Greyhound Spotlight

Alec Katz '13

Alec Katz '13 founded Curious Cardinals, an educational program offering a variety of specialized classes taught by a team of college students to high school and middle school students in an effort to address the gap in learning that COVID-19 has caused this year. Alec and his team are determined to help their communities by instilling curiosity in the minds of as many students as possible. In addition to founding Curious Cardinals, Alec is a member of the Aerospace Engineering Class of 2023 at Stanford University. 

How did JTD help you get to where you are today? 
JTD has instilled a love for learning and has fostered curiosity that continues to drive me each day. JTD has created friendships that will last a lifetime. I am lucky to have had such amazing teachers, like Ms. Hura, that I have stayed in close contact with and are available if I am ever seeking support or advice. 

What is your favorite memory of JTD? 
My favorite memory at JTD was career day. I think it is very important for young students to have mentors that they can look up to. Javier Arango (parent ’12, ’09), with whom I was paired with for career day, was a mentor to me. His love of learning and passion for flying ignited a spark in me that shines brighter every day. I never would have thought that when he took me around Van Nuys airport on JTD career day, I would be a licensed pilot, studying Aerospace Engineering at Stanford eight years later. I feel so privileged to have had inspiring mentors like Javier in my life, and I know that even if I can share a glimpse of his passion for learning with Curious Cardinals students, it will be a success. 

How have The 5C’s influenced your life? 
The 5C’s have created a moral foundation that has deeply influenced my life. In high school, I founded Soles4Good, a social microenterprise that sources and provides shoes to Senegal’s street youth. Now in college, Curious Cardinals has given me another opportunity to practice The 5C’s. Curious Cardinals is caring because we help students that have compromised learning situations find meaningful classes and uses cooperation since our team works together to share materials and collaborate. Curious Cardinals also uses common sense because we have filled a gap that the pandemic has created, consideration because we listen to students and help them find their passions, and courtesy because we welcome students from all backgrounds to promote diversity and exchanges of different perspectives. I urge you to consider the 6th C, curiosity, that is fundamental to our mission. As our motto states, ‘stay curious.’ We continue to stay curious and inspire curiosity in our students. 

Do you have any advice for current Greyhounds or young alumni?
Find your passion and pursue what you love. At Curious Cardinals, we help students find their unique passions not only by ‘tutoring’ them in the conventional manner, but mentor them and ignite a spark for learning. We are not just tutors - we are friends, we are coaches, we are mentors. We make ourselves available by text for our students if they need advice on any subject.

You can find out more information about Alec’s pursuits on Instagram at @curiouscardinals and on their website, curiouscardinals.com.
 
 
 

Other Greyhound Spotlights

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  • Paris Coleman '03

    Paris Coleman, "The Yogi Realtor"
     
    Tell us a little about what you do at eXp Realty? 
    I recently joined eXp Realty, a virtual, cloud-based real estate brokerage and I'm very happy with my decision!  At the company, I am considered an associate broker who specializes in residential real estate in the greater Los Angeles area.  EXp has been rapidly growing over the past few years and I'm excited to grow my business as the company continues to grow.  One of the coolest perks about being apart of the brokerage is that it is a publicly traded company so I can use a portion of my commissions to buy stock and become a part owner of the company.
     
    How did you get involved in Real Estate? 
    I first got my real estate license 5 years ago, about a year after graduating from Georgetown University.  I graduated from college with a degree in psychology in 2013 and at first I was unsure about what career path I wanted to go into.  I really enjoyed psychology and working with people but I didn't necessarily want to become a therapist or psychologist.  At the end of 2013 I had an amazing opportunity to live in Rome, Italy for a few months and during that time I was able to reflect on what type of life I wanted to have post-college.  I desired to become a business woman who could set her own hours, make her own professional decisions, not have a limit on how much money she could make, and help others achieve their goals all at the same time...so I decided to become a realtor!  I hopped into classes at the beginning of 2014 and got my salesperson license that summer.  Last year, I decided that I was ready to increase my knowledge and credibility as a realtor so I began studying for my brokers license.  I am proud to say that I passed my exam a few months ago and am now a licensed real estate broker :)
     
    You also practice and teach yoga, what impact has that had on your life? 
    Yoga has changed my life in so many positive ways.  I first began practicing yoga seven years ago in college after I stopped my ten year journey of playing competitive volleyball.  Once I stopped playing, I needed something to fill my fitness void and a friend of mine encouraged me to try a hot yoga class.  After that first class, I was hooked and never looked back.  I started to really enjoy yoga because of the challenging, physical workout that I would endure but I came to love the practice because of the additional mental and spiritual benefits that I began to receive over time.  Yoga has taught me to turn to my breath to recenter and release tension within during tough times.  It has also helped me form a deeper sense of awareness internally and externally along with making me be more present and balanced.  Once I became aware of all of the amazing benefits that I was receiving from the practice, I decided that I wanted to become an instructor to more easily share the benefits with others.  Two years ago I completed my yoga first teacher training and I've been teaching private and group classes along with putting on my own wellness events ever since.
     
    What is your greatest professional accomplishment?
    I created a brand called P by Paris which is my way of blending my two passions of real estate and yoga while promoting overall lifestyle wellness.  The P's stand for Properties, Poses, and Positivity and through the "P Effect" I want to encourage others to find a better balance between their professional and personal lives while making more time for self-care.
     
    How did JTD help you get to where you are today? 
    JTD definitely gave me a solid foundation to be prepared to take on life past the sixth grade.  I attended Brentwood School after graduating from JTD in 2003 and I felt very prepared academically and socially to succeed at Brentwood.  I believe that the challenging but fun classes that I took in elementary school taught me how to be organized and enjoy learning.  And the after school activities and trips that were offered allowed me to try new and different things to find what my personality connected with the most.  I actually first started playing volleyball at JTD in the fourth grade which became one of my first true passions and ultimately helped me get recruited to play at Georgetown.
     
    What is your favorite memory of JTD? 
    So hard to choose just one! I think I would have to choose the JTD fair.  I felt like it was always a great way to celebrate the end of a school year with your family and friends before going into the summer.
     
    How have The 5C’s influenced your life? 
    The 5C's taught me how to be an overall good person and also how to interact well with others.  I think that it's so important to instill values and morals in children starting at a young age and I'm very grateful to JTD for giving me a solid foundation to grow from.
     
    Do you have any advice for current Greyhounds or young alumni?
    My advice for current Greyhounds and young alums would be to embrace every opportunity that comes your way and don't be afraid to step out of your comfort zone to try something new.  Time flies and it's important to soak up as much as you can while you're young and live life to the fullest!
     
     
    You can follow along with Paris Coleman on Instagram (instagram.com/yogirealtorp), Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/paris.coleman01), LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com/in/pbyparis) and on her website (www.pbyparis.com). 



  • Coach Tim Page

    After 30 years, Coach Page is hanging up his whistle and retiring. Before he heads off, we asked him a few questions about his time spent at JTD.
     
    How has the sports program changed over the last thirty years?
    Not that much at JTD has changed but I’ve definitely seen a change outside of JTD. Many sports are now specialized with the word "Club" attached, requiring kids to play almost all year round.  To me, this is an even better reason why playing three to four seasons of multiple sports at multiple levels makes the JTD elementary athletic program special and great for ALL JTD students.
     
    What is your favorite memory of coaching at JTD?
    There are many, but one is beating Curtis in the 2007 6A championship football game on a Hail Mary pass on the final play. Anthony Ulloa at QB with receivers Austin Webster and Julian Shabahang making "the catch."
     
    What is your favorite JTD tradition?
    Candle Lighting, of course, but I also love Graduation. Being able to teach kids in PE and on sports teams for seven years and watching them grow and mature into wonderful young adults is amazing and fulfilling.
     
    What will you miss most about JTD?
    I will miss kids laughing and smiling all around campus, in hallways, on the playing fields, and in the gym.
     
    What are you most proud of in your thirty years at JTD?
    I'm pround to continue to promote the philosophy that “All Kids Play." Also, I'm pround of creating of the Greyhound “Athletics Code of Conduct” which emphasizes all of the positive things that athletics can teach.
     
    To submit a candidate for an Alumni Spotlight, please reach out to CAchair@jtdschool.org. 


  • Kimberly Kalb '99

    Head of Marketing at Houseparty
     
    Tell us a little about what you do at Houseparty:
    I run marketing which means I'm responsible for introducing Houseparty to new people, keeping our existing users engaged with our product and building and maintaining our brand. My team is also responsible for user support and trust & safety. We answer people's questions, help fix their problems, and do everything we can to keep people safe when they're video chatting on Houseparty.
     
    How did you get involved in Marketing? 
    I went to Wharton for my undergraduate degree where I was exposed to all different facets of business. I knew I wanted to work in television and I was drawn to the storytelling aspects of marketing. I graduated and got my first job at NBC doing TV marketing and I've grown my career from there.
     
    What is your greatest professional accomplishment?
    The day that Houseparty hit the top of the charts in the App Store! We built Houseparty and worked to build traction through word of mouth and it was so rewarding to see the app catapult to number one.
     
    How did JTD help you get to where you are today? 
    JTD laid the foundation for my education and got me excited about learning. I learned that I loved problem-solving in my math classes and reading stories in my English classes.
     
    What is your favorite memory of JTD? 
    I was a big fan of Music for Lunch Bunch. My friends and I loved to choreograph dances to different songs and perform them in front of the school. Our best ones were the Spice Girls!
     
    Do you have any advice for current Greyhounds or young alumni?
    Don't be afraid to explore your passions. I really loved math and that led me to take a lot of advanced math classes in high school and focus on business in college. You should find what makes you happy!
     
    Follow along with Kimberly on LinkedIn and Twitter.

The John Thomas Dye School

11414 Chalon Road
Los Angeles, CA 90049
Phone: (310) 476-2811

Located In Los Angeles, CA, John Thomas Dye is an independent school for grades K-6. Students benefit from a challenging academic program, fine arts, competitive athletics,  and a wide selection of extracurricular activities.

The John Thomas Dye School admits students of any race, color, religion, sexual orientation, or national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the School. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sexual orientation, or national and ethnic origin in the administration of its educational policies, admission policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic or other school-administered programs.