Kendall College has countless alumni that work in the hospitality industry in Chicago. This summer, the Alumni Relations office toured Chicago making five stops along the way to visit our alumni at work and see how their experiences at Kendall helped them to be where they are today.
Before we left for the day, we stayed on campus to visit our three Hospitality Management alumni, Maureen Schofield ’08, Melissa Koll ’09 and Deborah Bosco ‘91. “I returned to Kendall so that I could work as an event planner with people who are dedicated professionals. It is exciting to work in a place where we can provide students the experience that I personally found to be so valuable when I was a student,” said Events Specialist, Melissa Koll.
Dining Room Manager, Maureen Schofield, valued her time as a student at Kendall College. “I was able to meet students and faculty with so many industry connections and that opened doors to internships and jobs where I learned more than I could have ever anticipated.”
Our first visit was the Public Hotel to visit Ana Katarina Cornelio ‘14, Sales and Catering Coordinator, Michelle Lucas ‘13, HR Coordinator and Rayna Zaharinova ‘14, Housekeeping Coordinator. “Students preparing to graduate should learn all they can from Capstone. It’s a stressful experience but it is a great learning experience,” said Zaharinova.
Our second stop was to visit Josh Montellano ‘13, Manager at Foodlife in the iconic Watertower shopping center on Chicago’s Magnificent Mile. “Kendall taught me all the necessary skills, from professional development to the dress code, to step into a management role,” said Montellano.
The third stop was the Hotel Chicago to visit Front Office Director, Imran Jivani ‘11 and Group Room Coordinator, Jennifer Bastion ‘13. “Dean Tinnish taught me skills that I could actually apply to my job. It’s rewarding to see those skills and efforts appreciated by our guests,” said Bastion. When asked what advice Bastion would give to a student she replied “Be ready to work really hard. If it’s possible, it can happen. Keep dreaming!”
The last visit was with Felicia Mayden ‘12 and Patty Hanley ’11, A.A.S Baking and Pastry, both Pastry Cooks at Cicchetti. Felicia completed the 2+2 program to obtain a degree in Baking and Pastry as well as Hospitality Management. “I have learned so much in the back of the house over the last two years. Who knows where I will be next but I hope to take everything I’ve learned from my Kendall and working experience and use it in a front-of-house position.”
