Mireille Wozniak-Michalak

Tri-C started alumna on path to consulting career

After graduating high school, Mireille Wozniak-Michalak wasn’t sure which career she wanted to pursue but she knew she had to continue her education. She enrolled at Cuyahoga Community College because it was less expensive than a four-year institution and offered flexible class schedules and convenient locations. Wozniak-Michalak had poor study skills in high school and found the help she needed at Tri-C. “Tri-C eased me into learning how to be a better student,” she said. “The classes addressed the issues faced by non-traditional students and the classes seemed less rushed so what you learned stayed with you.”

After graduating from Tri-C in 1989 with an Associate of Arts degree, she went on to graduate cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Organizational Leadership from Baldwin Wallace College. Wozniak-Michalak is now the President and Human Resources Consultant of her own company, Petiole HR, LLC (www.petiolehr.com), which provides assistance with human resources and employee relations services. “I believe that if you align a workplace so all employees want to come to work each day because they know they make a difference, a culture of responsibility will be shaped and will allow the organization to grow,” she said.

Wozniak-Michalak encourages others to start their higher education path at Cuyahoga Community College. “Tri-C provides you with the ability to get your preliminary classes completed before transferring to a four-year college, and it’s affordable,” she said. “I always recommend going to Tri-C and transferring to a four-year college especially when money is tight, you don’t know yet what you want to do, or the idea of beginning at a four-year college is intimidating.”