March Career Panel Speakers
Law Professionals
The last Friday of every month, our school counseling department hosts a career panel of speakers. Each month, the career speakers ranged from different job sectors such as: business, health sciences, and public service among other careers. For the month of March we were honored to host law professionals from the San Diego County. The following were our participating guest speakers:
Our guest speakers, Ynonne, Wendy, and Jesse spoke to our students who are interested in the law profession about their respective careers in the law field. Students also had the opportunity to ask questions that ranged from: how did they get interested in their respective careers and describing their typical day, among other questions.
The guest speakers powerfully connected with our students when they shared with them their personal experiences that led them to their careers. One speaker, Jesse Navarro, disclosed to our students that he was born in Tijuana, Mexico and moved to the United States when he was a teenager. He stated, "I came here from Mexico not knowing the language, not knowing the history, not knowing anything about our wonderful country here in the US." Jesse also shared his educational struggles with our students because he did not know the English language. Not many believed that he could become a police officer. However, he continued pursuing his career goal and went to Miramesa College. He went to school during the night and took classes in the criminal justice program. During the day he worked as a welder. It took him 3 years to graduate from Miramesa College and afterwards applied for jobs as a police officer. Initially he was rejected multiple times, however, he obtain a job as a police officer in San Diego.
Our guest speakers also gave our students great advice on pursuing a professional career in law. Yvonne and Wendy advised our students to always have a positive attitude. Having a positive attitude is key to getting and keeping a job regardless of the field that one is in. Jesse also added that if individuals wants a career in the field of law, they need to have a clean criminal record. In addition, the guest speakers advised our students that they have to work hard and get good grades in school.
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| Our speakers talking to our students |
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| Some of our students stayed after the session to speak to our guest speakers! |
Get to know our guest speakers:
Yvonne Kilmer: She has over 15 years of professional services management. She currently serves as Manager of Benefits & Human Resources for Procopio, Cory, Hargreaves & Savitch, a 150 attorney law firm. She has experience in staff recruiting, benefits, and accounting. Yvonne is a graduate from Sweetwater High School and also received her bachelor's degree in Political Science from San Diego State University.
Wendy Connor: She is a Native San Diegan who attended Kearny High School. Wendy's legal career began in 1977 as a high school sophomore with the assistance of her high school counselor. She worked in a small law firm office until 1995 where she now works as an office manager. After 20 years at BB&K, she continues to enjoy working with lawyers and support staff to make everyone look good. Wendy lives with her husband in Alpine. They have six children and ten grandchildren.
Jesse Navarro: Jesse is currently the Director of Community Relations, and has been since 2003. He organizes community meetings, town hall events and public safety presentations. He also represents the DA's office with high level Mexican officials. From 1990-2002, Jesse was a business owner. He owned and operated his investigative and consulting business in San Diego County providing expertise throughout the United States and Mexico on criminal, civil, and business cases. Jesse was also a law enforcement officer from 1974-1990.
For more information:
If you would like more information about the law field and/or the guest speakers who came in to speak to our students, please feel free to click on the following links:
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| http://www.sdcda.org http://www.procopio.com http://www.bbklaw.com |
We want to thank our amazing guest speakers!
Please join us next month on Thursday April 30th for our Media, Arts, and Entertainment career panel speakers!