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Carly Kolean thrives on challenges, whether it’s teaching a Junior Achievement class, graduating from Southwestern Michigan College in 2020 during a global pandemic, joining Amazon or buying her first home at 20.

Kolean, 24, came to Dowagiac from Middleville, a small town close by Grand Rapids.

“I actually found out about SMC from my Mom, who had a co-worker who raved about this school to her,” she said. “My Mom’s co-worker had a daughter who said she loved it and that she had the best experience. I ultimately chose SMC not only for the positive reviews, but I was especially sold on how the dorms were set up. I loved the idea of having my own bedroom and a ‘home away from home’ with the dorms set up like apartments.”

Kolean, who earned an associate degree in business with honors and hopes to own a spa someday, graduated from Thornapple Kellogg High School in 2018, arriving at SMC that fall.

Set on SMC since she was 16

“I was so set on the idea of SMC since I was 16 that I actually worked at the Caledonia McDonald’s for two years. Going in as a first-generation college student, I saved every penny I made to be able to pay for my SMC tuition. I worked there two additional years on all of my college breaks.”

Kolean joined Amazon in June 2020, a month after graduating.

“Originally, I started working there to try and save up money to eventually pursue a bachelor’s degree at Western Michigan University, but I saw so much potential career growth within Amazon that I decided on staying and planting my roots there.”

“When it comes to business,” she added, “the only clear idea I had was that I wanted to learn the ins and outs of what it takes to be a business owner to eventually one day start my own. I’ve always loved the idea of being my own boss and challenging myself.

“When I was a kid, I always thought that being my own boss looked like owning my own bakery, but now I feel my future goal is to someday open my own spa, as I’m currently obtaining my esthetician’s license.”

Graduating during COVID-19

“Finishing college during a global pandemic definitely had its challenges,” Kolean said. “The biggest challenge was in the unknown. Unknown of what the future looked like and what this meant for so many of us young adults whose lives felt as though they were just getting started. Having to adapt to a new learning style had its own challenges as well. I feel as though I am the kind of person who thrives with in-person, hands-on learning, so having to finish my degree 100-percent online definitely took some getting used to.

“I also feel as though this was why I didn’t jump right back into schooling following my SMC graduation, as a lot of colleges adapted to 100-percent online schooling for quite some time. I often wonder how different my life would look today if it weren’t for the pandemic, as I’m sure so many of us do.”

A unique experience at Amazon

Kolean feels “blessed” she was able to purchase her first home at 20 in a mobile home park close to where she grew up.

“I get to be close to my family, which I’m really thankful for,” she said. “My work is at the GRR1 fulfillment center in Caledonia. My Amazon experience is a unique one to say the least. I first started working at Amazon as what’s called a Tier 1 Associate. I was doing a lot of manual labor in assisting in putting together all of our online customer orders. I did this for about six months before I decided I wanted to challenge myself and apply to be what’s called a Process Assistant for our Inventory and Quality Control department that operates as a large-scale ‘checks and balances’ auditing system in accordance with SOX compliance (the Sarbanes Oxley Act aims to prevent corporate fraud and protect investors). I did this for a little over three months before I was promoted to an on-site Area Manager. As an Area Manager I manage a direct reports team size that varies, but is anywhere between 30 and 50 people with a total oversight to roughly 150 each shift on my side of the  building.”

As Kolean explains, “An Area Manager II helps run the department they oversee to make sure it operates as smoothly and efficiently as possible. We do everything between managing safety, cost and quality to insure both the employee and customer experiences are positive ones.”

Teaching JA while at SMC

“I was nervous doing this course because teaching was never something that was on my radar as my career goal in life,” she said. “I was truthfully very hesitant over the idea at first. I originally wondered what teaching a third grade class had to do with business, but after having finished the classwork, I realized I simply lacked perspective. Not only was I able to teach a group of students everything I was learning in college about business and see the interest and excitement grow within them each class, but I learned to adapt to different learning styles, which is applicable to running a good business as well.

“Celebrating our differences and getting to hear everyone’s different perspectives on how they interpret things holds a lot of value in every aspect of life. I learn this more and more every day.”

Coming out of her shell

Along with classroom academics, experiences such as JA and a variety of special-interest clubs strive to develop students’ leadership potential.

Prior to SMC, “I would say I was a very quiet and shy individual,” Kolean said. “I struggle a lot with anxiety and imposter syndrome, oftentimes doubting my own capabilities. I had a lot of anxiety in being a first-generation college student, not knowing what to expect. I always knew I wanted to challenge myself and not limit my capabilities out of fear, and SMC helped me in doing just that.

“Becoming an on-campus Resident Assistant (RA) in organizing activities and on-campus engagement really pushed me out of my comfort zone for the better,” she said. “Having to tackle a variety of situations and having the duality of the job kept me on my feet and readily prepared for just about anything. I had a lot of classes that offered me this same growth of confidence and perspective as well between my public speaking course, law, marketing and curating a fully-operational business plan project collaborating on ideas with other students.”

Kolean juggled her RA duties with two other jobs in the Student Activity Center and at the residence hall front desk. She was nominated as Student Worker of the Year in 2019.

Her mentors included Jeff Hooks, Hailey Sheets, Branden Pompey, Jorge Ramos, Teesha Conley and Angie Palsak.

“I didn’t get to spend a lot of time with President Odenwald, but of the times I did spend with him I always loved and appreciated his positivity and passion for community involvement.”

So many good SMC memories

“Time management was definitely a learned trait as I have ADHD and have to find ways to work with how my brain is rather than against it, and SMC is very inclusive,” she said. “I gained a lot of time-management skills from my time there that I still implement to this day.

“I have so many good memories from SMC, but some that stick out are all the summer activities between cookouts, outdoor Zumba, group bonfires, career fairs and all of the fun on campus monthly events we hosted. I made so many friends there and will forever cherish memories I made.”

Kolean has four half-siblings — Deirdre, Neal, Justin and Holly — who are her “best friends. I also have an amazing niece, Milaya, and a nephew, Pierson, whom I love dearly.”

Hobbies in her free time include photography, painting, bowling, making clay jewelry, baking, traveling and being out in nature.

“One of my biggest life accomplishments within the last two years was being able to hike over six miles up the Alps in Oeschinensee, Switzerland, with my fiancé. I’ve done quite a bit of traveling since 2018 and still have so much of the world left that I would love to see and explore. With every trip I gain more knowledge on the world around me, and I’m incredibly grateful for every opportunity.”