Thomas Stavridis

Background

About Thomas Stavridis

I am a South African born international student studying at Lake Forest College in Illinois. I am currently a sophomore double majoring in Finance, with a concentration in accounting, and Data Science, with a concentration in Business Analytics. I come from a family of accountants and have always had a passion for accounting and finance. Recently my passion of information systems, technology, and data analytics has excited me to a point to add technology and data analytics to my coursework. I am a hardworking and conscientious student and am confident my discipline and passion for learning will stand me in good stead in my future career. My passion for learning and business is balanced by a love for my community, and at the age of 17 I co-founded the Thokozani feeding scheme, a program to provide food to impoverished communities in South Africa. I approached the owners of the Thokozani Empowerment Fund and presented the idea which ultimately led to research and experimentation with different recipes for soup which resulted in easily transportable, cheap, non-perishable powdered soup. I found donors of approximately $200 to date to provide money, venue, vehicles, and logistics as well as coordinated training programs for 40 volunteers. The program is now self-sustaining and feeds families a week. During the summer of 2022 I completed an internship as a lead youth advisor on a banking youth strategy for one of the leading banks in Africa, Capitec. I worked in a professional team and work environment and reported to the CEO and CFO. In collaboration with the CEO and marketing team, I recommended new features and adjustments to the banking app and website to attract more younger clients. My responsibilities branched into the finance and information technology department, as I assisted with financial modeling, cost analysis, tax, regulatory reporting, digital channels, introduction to website design, app design, java, and python My journey has only just begun, but with my will and positive attitude my accomplishments and professional skills will continue to grow. I plan to utilize every resource on my campus to advance my expertise, whether it be through my involvement as a senator in student government, or my role as a student supervisor at my on-campus job, I will continue to develop business, financial, and analytical skills for my future career. These skills, along with skills and training that I will gain in internships and work programs will undoubtedly result in a rounded and complete education with which to tackle the world.