50p
The Bridge Between
Near the end of term 1, Brentwood hosts a speaker series allowing Grade 12 students to explore different career pathways and meet past Brentonians as they reflect on their journey to their professions. On Saturday, the Grade 12s signed up for their two sessions and were given the opportunity to spend extra time with the speakers at lunch. The final year of high school is crucial to the field of study that the students want to pursue in the future; however, like many of the speakers who shared their stories at the event, there is no certainty that we will always follow the career path that we may at first take an interest in.
Our speakers included David Medler, Privett ‘86 an Assistant Professor at the University of Victoria. Mr Medler began his journey at Queens University where he aspired to become a computer scientist, but ended up taking an interest in the field of psychology after it was recommended by his peers. He then expanded on this field as he travelled to Carnegie Mellon, Milwaukee and all the way back to Victoria today.
Mollie Green, Mackenzie ‘15 is a recent Bachelor of Commerce grad from the University of Victoria taking an interest in the social sciences, but it was commerce in which she was able to gain experience through her Co-Op program and enjoyed the most. After graduating, she has returned from her trip to Europe and plans to pursue a career in communications in the UK or Canada.
Greig Walsh, Ellis ‘91 is an engineer and entrepreneur who is the co-founder of Green Light Innovations. Greig had a passion for building and mathematics from a young age and went to on pursue engineering at UBC. After the first two years, he decided to take a break and explore the world. Through his expedition he was able to reflect on himself and finished engineering at UVic. Today, he continues to grow his company and explore the future of cars and transportation. Thomas W, Privett ‘20 claimed “I was fascinated by how many different types of engineers there are and how important their jobs are.”
Beatrice Bate, Mackenzie ‘85 is a lawyer who finished her education at Carleton University in Ottawa studying criminology. She then travelled to UCL where she completed her LLB and now practices as a trial lawyer.
John Boehme is an artist and educator who grew up in California and graduated from the Army & Naval Academy. He later went to UVic where he received a diploma in arts. Today, he teaches visual arts, performance and sculpture at Camosun College. Apart from his teaching lifestyle, he continues to field artistic exhibitions all across the country.
Natalie Carr, Allard ‘11 graduated from UVic in Child and Youth Care. She accepted her first job in 2015 as a Child Development worker. She is currently a Regional Director for the Canucks Autism Network where she strives for increasing opportunities for kids who have learning difficulties.
Harrison Pokrandt, Privett ‘13 is an exploration geology consultant who received his bachelor of science at Carleton University. Apart from his studies, he was heavily involved in student societies and has travelled across several countries to pursue his career and share his interest in music.
All of these Brentonians have worked hard to achieve excellence and shared a genuine interest for their careers. These individuals were not completely sure about their professions from the beginning. It is the journey that they took throughout their lives that shaped the career they choose to pursue. There were times when many of them were perplexed about what courses to take in university or what fields to acquire jobs in. It is all right to experiment and flow with the process, as we will all, at some point in our lives, change our mind and discover new phenomenon that we have never explored before.
The success of the day is due to Ms Beausoleil and Ms Weinberg who organized the event for the Grade 12s. The next speakers series event is “The Fork in the Road” that will be taking place on January 15th, 2020.
Areeb S, Rogers ‘20
Our speakers included David Medler, Privett ‘86 an Assistant Professor at the University of Victoria. Mr Medler began his journey at Queens University where he aspired to become a computer scientist, but ended up taking an interest in the field of psychology after it was recommended by his peers. He then expanded on this field as he travelled to Carnegie Mellon, Milwaukee and all the way back to Victoria today.
Mollie Green, Mackenzie ‘15 is a recent Bachelor of Commerce grad from the University of Victoria taking an interest in the social sciences, but it was commerce in which she was able to gain experience through her Co-Op program and enjoyed the most. After graduating, she has returned from her trip to Europe and plans to pursue a career in communications in the UK or Canada.
Greig Walsh, Ellis ‘91 is an engineer and entrepreneur who is the co-founder of Green Light Innovations. Greig had a passion for building and mathematics from a young age and went to on pursue engineering at UBC. After the first two years, he decided to take a break and explore the world. Through his expedition he was able to reflect on himself and finished engineering at UVic. Today, he continues to grow his company and explore the future of cars and transportation. Thomas W, Privett ‘20 claimed “I was fascinated by how many different types of engineers there are and how important their jobs are.”
Beatrice Bate, Mackenzie ‘85 is a lawyer who finished her education at Carleton University in Ottawa studying criminology. She then travelled to UCL where she completed her LLB and now practices as a trial lawyer.
John Boehme is an artist and educator who grew up in California and graduated from the Army & Naval Academy. He later went to UVic where he received a diploma in arts. Today, he teaches visual arts, performance and sculpture at Camosun College. Apart from his teaching lifestyle, he continues to field artistic exhibitions all across the country.
Natalie Carr, Allard ‘11 graduated from UVic in Child and Youth Care. She accepted her first job in 2015 as a Child Development worker. She is currently a Regional Director for the Canucks Autism Network where she strives for increasing opportunities for kids who have learning difficulties.
Harrison Pokrandt, Privett ‘13 is an exploration geology consultant who received his bachelor of science at Carleton University. Apart from his studies, he was heavily involved in student societies and has travelled across several countries to pursue his career and share his interest in music.
All of these Brentonians have worked hard to achieve excellence and shared a genuine interest for their careers. These individuals were not completely sure about their professions from the beginning. It is the journey that they took throughout their lives that shaped the career they choose to pursue. There were times when many of them were perplexed about what courses to take in university or what fields to acquire jobs in. It is all right to experiment and flow with the process, as we will all, at some point in our lives, change our mind and discover new phenomenon that we have never explored before.
The success of the day is due to Ms Beausoleil and Ms Weinberg who organized the event for the Grade 12s. The next speakers series event is “The Fork in the Road” that will be taking place on January 15th, 2020.
Areeb S, Rogers ‘20