A highlight of the School of Social Ecology's career summit were networking sessions with professionals in urban planning, criminology, psychology and related fields. Photos by Karen Tapia
First-ever event a hit with students and alumni
Anteaters were informed, inspired and, if they stuck around for the fashion show, amused at the UC Irvine School of Social Ecology’s first career summit, which was held Oct. 23 at the Irvine Barclay Theatre.
The morning’s main stage “Urban Studies and Environmental Science and Policy Career Panel and Networking” featured professionals in the field offering tips on how to find jobs and be successful. One recurring piece of advice that was emphasized by all the panelists was to strengthen writing skills because nearly every position requires the ability to effectively communicate in writing.
“The urban planning panel provided a fresh perspective on the social ecology side of how planners are interacting with society and what they’ve done in the field,” said Master of Urban and Regional Planning student Aaron Chu.
“What I really liked was seeing the great amount of diversity in urban planning and how the fields related to that are not necessarily just one thing,” added Erick Montiel, a double major in urban studies and earth systems sciences. “They incorporate the sciences, they incorporate the social sciences, community building and more. It was really refreshing to see that you can come from anywhere and be able to succeed in urban planning.”
One particular panelist “inspired” environmental science and policy major Crystal Nguyen: Orange County Coastkeeper’s Director of Programs Dyana Peña.
“It was a surprise to me,” Nguyen said of Peña’s appearance. “I didn’t know she was going to be there.”
Other panelists included Stacey Chartier-Grable, executive director of OC Habitats; Cithlalli Ramirez, programs manager and outreach coordinator with The Kennedy Commission; Luis Escobedo, the City of Whittier’s assistant director of community development; UC Irvine urban planning & public policy Professor David Feldman, who is also director of Water UCI; Rob Lee, managing director of Laguna Ocean Foundation; and Julia Malisos, principal, planning and community design, WHA - Architects, Planners, Designers. The moderator was urban planning & public policy Professor Richard Matthew, who is director of the Blum Center for Poverty Alleviation.
Happening in the theater’s Jade Room at the same time was “Crafting a Professional Resume and Cover Letter,” which provided valuable information to Anteaters in attendance like psychological science major Emily Baker.
“That was a really beneficial reminder of what I should be working on and learning how to really curate my personal resume to a job that I want instead of making it very general and broad,” said Baker, who was part of the career summit’s student staff.
The information was so well received at the mid-morning main stage “Criminology, Law and Society Career Panel and Networking” that the session continued afterword in the theater’s lobby, where several students surrounded panelists who were more than happy to continue offering assistance.
Among them was U.S. Secret Service Special Agent Jaime Aviles, who told potential applicants to his agency, “You will get to travel and see the world. If you like to travel, this is definitely a great job. If you don’t, it’s definitely not for you.”
He added that long hours are comparable to what one would find in the armed services. “The difference is you make a lot more money than you do in the military,” Aviles said of the Secret Service.
His fellow panelists included Jamila Ha, a Kern County deputy district attorney; Brad Harker, special agent with the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation unit; Julian Harvey, retired chief of police with Anaheim and Huntington Beach and current vice president of security at OCVIBE; Meghan Medlin, chief executive officer at Hub for Integration, Reentry & Employment (H.I.R.E.); Christopher Stantzos, special agent with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and Rochelle Wong, assistant special agent in charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General, Office of Investigations. The moderator was Brandon Golob, associate professor of teaching criminology, law & society.
Going on concurrently in the Jade Room was “HR Hacks: How to Crush Interviews Like a GOAT” with panelists Vanessa Gorski-Villalobos, human resources business partner and senior advisor with Southern California Edison; Lisa Hovagimyan, managing partner with RCI Recruiting; and Angelica Nunez, human resources recruiting partner at Wells Fargo. Social ecology’s Senior Personnel Analyst Lisa Florentes-Mullens was moderator.
During the lunch presentation “Professional Presence: Elevate Your Professional Presence Through Networking, Communication and Dining Skills,” Etiquette Consulting founder and The Power of Civility co-author Jules Hirst showed Anteaters everything from the proper way to sit, fold a napkin and hold utensils to what you should and should not discuss while at a business meal.
“If I’m going to hire you, and you’re going to have to wine and dine my clients, you’d better know how to handle yourself at the table,” she warned the students.
Hirst tailored her advice to the person’s specific role at a business meeting involving food, whether one is being interviewed for a job, part of a company contingent meeting with clients or tasked with scheduling and hosting such an affair. The goal of these meals and other forms of networking, she said, is to build relationships.
“People do business with someone they know, like and trust,” Hirst said. “If they have a position for something you’d like to get into, if that person they are talking to is someone they know, like and trust, they are going to refer [that person], right?”
Afterward, music and psychological science major Khang Nguyen remarked, “I realized how much I have been doing some of the things wrong. Now I have a good idea on how to dine professionally and have good etiquette at the dining table.”
His next stop was the main stage afternoon session “Psychological Science Career Panel and Networking.” Nguyen was drawn by moderator Jason Schiffman, professor of psychological science and director of clinical training, and the panelists: Dr. Carmen Beck, board certified behavior analyst-doctoral at Beck Behavioral Institute; Dr. Lana Delshadi, clinical neuropsychologist at LD Neuropsychological Service; Elizabeth Eusebio, executive director of Breakthrough San Juan Capistrano; Colleen Gillmore, industrial/organizational psychologist at Mercer; Dr. Lori Ochoa, board certified behavior analyst with Bloom Behavioral Health; Isabelle Orlosky, program lead coach at Team Kids; and Raquel Williams, executive director with Thrive Together OC.
“I got to listen to the panelists’ personal stories, how they got to where they are and what companies they are working for, what they believe in,” Nguyen said. “I am really interested in applying to work with them.”
Over at the Jade Room, social ecology Field Study Coordinator Lizet Ceja led “Field Study 101: The Ultimate Guide to Slaying the Field Study Requirement,” which had her detailing the application process, types of available opportunities and strategies to guarantee success in the program.
The informative session was briefly interrupted by veteran justice system executive and UC Irvine alum Mack Jenkins (BA criminal justice, ’77).
“I took field study,” Jenkins told the students. “I worked for 40 years in the criminal justice system here in California. I retired as the chief probation officer for San Diego County. As the chief probation officer, I was the agency head. I had 1,500 employees. We were responsible for about 20,000 adults who were on probation at the time and about 5,000 juveniles. And my social ecology education and field study started that.”
As a senior, Jenkins did his field study work at the Orange County Probation Department.
“I actually worked with a probation officer,” he recalled. “What he did was assign me to different youth cases, so I was like an extension for him. I would literally meet with these kids, go to their homes, see them at school, do all these kinds of things. Today we might call that being a mentor for the youth, but at the time I would go back and report to [the probation officer] on how these kids were doing, and he would have already briefed me on the individual cases. And I had to write a paper, which was the hardest part of all.”
Conceding he was not a strong writer going into field study, being forced to learn on the fly paid dividends throughout his long and storied justice system career.
“That was my field study experience, that was my social ecology experience, and I owe the successes I had in my career to that,” Jenkins said to audience applause.
A highlight of the career summit was the late afternoon “Fashion Show – Do’s and Don’ts of Professional Attire,” which was emceed by Bianca Herrera, client services director with Working Wardrobes. Since 1990, the Irvine-based nonprofit has helped more than 125,000 people overcome barriers to gainful employment.
“I’m super-excited to be here because I am a fellow Anteater,” said Herrera (BA sociology and psychology & social behavior, ’97) to hoots, “yeahs” and zot hand signs from the crowd. “I graduated from college a few years ago, and it’s just so awesome to be back here on the campus again.”
She proceeded to introduce several students in attire appropriate for job interviews – as well as, uh, just the opposite from a contingent of School of Social Ecology leaders: much-too-casual Director of Graduate Affairs & Professional Programs Jennifer Craig Welti, bare-midriffed and slit-skirted Director of Communications Mimi Ko Cruz and Saturday Night Fever-dreamed Dean Jon Gould.
“Jenny’s shirt says ‘give a hoot,’ but I’m not sure she was giving a hoot when she was thinking about what to wear for her interview,” Herrera said disapprovingly.
“I look classy,” Welti shot back as she glided into exaggerated modeling poses.
Yeah, you had to be there … and Nguyen, the music and psychological science major, is glad he was.
“It was a very interesting fashion show that I watched,” he said. “I got to learn what to wear, but not only what to wear but how the kinds of outfits you wear help you create your own brand and what to represent. I will keep that in mind as I continue my career.”
At the Internship & Career Festival that capped the day with food, live music from a deejay and informational tables, Nguyen remarked: “My favorite part of today was all the stories the panelists were talking about. It was very inspiring, and it got me to thinking about my past experiences and how much I relate it to most of their stories. It gave me a lot of inspiration and energy to tell myself that I’m capable of doing anything.”
— Matt Coker
Career Summit photos are available on Flickr.
