Interviewer: What is your name?
Brian: Brian Kozlowski
Interviewer: What is your position at CSA Education?
Brian: Director of Operations
Interviewer: What does that position entail?
Brian: The simplest way to describe the role is to say I am a “behind-the-scenes” part of the CSA team. I’m involved in a little bit of everything from managing/monitoring systems, procedures, and internal projects to company accounting to working with the management team to operate efficiently. I am here to do whatever I can to help the CSA team operate as efficiently and effectively as possible.
Interviewer: How did you become a part of CSA?
Brian: So, the position came in through a job search. I was doing a little bit of research on CSA, and it sounded like it would be a good fit. After I interviewed with John [Quinn] and then the leadership team, I was confident it was a good fit, and I was really excited about the possibility of joining the team.
Interviewer: What is the best part of your job?
Brian: Honestly, it is getting to know and work with the people here. There is such a strong sense of collaboration and team at CSA, and it is so exciting to be a part of that. I’ve always believed that when you are surrounded by good people, the work we do is exponentially more productive and enjoyable.
Interviewer: What do you wish people knew about your work at CSA?
Brian: My career background is very diverse. From working with a once ‘big five’ accounting firm to an archdiocese with one of the biggest private school systems in the country, I bring a lot of experience working with large, small, public, and private companies. Working with the Archdiocese [of Chicago] provided me with the experience to see how schools operate on the business side. I also saw what they do with the curriculum, the need for new curricula, how things have evolved with online supplemental curriculum and—with the pandemic—switching to various modes of e-learning. I think my experience can offer a new, perhaps different, perspective.
Interviewer: What do you wish schools focused on more in terms of education and why?
Brian: I realize this may not be practical considering how each of us may learn at a different pace or with different methods, but I really think focusing more on student comprehension would be a bigger benefit to the students, the schools, and the school systems as a whole. From my own experience, sometimes being more laser-focused on completing the syllabus than on whether or not the student understood the material presented leaves students behind. However, when I had a class where the focus was on student comprehension, the subject matter always seemed to be easier for me.
Interviewer: What are three interesting facts about you?
Brian: I adopted two terriers from PAWS Chicago (Frankie and Deano). They were bonded, meaning they had to be adopted together. I am a semiprofessional organist and pianist. I love to travel, and my bucket list is to go to all fifty states. I have five to go—Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, and North Dakota.
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