Today's Featured Biography

Deborah Kallick

My life has been an incredible journey to many places and situations. I left ETHS after our sophomore year but feel so close to many of you, as these were truly our formative years, and I went to Skiles with so many of you. I graduated from Bateman High School. I had a sketchy life of art school (n pun intended), photography, sales, dental lab work, then I went to college at age 25. I was trying to 'find myself'. During that time, I traveled and stayed for many weeks or months in LA, Colorado and Florida. I thought I was an artist looking for my medium. I still think I'm an artist looking for my medium! Anyway, I fell in love with science and stayed in school for many years, culminating with a PhD in Chemistry from UIC then a post doc stint at UC Berkeley, arguably one of the best Chemistry depts in the world. I was very lucky! That was followed by ten years as a faculty member at a big ten school in the upper midwest. I was tenured but not happy. I went back to Silicon valley to work on the human genome. That ended in 2003. I've had a number of positions since then but I'm struggling to find my place in my world of being 'over 50' (i.e., poison to most HR people). I'm consulting at a great place and I'm thinking about starting a non-profit later this year to advocate for hiring older workers and not relegating them to 'senior citizen' status before we are ready to become 'senior citizens', I know I'm not, and I know I deserve a seat at the table. I will not go out quietly, and I'll fight for age discrimination to go away to my last dying breath. That's because we are baby boomers, we always wanted to change the world, and I will continue to try my damdest to change the world. Peace and Love!

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