Alumni share professional stories, advice in new speaker series beginning March 4

Want to know what it’s really like out there for SU grads? Join SU Career Services and the Office of Alumni Relations for a series of talks by SU alumni about their unique careers. The Alumni Speaker Series will bring back five alumni to share their career stories with students throughout March and April.

“We think students will benefit from learning about the variety of career opportunities out there,” says Mike Cahill, director of SU Career Services. “Some of the speakers are working in fields different from what they had originally planned, so it will be helpful for students to hear that their college major does not dictate the rest of their career.”

Speakers will reflect on their careers and share insights with students who will soon be entering the workplace. The graduates range from the classes of 1976 to 2007, hail from different academic programs within SU and hold a variety of jobs.

Jennifer Pedde ’04, will kick off the series on Thursday, March 4, at 4 p.m. in Room 409 of Newhouse 1. After graduating from SU’s College of Visual and Performing Arts with a degree in speech communication, Pedde began working for the William Morris Agency. She served as an executive assistant in the personal appearance department, assisting legendary agents booking concerts nationwide for major recording artists and searching for new talent. In 2007, she embarked on a life-changing adventure when she flew to Seoul, South Korea, and lived there for three years, teaching English to people of all ages and levels. Pedde currently is a recruiting consultant for Merit Personnel and Consulting Services in New York City.

Allison Nawoj ’05 (Newhouse/A&S), will speak on March 24. Nawoj is a corporate communications manager at CareerBuilder, the global leader in human capital solutions. She is part of a team that executes media communications programs that effectively promote CareerBuilder news and maintains a positive image for the CareerBuilder brand among job seekers and employers. In addition, Nawoj acts as a spokesperson for the company and proactively promotes CareerBuilder as an expert source for hiring-related topics. Nawoj joined CareerBuilder in March 2008. She holds a bachelor’s degree in public relations from SU.

Michael Rudner ’07 (Newhouse) will speak on March 25. Rudner graduated with a degree in broadcast journalism. In 2009, he went to work for IOMEDIA, a multi-disciplinary creative agency, to help launch the company’s sport and entertainment division. Rudner leads the business development efforts for sports and entertainment, and plays an active role in all sports-related projects. Rudner will be joined by co-worker Steven Korian, executive vice president and part owner of IOMEDIA. Korian is an Emerson College filmmaking graduate who has spent several years producing and editing in the broadcast and film industries.

Gabrielle Bernstein ’01 (VPA) will speak on April 7. Bernstein is a well-known motivational speaker and was recently featured in The New York Times as the next generation guru. Her book “Add More ~Ing to Your Life–A Hip Guide to Happiness” (QNY, 2010) was published in January. Just one year after graduating from the College of Visual and Performing Arts, Bernstein founded the Women’s Entrepreneurial Network, a nonprofit professional organization that connects female entrepreneurs. Today, she continues her work with female networking initiatives. Bernstein founded networking site http://HerFuture.com as a platform for empowerment and guidance among young women.

Bob Eimicke ’76 (A&S) will speak in mid-April (date to be announced). After earning an M.F.A. degree in drama criticism at the Yale School of Drama in 1979, Eimicke was the film critic for the New Haven Register. He later returned to New York as a grants analyst at the New York State Council on the Arts. In 1987, Eimicke received his J.D. with American Jurisprudence Awards in constitutional and criminal law from Fordham Law School. For two years, he worked as a corporate associate with Proskauer Rose. Eimicke continued his career at Sony Pictures and Time Warner as an entertainment and business affairs attorney and was awarded a Primetime Emmy Award in 1996 for  Outstanding Informational Series for “Lost Civilizations.” Eimicke is currently chief counsel for the New York Stock Exchange, where he has been responsible for technology and real estate matters since 2003.

Times and locations for all of these speakers will be finalized in mid-March.

All of the events are free and open to the public. For more information on the Alumni Speaker Series, contact Kelly Lux at 443-3616, kalux@syr.edu.