Chelsea Maukonen ’14

Chelsea Maukonen ’14 was the featured speaker at the February 7 Ruth A. Miller Senior Business Seminar. She is a partner with the firm Chartwell Law in Fort Myers, Fla.

“After high school, she did not want to leave home for college since she was an only child. When she started assessing different schools, she was unsure of which institution to choose. However, after visiting Thiel College, she knew she wanted to go to Thiel for her undergraduate degree. She felt safe on campus and loved the family atmosphere.” Abraham Hochstetler ’24

“She expressed her gratitude towards Thiel by expressing that the minute she stepped on campus she knew that she wanted to attend here. She stated that it was a feeling of community and family that she would not have experienced at another university.” Julianne Slagle ’24

“In her high school career, she was very involved and brought that involvement to Thiel as she was on the cheer and equestrian teams and joined the Zeta sorority where she made lifelong friendships.” Zach Bergstresser ’25

“Pursuing studies in accounting and business administration, Chelsea enjoyed campus life, participating in cheerleading, the equestrian team, and Greek life. Reflecting on her time at Thiel, she described it as the best of her life.” Emma Hatfield ’25

“Chelsea began her presentation by sharing that her time at Thiel College was one of the happiest moments of her life.” Yeryoung Kim ’24

“After graduating in 2014 Chelsea, much to her parent’s chagrin, decided to not immediately go into the workforce with her accounting and business degree. Instead, she went back to school! Law school specifically, after passing the LSAT and getting accepted at a school in Florida.” George Tice ’24

“With a newly found love in law that she discovered in a business law class, Chelsea decided to move to Florida and enroll in law school at Ave Maria Law School. She graduated law school in 2018 and proceeded to pass the grueling bar exam on her first attempt.” Isaac Sasala ’24

“She said that taking the bar exam was the hardest thing she had ever done. Despite this, she passed the test on her first try, and she got her first job three days after passing!” Madi Yurich ’24

“She mostly practices property law, but she also does personal injury cases and hurricane claims, which are her favorite.” Madi Yurich ’24

“She created the goal of becoming a partner before she turned 30, which was a steep task. Though difficult, she achieved this goal and proved those who doubted her wrong.” Hailey McClain ’24

“Due to her reputation of being a hard worker, always being honest, and being dependable, Chelsea fulfilled a goal she set for herself of making partner before age 30.” Isaac Sasala ’24

“Towards the end, I asked if she started to lose the fun in her career as she got a higher position. She said yes, but she believes it is necessary for you to grow professionally. Being able to help your team grow and challenge them makes for a very fulfilling position and gives a sense of satisfaction that you must experience to understand.” Connor Lovic ’24

“Throughout her presentation, Chelsea spoke of how she enjoys “showing up the doubters” in her life. When someone says she cannot do something, she wants to do it even more.” Damion Grinnell ’25

“The quote from Chelsea’s lecture left the biggest impact on me when she said, ‘Every day won’t be rainbows and butterflies at work’. This reminded me of how not everything will always go the way you want or think it should. Although you still need to fight on, and better days will be ahead.” Jackson Pletcher ’24

“I could tell that she was a lawyer by her presentation style. This was mostly from the way she responded to questions. She was very free-flowing.” Jacob Traupman ’24

“Chelsea’s presentation was not only very inspiring but also very motivating. It felt very nice to hear from someone you may not end up having the same career path as, but you share the same drive for your goals.” Taya Sykes ’24

“At the end of the night, I was very glad to have heard Chelsea speak, for her story and her success has made me excited to graduate and move on to the next phase in my life.” Madi Yurich ’24

Lessons Learned

“Never stop learning, there is always an opportunity to better yourself.” Nick DiLullo ’24
“What you experience in school is going to be different than what you experience in the real world.” Alex Martin ’24
“It is a big decision to leave somewhere you know very well, but it may be the best decision you will ever make.” Connor Lovic ’24
“Keep pushing yourself and growing as a person.” Nick DiLullo ’24
“Critical thinking is important no matter what career you choose.” Austin Siko ’24
“Networking is huge, connect with alumni and go to networking events.” Abigail Sefton ’25
“Meet deadlines, be reliable.” George Tice ’24
“Be polite to everyone.” Yeryoung Kim ’24
“Be mindful of your manners.” Madi Yurich ’24
“Act professionally and be careful what you say/do especially when heated. Additionally, emails are permanent, so think before you send.” Connor Lovic ’24
“Be careful working with technology (AI in particular).” Jackson Pletcher ’24
“When you mess up, own up to it and ask for help because most times, it can be fixed.” Jacara Green ’25
“Learn from past experiences.” Austin Siko ’24
“Money is not the most important thing.” Julianne Slagle ’24
“Making a lot of money in your career is a great thing but life isn’t all about money, put your mental health first.” Taya Sykes ’24
“Dream big, work harder.” Damion Grinnell ’25
“Believe in yourself, even when no one else does.” Emma Hatfield ’25
“Laugh at yourself and be proud of what you accomplished.” Hailey McClain ’24

Dinner “Dishing”

“I had the privilege of acting as the dinner concierge for our class, a role that allowed me to collaborate with the campus chefs in crafting a special meal. It was a delightful opportunity to introduce my favorite dishes to everyone while also experiencing them in new and unexpected ways. Experiences like these remind me how lucky I am to have chosen to come to Thiel.” Emma Hatfield ’25
“For dinner, we started with a red pepper and tomato soup with grilled cheese croutons, the main course was a spaghetti squash with chicken alfredo served on the inside. For dessert, we had a chocolate lava cake with raspberries.” Isaac Sasala ’24
“The dinner experience this week was very enjoyable and it introduced me to some foods that I had not eaten before. I really enjoyed this meal.” Alex Martin ’24
“(Director of Alumni Relations) Mr. (David) Hummel was amazing. He helped me a lot in my career search, giving me his business card and helping me get in touch with a sales job in Pittsburgh. Being one of the people invited to dinner this week was a great experience and it is one that I am very thankful for.” Aidan Rispoli ’24