Jack Perish Fall 2022 Valedictorian is Excited to See What’s Next.

Jack Perish is the Fall 2022 Washkewicz College of Engineering Valedictorian, graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science. Jack holds a 3.94 GPA. As a student, Jack worked as a summer research assistant, and has held internships at Medical Mutual, CHAMPtitles, and Lyft.  He is a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon and leads their fraternity as their Philanthropy Chair.  He has been involved with the Association of Computing and Machinery, Trio and Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineering (IEEE).  He has received many scholarships including: Choose Ohio First (4 years), Provost Scholarship (4 years) and Steris Scholarship (4 years).  Somehow, he has also managed to volunteer with the IEEE VEX Robotic Competition, which was held at CSU (Cleveland State University), CSU Vaccination drive, United Cerebral Palsy, the Cleveland Foodbank, Gigi’s Playhouse and Proyecto Peru.  He has received the Sophomore Academic Achievement Award and Brother of the Week from his fraternity.   While doing all this, Jack completed undergraduate and graduate courses as a third-year student and was on the Team that took first place in a coding competition among CSU teams.  Jack received the Dean’s List for six semesters and the President’s List for four semesters.  

We caught up with Jack before graduation to learn more about him and what's next on his horizon. Here's what he had to say: “I am excited to see what is next, and I know I will be well-equipped given the knowledge and mentorship I obtained at Cleveland State. I hope to continue learning and growing as a person and as a software engineer.” 

What do you plan to do after graduation? “After graduation, I plan to start a full-time position as a software developer at CHAMPtitles, a local startup company that aims to digitize car titling with blockchain technology.” 

Beyond this, I hope to continue learning and growing as a person and as a software engineer. Ultimately, I would like to continue my technical growth to a staff engineer level. Once there, I would aim to transition to a more managerial position, with the hope of facilitating more growth in my team and company. Of course, this may all change as my career progresses, but I am excited to see what is next, and I know I will be well-equipped given the knowledge and mentorship I obtained at Cleveland State. 

What were your favorite and hardest course? "My favorite course: MTH 182 or REL 101 and hardest course was MTH 220 (yes it was remote)." 

What is the best advice you ever received and from who? “One piece of advice I received from my Trio advisor, Jason Gardner, that contributed heavily to my academic approach was: never leave a classroom with an unanswered question. This advice helped me immensely in the first few years at Cleveland State. Not only did it help me academically in understanding the material, but it also led to better relationships with my professors, making it easier to revisit them in the future with questions or ideas.” 

What advice do you have for incoming first-year students? “Set goals, be committed, be flexible, and have fun! If you really want to achieve something, you first must know what it is, but secondly, you must work hard to achieve it. Nonetheless, you also need a bit of luck, and things can often throw a wrench in your plans, for example, the pandemic! When this happens, you must learn to be flexible and adapt, but don't forget to have fun along the way. Life is short and perspective makes all the difference.” 

If you had to do it all over again, what would you do differently as it relates to your academic journey? “It is difficult to say what I would change. I am so thankful for all the people I have met, the experiences I have had, and the lessons I have learned at Cleveland State. Although, one thing I would have liked to be more aware of is my mental health and what affects it. School can take time away from things that help you be you, and although in the short-term, skipping a workout or a soccer match may save time, in the long run, it may hurt you to lose that social or activity outlet.”