Jonathan Jablonsky
- Berlin, Wis.
- B.B.A. in business finance, with a corporate finance emphasis; also has earned certificates in information systems and advanced business communication
- What's next: Financial analyst for Thomson West, a legal publisher in Eagan, Minn.
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UW-Eau Claire photo by Bill Hoepner |
Just because he's about to become a financial analyst, don't think of Jonathan Jablonsky as strictly a numbers guy.
Jablonsky, a UW-Eau Claire business finance major who has landed a position with Thomson West following what he calls an "amazing" internship with the large legal publisher, has shown through his involvement in numerous campus activities and organizations that he has at least a few people skills as well.
He's been active in Phi Beta Lambda, an organization that focuses on leadership development, since his freshman year. As PBL's president, he helped the group develop a focus on community service by connecting area organizations with students seeking ways to fulfill their service-learning graduation requirement. He also has served as a mentor to Freshman Year Experience classes, an experience that has him considering teaching one day at the university level.
Jablonsky received several UW-Eau Claire Foundation scholarships during his time at the university, including a prestigious Chancellor's Scholarship awarded to outstanding incoming freshman. He also has worked part time in the university's Learning and Technology Services area since his freshman year, working his way up to providing technology support in labs and classrooms.
"I'm the guy who comes rushing into the classroom when a professor can't make something work," he said.
As he leaves the university, Jablonsky is grateful for his many-faceted undergraduate experience, and in particular the faculty and staff members who helped him along the way.
"UW-Eau Claire does an excellent job of making students feel welcome immediately when they arrive on campus and throughout the rest of their time at the university," he said. "I've found it rare to encounter a member of the faculty or staff who isn't interested in the students and what they are doing."
More on Jonathan Jablonsky
Future plans: This June I will be moving to St. Paul to begin my professional career as a financial analyst at Thomson West in Eagan, Minn. I was offered the position in September 2006 only a few weeks after completing my internship with the company. Interning gave me the best possible look into what my career might be like after graduation. I had a great time interning and am excited to return to Thomson West.
What he liked most about his time at UW-Eau Claire: My favorite thing about UW-Eau Claire really has nothing specifically to do with academics, organizations or work. I think the best part about UW-Eau Claire, and Eau Claire in general, is the people.
Highlights of life at UW-Eau Claire: While at UW-Eau Claire I've had the opportunity to be involved in many different student-led organizations. I've been a member and officer of Phi Beta Lambda (PBL) since my first year on campus. Phi Beta Lambda is a student-led organization that focuses on leadership development. Getting involved in this organization early helped me meet people with similar interests and take a leadership role. Since my freshman year I've held five leadership positions, including president. As president of PBL I focused the organization on getting involved with the community while helping members complete their 30-hour service-learning graduation requirement. Through PBL I have been involved in various service organizations, including the Eau Claire County Humane Association and the March of Dimes, an international organization. Due to my involvement in community service and service-learning within PBL, I was asked to develop a new board position (after my term as president expired) devoted specifically to collaborating with community organizations to provide them with volunteers and PBL members with service opportunities. I currently hold this position.
Besides PBL, I have served as the president of the University Honors Program Organization, a member of the University Honors Council, and a commissioner in both the Student Senate Academic Affairs Commission and Student Senate Finance Commission.
Additionally, I have twice had the opportunity to serve as mentor to a Freshman Year Experience course. The first class I mentored was a religions class that I had taken the previous semester. Mentoring this class provided me with the opportunity to not only help freshman students with their transition to college life, but also to do a small amount of academic mentoring specifically for the class. Currently I am mentor for an honors section of FYE. This class is a freshman seminar open exclusively to honors students. While this class has no specific academic content and meets only once a week, it has a provided me and my mentor partner an opportunity to focus only on issues, academic and nonacademic, that freshmen face, without the pressures of an academic courseload besides. Both of these mentoring experiences have helped me grow in immeasurable ways. One thing that I have taken from these experiences specifically is the realization that I have an interest in one day teaching at the university level.
I also have worked part time since the second semester of my freshman year. I began working at the front desk of the Teaching and Learning Technology Development Center (TLTDC). As departments changed and merged, I came to work at what is now the Learning and Technology Services (LTS) Help Desk. After working at the Help Desk for a short time I was offered a position in LTS Learning Spaces supporting classroom and lab technology. This position has provided with me with an excellent opportunity to apply what I learned in my other positions at LTS and has fostered my already substantial interest in technology.
Proudest college accomplishments: My proudest accomplishment while at UW-Eau Claire was landing an amazing internship! I applied for many, interviewed for a few, and had offers for a couple, and I couldn't have been happier with my selection. My finance internship at Thomson West (a legal publisher) was fairly prestigious, as they hired only one intern from UW-Eau Claire and had only six finance interns at the entire company of approximately 7,000 people. The internship at Thomson West provided me with the opportunity to apply finance and technology knowledge and experience from what I had learned in class, organizations, my on-campus job and a previous internship. I'm proud to be a student at an institution that puts not only student learning first, but provides ample opportunity for students searching for internships and jobs to connect with high-powered potential employers from many areas of Wisconsin and Minnesota. An even greater testimony to the quality of UW-Eau Claire students and the experience we receive here is the fact that these high-powered employers take time out of their schedules (often several days) to come and seek US out!
Advice for incoming students: I have lots of advice for incoming freshman, almost all of which I'm sure they've already heard. One thing I would emphasize to freshman is that college is not something that you "do," but rather, college is something you need to EXPERIENCE. The college experience includes, of course, going to class and learning academically, but also the organizations you're involved in, the friends that you make, the nights that you stay up until 3 a.m. with friends doing absolutely nothing even though you have to be up at 6 a.m., or the 10-page research paper you decide to begin researching for mere days before it is due. Everything you do while you're here, no matter how insignificant some things may seem, are part of the college experience and will shape who you become for the rest of your life. Never lose sight of that.
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