March 22, 2016
A Forester you should know: Sierra Clark
Sierra Clark '16
Sierra Clark ’16 loved Lake Forest College from the first time she visited as a summer teen camper in the Just the Beginning Foundation program in Chicago.
An involved athlete in high school, the business and communication double-major chose a different path once enrolled at Lake Forest. With just a few weeks left before she graduates, Clark is a Forester you should know.
Q: What drew you to Lake Forest College?
A. “I loved the campus. It was quaint and quiet. I loved the scenery. When my high school announced ‘King Goes to College Day’ on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, I chose to come back to Lake Forest to do a more personal tour to see if it would fit for me. It has a small student-to-teacher ratio, which was just like my high school. I love being in a small classroom, because I knew I would get to know my professors better, which would help me with networking and having real mentors.”
Q: Have you had experiences here—besides your classes—that have helped prepare you for your future?
A: “I was a macroeconomics tutor for Professor Tuttle and I was her research assistant, where we worked on the CAFTA-DR Trade agreement. I did all the analytical research. We presented those findings at the Costa Rica AmLet—a professional conference. And I’ve had three internships—only one for-credit. I interned at Red Communications as a marketing intern, at The Viti Companies in insurance, and at Fuksa Khorshid, a law firm, helping promote events and panels.”
Q: What do you do in your free time?
A: “I’ve been in a lot of organizations: Dance Team, I’m an RA, I’m in United Black Association—I’m president now—where I’ve done a lot of volunteering with the Boys and Girls Club of Lake County mentoring kids. I’m in Omicron Delta Kappa, Black Women United, Kappa Alpha Theta, and I was in Student Government, Tusitala, and First Connection, where I was a peer mentor. There are a vast amount of opportunities and experiences here.”
Q: What are your plans after graduation?
A: “I’m interviewing for a managerial executive position with a large retailer, I’m also looking into human resource generalist positions because of my RA experience, Teach for America has offered me a job teaching math in Detroit, North Carolina, or Louisiana. I’m not sure, yet, but I know I’d like to get my master’s, eventually.
Q: Any advice?
A: “I tell people all the time to do study abroad and the In The Loop program. I was waiting for my friends to do it, then I didn’t have time in my schedule. My advice: Don’t wait for your friends. Just do it.”
Q: Parting words?
A: “I’m going to miss this place. It was just phenomenal.”