Ellen Kaushansky
Olin Business School, Washington University in St. Louis
Hometown: Long Grove, IL
High School: Adlai E. Stevenson High School
Major: Finance and International Business
Minor: Business of Sports
Favorite Business Courses: Options, Futures, Derivatives and Organizational Behavior
Extracurricular Activities, Community Work and Leadership Roles During College:
Awards: Full Tuition Danforth Scholar, Dean’s List (All semesters)
Extracurriculars: 1) President of the Olin Sports Management Organization (OSMO), a club for students interested in careers in sports; 2) Co-Founder of OWN IT: A Summit for Women’s Empowerment, the first ever women’s leadership summit to cross all disciplines on WashU’s campus; 3) Olin Peer Ambassador (OPA), a mentor and student representative of the business school; 4) Campus Tour Guide; and 5) Member of Alpha Kappa Psi Business Fraternity
Work: Head Teaching Assistant for Quantitative Business Analysis – Managerial Statistics I
Where have you interned during your college career? (List Companies, Locations and Roles)
1) Receptions for Research, The Greg Olsen Foundation – Kickball Intern, Chicago
2) JP Morgan – Tax Oriented Investments Intern, Investment Bank, Chicago
3) JP Morgan – Global Wealth Management Intern, Asset Management, Chicago
Describe your dream job: My dream job is to own my own wealth management firm for professional athletes. This would be the perfect way to blend my love of finance and sports.
What did you enjoy most about majoring in a business-related field? I really enjoyed learning about how all the functions within a business have to work together seamlessly in order for a business to succeed.
Where would you like to work after graduation? I am already going to be working at JP Morgan full time after graduation. I received a return offer at the end of the summer to come back to my team in Global Wealth Management.
What are your long-term professional goals? I really want to run my own company some day. Ideally, it would be related to professional sports, particularly the NFL.
“I knew I wanted to major in business when…I joined the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) my freshman year of high school.”
“If I didn’t major in business, I would be…a writer for Sports Illustrated.”
What was the happiest moment of your life? I have two happiest moments of my life (I can’t pick just one). The first one was when my little sister Mia was born 7 years ago and the other was when my little sister Gabby was born 5 years ago. I have loved having such young siblings because I have been able to watch them grow up.
Which academic or personal achievement are you most proud of? I am most proud of the fact that I got a full scholarship to WashU. It meant that all my hard work in high school paid off, and I couldn’t be happier.
What animal would you choose to represent your professional brand? I would be a giraffe because it is so tall that it can see above the terrain and really see the big picture. I pride myself at being able to look at a large project a high level and then being able to delegate the tasks to others.
Who would you most want to thank for your success? I would thank my grandma Helen because she was the one that pushed me to do well in school, even in kindergarten. She would pick me up from school and read with me every day, practice geography, and do math problems. This taught me the importance of education and a good work ethic from a very early age.
Fun fact about yourself: I have a black belt in karate.
Favorite book: Open: An Autobiography: Andre Agassi
Favorite movie: Inception
Favorite musical performer: Beyonce
Favorite vacation spot: Mexico
What are your hobbies? Traveling, watching sports, and watching reality TV
What made Ellen such an invaluable addition to the Class of 2016?
“Ellen Kashaunsky has been a positive driving force in in Olin since the first day of her freshmen year. In addition to being one of Washington University in St. Louis’ Danforth Distinguished Scholars, Ellen has worked tireless to create community and opportunities within Olin. As a sophomore Ellen worked tireless to infuse energy and new members into the Olin Sports Management Organization (OSMO). Due to Ellen’s efforts, OSMO has become one of the most active organizations in all of Olin providing its members with professional development, social and educational opportunities.
Ellen’s greatest accomplishment was co-founded and bringing the OWNIT – Women’s Empowerment Forum to Washington University in St. Louis. Ellen co-lead an organization of 15 executive members and 30 other volunteers to organize and amazing conference for 250 members of the Washington University and St. Louis community. This daylong event brought distinguished speakers and panels that provided an incredible learning and networking opportunity to all conference participants. Due to the corporate support and bringing the university together, Ellen and her colleagues have left a legacy at Wash U and OWNIT will become a permanent fixture on our campus.”
Steve Malter
Associate Dean and Director of Undergraduate Programs
Olin Business School
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