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Alumni Testimonials
CEO Alumni bring a unique retrospective to the CEO journey. After experiencing CEO, alumni continue to utilize the skills learned to create an impact in the CEO community and beyond!
Dorothea Villhard
Edwardsville CEO
Class of 2026
Dorothea Villhard is a senior at Father McGivney Catholic High School. She has been a member of the volleyball team for four years and now serves as a varsity team captain. In addition to athletics, Dorothea is a House Leader, a student ambassador, a National Honor Society committee head, and an active member of the Recycling Club. She has also gained valuable leadership and responsibility through her work as a babysitter. Outside of school, Dorothea enjoys traveling, playing pickleball, and spending time with family and friends. After graduation, she plans to attend college and is exploring opportunities in fashion media and related fields of study. She is particularly excited about the CEO program because it will allow her to build skills in creativity, communication, and entrepreneurship that connect directly to her future career goals. Dorothea looks forward to using the program’s real-world experiences and professional connections as a foundation for success in fashion media.
Malak Amer
Edwardsville CEO
Class of 2026
Malak Amer is a senior at Edwardsville High School. She enjoys participating in many extracurriculars and clubs including National Honor Society, Thespian Society, Drama Club, Ethics Bowl (philosophical discussion), The Superintendent’s Student Advisory Board, Chess Club, and Peer to Peer Tutoring. She also co-founded the Muslim Student Association (MSA) and is the co-president of Unity Club and vice president of the Science National Honor Society. Malak is very honored to be part of the Edwardsville CEO Program and is excited to meet many new people and have new experiences as well as form her own business. While Malak enjoys and values academics, she also sees the importance of going into the “real world”, meeting people, and forming valuable connections. During her free time, Malak enjoys a good game of chess followed by a peaceful reading session with rain sounds in the background. Malak speaks Arabic fluently and can communicate in Spanish. She has traveled to 5 countries and has had the privilege to ride over 30 planes. Malak plans to pursue a degree in engineering (most likely in the mechanical field) and then hopes to one day become a businesswoman and have the power to help people.
Kenneth Jamison
Edwardsville CEO
Class of 2026
KJ Jamison is a senior at Edwardsville High School. In his free time he enjoys being outdoors and spending time with his friends. His favorite hobbies include fishing, waterskiing, and jetskiing which are done at his family’s lakehouse on Lake of Egypt in Southern Illinois. He is also involved in the wrestling team as well as the bass fishing team. KJ hopes to gain valuable knowledge from CEO to achieve his dreams of running his own successful business in the future. After high school KJ plans to study business administration and fish on a collegiate bass fishing team.
Josephine Gehlbach
Edwardsville CEO
Class of 2026
Josephine Gehlbach is a senior at Edwardsville High School. She is currently getting her general college education done at Lewis and Clark Community College. Josie is currently working at Blue Wave Martial Arts and Fitness as an office employee, as well as a martial arts instructor for ages 3 all the way up to adults. Outside of school and work she enjoys going to see live music, volunteering for Special Olympics, spending time with friends, and doing anything outside or with ATVs. She hopes to earn her Certified Public Accounting license by 21 and work for a government agency, then go back to college to eventually become a forensic accountant for the FBI. Josie is excited to go through the CEO program to learn more about the business world, as the knowledge she will learn is priceless and is a huge advantage when entering the work force.
Matthew Huddle
Edwardsville CEO
Class of 2026
Mathew Huddle is a Senior at Edwardsville High School. He enjoys playing basketball, listening to music, and spending time with friends and family. At school, he is president of the Science National Honors Society, a member of National Honors Society (NHS), Key Club, and part of the Unified Basketball and Football team. Matthew spent his summer working as a tutor at Kumon and continues to work part time during the school year. In the future, Matthew looks forward to getting a degree in finance or data science at a university not known at this time. Matthew is excited for the opportunities that await him in the CEO program. He hopes to develop skills in CEO that will help him navigate through the world of business.