Meet Us

Mia Vargo

Mia Vargo has been named December’s MVP for her work on developing new partnerships with non-profit organizations. Port Huron supports many local groups, such as the March of Dimes and Habitat for Humanity. This year, the campus rallied around the Hunter Hospitality House which provides temporary lodging for families with loved ones in the hospital. The House is located next to St. Joseph Mercy in Port Huron.

To support the House, Vargo led the campus in a food and personal needs, donated to its “100 for $100” campaign, and contributed the funds that had been earmarked for the annual holiday staff party. Both she and Faith Kirnberger, Career Development Coordinator, were recently interviewed on cable station CTV6 to discuss their partnership with the House. The interview can be seen online at www.watchctv.org. Vargo hopes that this new relationship will generate additional opportunities for externships and job placements in the medical community.

The spirit of the giving back is definitely reflected in the way she feels about working at Ross.

“I can’t tell you how much I really enjoy working for a company that encourages community involvement,” she said.

Vargo and her staff are just as passionate about providing excellent customer service to their students. When asked what motivates her about coming to work every day, she related the story of a Medical Assisting student who, with tears in her eyes, told her how thankful she was for the support the campus had given her when she was ready to give up on herself. The student also presented Vargo with a Christmas card and a hand-made gift from her daughter.

“How many people get to go to work each day knowing that they are helping someone else change their life?” said Vargo.

Shaun Fracassi

Shaun Fracassi has been named November’s MVP.

Fracassi comes to Ross after 25 years with Kelly Services, Inc., a fortune 500 provider of global workforce solutions. She has extensive leadership experience and specializes in growth, turnaround and integration of service operations. Prior to joining Ross, Fracassi served as Senior Vice President and General Manager. Her responsibilities included the oversight of commercial operations across the 28 largest metropolitan regions in the US, with over 350 branch office locations.

As the VP of Career Services, Fracassi looks forward to sharing her placement expertise and “passion for talent development” in exploring new ways to better service the students. “The Career Development Coordinators have very full plates,” she said. “and their job is integral to the overall success of the campus. “My goal is to help define our mission, bring some clarity to their roles and improve the overall quality and quantity of graduate placements.”

With the continued growth and expansion of Ross, many challenges lay ahead – both geographically and by program. Fracassi believes the future success of career services will be rooted in improving our sales structure, identifying process efficiencies, maximizing the use of technology and social media, and building strategic relationships with employers. She also expects the career services coordinators to be the local market experts of their communities regarding relative employment trends, labor demands competition, etc.

“The CDCs are the market ambassadors of Ross. Their intimate knowledge of the communities they serve will help to differentiate us and strengthen the value we bring to our students and employers,” she said.

Fracassi is based at the corporate office in St. Clair. You can contact her at (810) 637-8100, or sfracassi@rosslearning.com. Welcome, Shaun!

Cathy Dorosh

This month Ross is thrilled to recognize Cathy Dorosh for her motivational skills, desire to help students, and for seeking out new partnerships in the community.

Dorosh’s campus leadership inspires her team to give 110% in each of their areas, whether it’s admissions, career development or financial aid. By giving them the proper training, tools and empowering them to succeed, they’re excited to come to work every day. “Everyone gets charged up when they’re busy,” Dorosh said. “And when they need assistance, I’m there to support them.”

Support may come in the form of sitting with an instructor, a financial aid coordinator or a career development coordinator. “I learn a lot about my staff and their concerns when I put myself in their shoes,” said Dorosh. “I’m most proud of the fact that we genuinely care about each other and our students.” She also believes that involving everyone in the process – from the initial prospective student interview to the classroom and right on through the externship is critical. “Our job is to provide excellent customer service throughout a student’s life at Ross” Dorosh continues, “And, when we do that we create positive outcomes.

In addition to her campus duties, Dorosh strives to develop new partnerships in the community, such as working with an alternative high school that recently opened in Brighton. “The high school looks forward to a long-term partnership with Ross,” she said. “They recognize we offer the types of educational programs that can help their graduates be successful in the workforce.”

Sharon Smith

St. Clair – Sharon Smith has been named Director of On-Ground Education at Ross Education, LLC. Smith comes to Ross with thirteen years in the higher education industry. She began her career as a dental and health insurance instructor at Everest College in Kalamazoo. She then served as director of education for eleven years at Everest. Most recently, she was a division manager in charge of student retention overseeing eighteen campuses at Corinthian Colleges, Inc.

“As the Director of On-Ground Education, I'm focused on academic achievement,” said Smith. “Our students are our customers and we need to serve them to the best of our ability so that they'll be successful both in and out of the classroom.”

Smith will be based at the Grand Rapids corporate office. She resides in Kalamazoo.

Shibu Thomas

With four weeks under his belt at Ross Medical Education Center, Shibu Thomas has made visits to 14 of Ross’s 19 campuses covering a three-state area. “I want to meet as many Ross employees and students as possible and won’t stop traveling until I do!” Thomas, Executive Vice President, says.

Thomas may be new to Ross but he is no stranger to the education sector. He brings over sixteen years of experience in both public and private post-secondary education. Thomas will be the first to tell you that his industry experience is not what will make changes happen at Ross...it’s the people that make the difference. “The first thing I did when I came to Ross was meet with the Campus Directors to find out what the needs are at the campuses,” says Thomas. “The opportunities all lie within our people, we just have to talk to them and find out what they are.”

Thomas is also quick to point out that the people at Ross are truly what make the difference. From an executive standpoint, it starts with finding the right people. “It’s our people that touch the students everyday and make a difference in their lives,” says Thomas. “It’s critical we have the right people with the right attitude doing that. Skill sets can be taught; attitude can’t.”

With a focus clearly on the people, Thomas describes Ross as an “upside-down organization.” Where the CEO ranks at the top of the pyramid at most organizations, this is not the case at Ross. “Our students are the most important people, then it’s the people who directly serve our students, and so forth,” says Thomas.

This upside down culture certainly seems to be working at Ross. As Thomas will explain, the unique relationships at Ross allow learning to be done in a variety of directions. “The most valuable learning experiences come directly from our students,” says Thomas. “Many of our students have gone through serious life struggles and have overcome them. It’s incredibly inspiring.”

It’s this inspiration that keeps the wheels turning at Ross. Up next, Thomas will be strategizing ways to make Ross’s customer service the best it can be and how they can reach even more students in their communities. “We’re changing lives and generations of families,” says Thomas. “You can’t put a price tag on that.”

Ross Management Institute

Ross Medical Education Center isn’t just looking for leaders…they’re creating them. The Ross Management Institute (RMI) is a program that started last year to help cultivate leaders within the Ross organization. It’s a nine-month program available for any Ross employee to apply to. Applicants require two letters of recommendation and are personally selected by Ross’s executive management team. With all the classes and projects done after business hours, it’s a commitment RMI students have to take seriously.

“I had just started at Ross and was initially resistant to take on more,” recalls Corrina Freeman, Campus Director at the New Baltimore Campus. “The first night of class I immediately realized the value in it. Looking back I would not have survived if I hadn’t taken RMI right out of the gates.”

“RMI is unique in that it allows people to see our business as a whole and understand the traits it takes to advance within the organization,” says Kristine Furtaw, Regional Vice President. “There is a difference between managing people and leading people.” In order to understand this, students take a total of eight courses covering topics such as concepts of leadership, strategic planning, human resource fundamentals and Excel use.

“I really felt like I was back in school,” recalls Betty Williams, Campus Director at the Granger campus. “Every time I went to RMI I found myself bringing something useful back to my campus the next day.”

In addition to the coursework, there is also an applied study where students spend time at a campus other than their own and live the day in the life of the Admissions Representative, Career Development Coordinator and Financial Aid Representative.

“Before RMI, I really didn’t understand what other people within the organization did on a day to day basis or what life was like on the campus,” says Jeff Pemberton, Social Media Director. “Now I can better communicate with the campus directors because I understand what their everyday life is like.”

The courses are set up so that students can walk away with tactical ideas that they can apply to their everyday jobs. For example, the strategic planning course requires students to write a strategic plan for their specific work area. “We actually wrote a strategic plan for a new campus and had to include every detail from class offerings to customer service,” says Williams.

When asked why other Ross employees should consider the nine-month journey of RMI, Freeman doesn’t miss a beat. “If you want to grow as leader within Ross, then RMI is not negotiable. Ross is moving forward and this is your opportunity to help make it happen.”

It’s clear that Ross is moving forward and the RMI is just one way they are doing it. “Ross invests in their people,” says Williams. “Leaders produce leaders and that is what we are doing here at Ross.”