Harper Talks

Harper alumnus Dr. Justin Harty, Assistant Professor of Social Work at Arizona State University, shares how Harper College was a pivotal starting point for his journey to PhD, his connection with the Harper professors that inspired his path, and his significant work and research in the field of social work focusing on fathers in the foster care system. Dr. Harty is a 2008 Harper College graduate.

Elk Grove Village Mayor and Harper Alumnus Craig Johnson joins Harper Talks to discuss Harper’s generational impact on this family, the calling for public service, the life of a village mayor, and more. Mayor Johnson is a 1980 graduate of Harper College. He has served as the mayor of Elk Grove Village since 1997.

Harper alumnus Jalen Little joins Harper Talks and discusses finding community, developing leadership skills, taking the least expected path, and helping prospective students discover what they have in their backyard in his role as Admissions Specialist at Harper College.

Recent Harper College alumni join Harper Talks for a conversation on why they chose Harper, their educational experiences as students, and where they landed in their careers. Alex Alexandrov (‘20) talks of the rigor of Harper’s Nursing program, the impact of scholarships, and her job as a registered nursing working with heart patients. Arman Rahman (‘16) talks about his time on the Harper Speech T...

Harper alumna Leslie Van Wolvelear discusses why she chose Harper after high school, her path to being an accountant and passion for teaching it to others, her dedication to lifelong learning, and role as professor and Chairperson of the Accounting Program at Oakton Community College where she has pioneered gamification teaching techniques for her students.

Alumna Dr. Shelomi Gomes lived in four different countries before arriving in the US and enrolling at Harper College as adult student. At Harper she excelled in her studies and became a national speech team champion. Dr. Gomes joins the Harper Talks podcast to discuss her unique path to Harper, making lifelong connections as a student, earning her advanced degrees, including a PhD in industrial or...

Harper Talks welcomes alumnus Joe Plazak, a senior principal software developer at Avid Technology. Plazak reminisces about serving as a student trustee and talks about his unique career path in music, which includes being an artist, teacher, scientist and engineer, and how it all started at Harper College. Plazak received the Distinguished Alumni Award in October 2022. 

Harper College 2018 alumni Drake Roberts and Anthony Tamras join Harper Talks to discuss their journey as students and entrepreneurs. Starting with an idea that formulated in their high school business incubator class, the pair discuss the pursuit of education at Harper College and DePaul while becoming full-fledged entrepreneurs and co-founders of DeoBlock, a company that specializes in reusable...

Harper Talks welcomes alumnus Erik Horvat who discusses his time at Harper College and his educational path beyond at both Purdue and Columbia. Horvat is the Managing Director, Head of Real Estate Americas at Olayan America. He discusses finding his way from accounting to real estate development and career milestones such as his lead role in the redevelopment of the World Trade Center. Horvat...

Dr. Christopher Schneider joins Harper Talks and guest host Jeff Julian for a discussion about his profound impact upon academia, sociology, and his published work that discusses the connection between information technology and police work. Dr. Schneider graduated with a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Northeastern Illinois University and his master’s in sociology from Northern Illinois Unive...

Harper Talks welcomes Brenda Knox, Founder and President of Financial Elements, Inc., in a discussion about navigating uncertainty within her career path and how her experience at Harper has contributed to her professional success. She graduated from Roosevelt University with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and a major in accounting after her time at Harper College. Knox received...

Harper Alumna Shannon Plate, Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor (LCPC), joins Harper Talks for a discussion about returning to Harper as an adult student and her successes as a practicing clinician and author. Plate graduated from Harper College in 1999 and received the Distinguished Alumni Award in 2010. She received the Motorola Award for Excellence and was a medalist in national competiti...

Harper Talks welcomes Roberto Lopez to speak about how his time at Harper College provided the foundation for his current career as a consulting director at CCS Fundraising. Lopez attended DePaul University for his bachelor's degree in finance and the Harris School of Public Policy at the University of Chicago for his master's degree. Lopez received the Outstanding Recent Alumni Awa...

Tom Schnecke, Vice President and Director of Operations and Engineering for CBS2 Chicago, joins Harper Talks to discuss the experiences that have led him to his current career. Schnecke was named a Distinguished Alumni honoree in 2009, and he worked as the faculty advisor of WHCM for 17 years, which played an integral role in his future within broadcasting.

Mike Terson, Superintendent of Communication and Marketing for the Buffalo Grove Park District, joins Harper Talks to discuss his time as public address announcer for both the Chicago Wolves and Cubs, being named a Distinguished Alumni honoree, his time as student at Harper in the 1990s and how his experience at WHCM and as a speech team student helped lay the groundwork for his future career.

Assistant Professor of Communication Arts Brian Shelton is joined by Harper Alumna Kristina Gaardbo, who graduated from the Nursing Program at Harper College and now co-owns the incredible Chicago Culinary Kitchen after pursuing her passion for culinary arts. Gaardbo received her Certified Cicerone certification from Siebel Institute. Gaardbo helped her husband, Greg, with his Shockwaves Promotion...

Assistant Professor of Communication Arts Brian Shelton speaks with Genevieve Frey Moylan, who is a graduate of the Harper Nursing Program and is currently the Director of the Cardiac Care Unit of the Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, Illinois. Moylan has a Master of Science in Nursing and is both a Registered Nurse and a Certified Pediatric Nurse. Moylan began her journey at...

Assistant Professor of Communication Arts Brian Shelton is joined by Michael Nejman, who is a man of many talents all ranging from being an author, agent, music connoisseur, master conflict resolver and notably a 2013 Harper Distinguished Alumni. As the first of his family to go to college, Nejman made the most of his experience at Harper by getting involved at the student newspaper, The Harbinger...

On this month's episode of Harper Talks, Associate Professor of the Arts, Brian Shelton, is joined by Harper’s own distinguished alumni, Jim Gallo. Gallo reflects on his time at Harper, how he stayed detached from the experience and community as a student and how his own educational, professional and personal journey eventually led him back to Harper where he became highly involved in the communit...

On this months episode of Harper Talks, Assistant Professor of Communication Arts, Brian Shelton, is joined by Harper's own distinguished alumni and community pillar, Laurie Turpin Soderholm. Currently acting as Senior Project Manager of Global Access Meetings, Turpin Soderholm revels about how her time at Harper led to not only her academic success, an alumni of both Georgetown and Northwestern r...

Jacob Sadoff is co-owner of Restore Hair and an active coach of Harper College's Speech Team. His time at Northern Illinois University was spent learning and opening a toy distributor with his twin brother Jordan. Over time the pair would found even more companies such as Goldmax and Restore. Tune in as Jacob and Assistant Professor of Communication Arts Brian Shelton discuss philanthropy, the com...

Assistant professor of communication arts, Brian Shelton joins director of theatre, Laura Pulio Colbert to discuss her own journey from Harper to Harper. Colbert was a Harper College graduate, class of 1983, and eventually made her way back to serve the college as a staff member. Join the pair as they discuss Colbert’s own experience with community college and the transfer process, reflect on Harp...

In a special bonus episode of Harper Talks Assistant Professor of Communication Arts, Brian Shelton, is joined by his colleagues to discuss the adjustments and adaptations they have made this past year in response to the shifting educational environment. Assistant Professor of Physics, Raeghan Graessle, Assistant Professor of Business and Entrepreneurship, Marie Lapidus and Associate Professor of...

2013's Distinguished Alumni award-winner Jamie Pritscher comes from a family of entrepreneurs, drawing from that when she co-founded That's Caring, a socially-conscious and eco-friendly solution to gift baskets. Jamie also founded nuphoriq, a full-service marketing agency specializing in the catering industry, as well as sitting on the boards of the Community Character Coalition and Friends of Bus...

2019 Distinguished Alumni Greg Cadichon injured his hamstring training for a National Junior College Athletic Association track meet while enrolled at Harper College. He is no stranger to hardship, and the experience proved to be an education. During the recovery from his injury he became fascinated with the rehabilitation process, eventually founding Rebound Fitness in Northbrook. Join Greg and A...