Giving
The idea of bringing high school students in to where I work connects with what I want to do to help them. It’s rewarding.” Pargola arranged one-on-one interviews for Parsons with New Jersey Department of Children and Families lawyers and staff in an attempt to give him a look at the legal and governmental facets of the job. He arranged a tour of the State House to provide an historical perspective of New Jersey, an opportunity to see how the government is structured, and an idea of what is entailed in the work done there. Parsons appreciated the overview, but he was particularly fascinated by Pargola’s work, which had to do with resolving legal matters through various interventions designed to help children and families move forward and to protect those in any danger. “He worked with appeals in cases where families applied for services for youth with developmental disabilities. He worked with appeals in cases of child support,” Parsons says. “He also worked with people to streamline the caseload by using computer programs.” Though some might consider a budget hearing tedious, Parsons was enthralled. Watching the actual machinations of government convinced him even more that he was pursuing the right interests for him. As he works through the college application process, he is focusing on institutions that provide gateways to the legal profession. His only regret is that he won’t be able to do it again. “That’s why I went to the budget hearing in April,” he says. “I wanted to soak in as much as I could. It was helpful for me in narrowing down what I want to do after high school. It has made things easier.” Last spring, Mason El-Habr ’18 and Anthony Baum ’18 had the opportunity to spend time with Mark Kuhn ’08, who started Oat Foundry, an engineering firm that makes a number of things including “split flap” display boards, like those found in train stations and airports, that can flip numbers and letters to present various messages. The company’s motto is “We Build Cool Stuff,” which no doubt appealed to budding young engineers like El-Habr and Baum. The two students were charged with creating boards designed to show displays that could be used in restaurants, bars, or hotels and then posted their work to the Oat Foundry YouTube channel. “It was really cool,” says El-Habr, who is the captain of HGP’s debate team and president of the robotics club. “We got to work with and contribute to the company. They set us up on our own, gave us equipment, and allowed us to create something interesting.” Jack Elliott and Matt Doucette’s LEAP experience was cool in a James Bond sort of way. As part of their experience with Ernst & Young’s Bob Watters ’81, Elliott and Doucette were able to go to EY’s Entrepreneur of the Year Award ceremony, a formal affair at the Kimmel Center that required them to rent tuxedos. “The food was pretty good, and just being around 4
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I enjoy giving back to Holy Ghost, which helped me form everything I’ve gone on to do.” –JOE PARGOLA ’96
A Leap Forward Holy Ghost Prep’s LEAP program would not have succeeded without our alumni sharing their time and realworld knowledge with our students. Thank you to the following alums who have served as LEAP mentors to our students in the first years of this truly distinctive program: KEVIN CUNNINGHAM ’90 CEO, MARKET RESOURCE PARTNERS TIM CURRAN ’86 ASSOCIATE ATHLETIC DIRECTOR, SAINT JOSEPH’S UNIVERSITY
BOB WATTERS ‘81 (CENTER) HOSTED CURRENT HOLY GHOST STUDENTS JACK ELLIOTT (LEFT) AND MATT DOUCETTE (RIGHT) AT ERNST & YOUNG AS PART OF THE SCHOOL’S LEAP PROGRAM.
VINCE D’ANDREA ’99 VICE PRINCIPAL, VILLA JOSEPH MARIE HIGH SCHOOL CHRISTOS DINOULIS ’98 PROJECT MANAGER/CIVIL ENGINEER, BOHLER ENGINEERING
the atmosphere of all those successful people was great,” Elliott says. “It was the culmination of a lot of hard work for people.” Elliott and Doucette met with Ernst & Young partners, learned from tax consultants, networked with several HGP alumni whose careers included advisory, tax, and assurance services, and even sat in on a four-hour meeting of Ernst & Young execs who were discussing an IPO of a client in the renewable energy industry. It was a great opportunity for the students and a worthwhile way for Watters to give back to his alma mater. “Jack and Matt conducted themselves in a way that as an alumnus of Holy Ghost Prep I couldn’t have been prouder,” Watters says. “They showed a great intellectual curiosity and asked about what the company did and what the people did. They were exceptional, and I don’t say that lightly.” The experience was productive for all involved, and Geruson looks forward to many more Holy Ghost students participating in the future and learning more about what they want to do with their futures. “There is no question it is an invaluable opportunity,” Geruson says. “There are still plenty of students who after two years in college change their majors. But if you give them more information, when they get to college they will be more engaged and able to pursue internships, join organizations, or build relationships that will be very helpful down the line.” Michael Bradley is a writer, broadcaster, and teacher who lives in Broomall, Pa. In addition to writing for many national publications, Bradley teaches journalism at Villanova University and is the faculty advisor to The Villanovan student newspaper.
JEFF DI PAOLO ’79 RADIOLOGIST, OPEN MRI & DIAGNOSTIC IMAGING OF WALL, NEW JERSEY FRANK GUARRIERI ’71 MANAGING PARTNER/LAWYER, CURTIN & HEEFNER, LLP MICHAEL GUJDA ’87 SENIOR AUDIT GROUP MANAGER, TD BANK SAM KING ’90 VICE PRESIDENT, MARKET RESOURCE PARTNERS MARK KUHN ’08 CEO/ENGINEER, OAT FOUNDRY LLC MIKE MALLOY ’90 LAWYER, HANKIN GROUP BRIAN MICHAEL ’99 CEO, PHILLIES NATION, LLP & SHIB VINTAGE SPORTS TONY NACCARATO ’84 PRESIDENT/CIVIL ENGINEER, O’DONNELL & NACCARATO TOM NESTEL ’83 CHIEF OF POLICE, SEPTA TONY NUCERA ’89 VICE PRESIDENT, OFFICE DEPOT/OFFICEMAX JOE PARGOLA ’96 ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF POLICY AND REGULATORY DEVELOPMENT/LAWYER, NEW JERSEY DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND FAMILIES RICH PETRONI ’02 PRESIDENT & CEO, HIGH RESOLUTION ENERGY, LLC JACK SHOULDIS ’89 DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR, INDEPENDENCE MISSION SCHOOLS ROB SKALICKY ’78 PLASTIC AND RECONSTRUCTIVE SURGEON, BUCKS COUNTY PLASTIC SURGERY CHRIS VITO ’03 ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS AND MEDIA RELATIONS, TEMPLE UNIVERSITY PAGE PHOTO CREDIT: CATALANO STUDIO
T H E SPIR IT O F
BOB WATTERS ’81 ACCOUNTING PARTNER, ERNST & YOUNG
Ready to Take the Leap? If you are interested in serving as a LEAP mentor, please contact Alexis Gettings, HGP’s director of annual giving and alumni engagement, at agettings@holyghostprep.org. WINTER 2018
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