Mentor of the Year Nominees: In Their Own Words

Larry Casey

President and COO

Donahue Schriber

"...our approach to mentoring students is to introduce them to every member of our executive team and to other young leaders in the Company. They participate in Executive and Management Committee meetings and in property-level meetings. Protégés have gone on overnight, out-of-town inspection tours and have visited the properties that are being discussed in the meetings they attend. They are encouraged to participate in these meetings and they ask hard questions from a completely different perspective than from those of us immersed in retail on a daily basis. Their perspective is intelligent and fresh. I strongly recommend that other Orange County executives become Mentors -- they and their companies will benefit from a fresh perspective looking at how they conduct their businesses."

Ly Do

EVP, Global Product Development

Experian

"I take great pride in working with individuals with a strong work ethic, and who have a desire to learn and have high aspirations and ambitions to do their best. The best part of being a mentor is the interaction I have with the mentee and their classmates. The UCI Paul Merage School of Business has many diverse students from other countries, who have a very mature and knowledgeable professional background.  It gives me great pleasure to hear about the impact I have on him or her. This could be from simple advice or just my perspective on career goals or choices they are making with their chosen career path. Seeing that they are able to move in the direction that they believe will bring them closer to reaching the next milestone of their professional career development gives me the best reward as a mentor."

Thomas Hartline

President

Navitas Companies

I mentor at Paul Merage because Steve Vengrow and Leckie Reeves were my mentors at GSM. Throughout my career I have been extremely fortunate to have a number of excellent mentors that have provided valuable assistance in my growth personally and professionally. Now as a mentor myself I enjoy the opportunity to interact with MBAs. In doing so it helps keep me current with changing methodologies and new business practices. The students of the Paul Merage School are a great group of individuals and it is fun to hopefully offer them some help along their way.

 Leslee Perlstein

 Human Resources Consultant

 After 35 years in the Human Resources field, I wanted to "give back"; particularly in the area of career development. As a senior executive of the human resources departments of two major American entertainment companies, I have many experiences to share. Although it's a cliche, "giving back" as a UCI mentor has gratified me in many ways. It has allowed me to continue to guide students who will become employees in the very near future on how to develop their own hard and soft skills. It has been a priviledge and honor to mentor the Paul Merage MBA students and I hope to continue this in the future.

Pete Todd

Vice President, Worldwide Sales

TransDimension

"I have been mentoring year after year because I get a clear sense that sharing my experiences and perspectives helps these amazing students. I get attached to them and sincerely want to see them succeed - not only in their profession, but in their Life.  The ideal outcome is one where a new relationship and friendship forms that continues beyond the formal school year and enables us to share our mutual experiences for many years. However at a minimum, my goal is that the student gets some broader perpsective from our time together that enables them to be more confident and assured in their studies, in their profession and in the personal life. "

John Waldeck

Vice President

Pacific Life

 "I am a mentor to support the advancement of the Paul Merage School of Business. As a former FEMBA student, I have benefited from my degree and my relationship to the School. As a mentor, I am also able to provide personal guidance and industry context to a student's education. I hope to solidify these student's career choice and prepare them for their life after UCI."