is crucial to inspiring students on their career path,” Sullivan said. “The small, close-knit atmosphere was really great.”

Sullivan said his instructor, who worked for the Illinois State Police (ISP), would regularly allow students to do ride-alongs. Additionally, Sullivan recalls riding in airplanes with ISP when they were conducting traffic details.

Initially, Sullivan did not complete a degree or certificate from Kishwaukee College. However, the drive to advance his education and career brought Sullivan back to Kish, where he completed an Associate in Applied Science degree in Criminal Justice in 2011.

“As an adult learner, it’s always a positive that you can go back and finish your degree. I realized that’s what I needed to do. I wanted my kids to see me finish my degree and complete my aspirations in my career field. I was able to work around my schedule and take classes here and there to make it work,” Sullivan said.

Following his time at Kish, Sullivan later earned a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice and Leadership Management and a Certificate of Graduate Study in Public Management. As an adult learner, Sullivan’s recommendation to current students was to focus on their education early, but know they always have the opportunity to return.

“It is good for younger people to start their college education and try to finish before they are tied down in a career. Life happens, and things can get in the way. But if you focus on your studies and your educational path, you don’t have to slow down,” Sullivan said.

Learn more about Kish’s Criminal Justice program at kish.edu/criminaljustice.