CBA Welcomes Joey Maman, New Academic Advisor!

We would like to introduce you to the newest member of the College of Business Administration’s Advising Staff, Joey Maman. Joey joined the Student Services Advising Team this January, after serving for the past three years as a member of the college’s Events Team. He will now serve as an Academic Adviser for UIC Business graduate students. Please read below to learn more about Joey!

Favorite Chicago Activities/Places: I’m a thrill junkie and a nerd! I enjoy:

• Escape rooms: Escape Artistry is a great company
• Murder mystery dinners
• Theme parks and water parks. I make sure to go to Six Flags at least once a year
  • Outside of Chicago
    • I have tried zorbing, flyboarding, scuba diving, etc. If you haven’t heard of these extreme sports, look them up!
    • I pick my vacations in the proximity to the theme park and purposefully selected a hotel for the lazy river.
• Playing in a recreational kickball league (Stonewall Sports, Fall, and Spring) and volleyball league (Chicago Metropolitan Sports Association, Summer)

Favorite Chicago Restaurants:

• Chicago Pizza and Oven Grinder (featured on Food Network!)
• Gorilla Sushi Bar on Clark. My favorite local sushi place! They’re affordable and put extra sauce on your sushi.
• Greek Islands (mainly for the saganaki!)
• Demera Restaurant. The spongy bread (injera) is my favorite part!

Hometown: Lincolnwood, IL

Tell us a little about your personal/professional background?

I received my MA in Education and Human Development with a concentration in Higher Education Administration from George Washington University. As an undergraduate student, at Illinois State University, I was very active and involved with the campus. I had a double major in Political Science and Theater Studies with a concentration in Directing.

During the past three years, I have served in the Office of the Dean as a Program/Student Adviser as a member of the Events Team. In this new role, I will continue to serve as the liaison for the 20+ UIC Business student organizations and the Center for Student Involvement and support the Business Ambassador Program in addition to advising students in the MSF and MSM programs.

How did you end up working at UIC? After graduate school in Washington, DC, I moved back to Chicago to be closer to family. While my journey could have taken me anywhere in the world, I am thankful UIC found me. By that, I mean that I am fortunate that someone from HR and the hiring manager picked up my resume as I didn’t have a network established with UIC at the time. When people say networking is crucial to obtaining your next position, they aren’t joking. I am thankful to this day that someone gave me an opportunity because ever since working here, I really enjoy working with our passionate and driven UIC Business students.

What are you most excited to do in your new role? I’m excited to watch our students grow from the moment they first enter the university to becoming involved on campus and building experiences that coincide with what they are studying and ultimately watching their happiest moments as they cross the stage at Commencement.

What critical information should students know about? GET INVOLVED! As a student, it’s important that you value succeeding within your courses. It is equally as important to get involved in a co-curricular activity that will help you get to the next level of your career. Below are some examples:

• Join and lead a student organization… or create one
• Study abroad
• Volunteer and be civically engaged
  • Work with professional and non-profit organizations that are within your field.
• Take on an internship or shadow someone for a day
• Find a mentor
• Guide peers that are new to the college