Meet The Business Week Staff
Steve McGraw, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Steve McGraw is currently the President and Executive Director of the Foundation for Private Enterprise Education dba Washington Business Week. He served as the Executive Director of the Starlight Children’s Foundation Northwest, The Seattle Children’s Museum, and the Seattle Aquarium Society. He has a Master’s degree in Applied Psychology/Organization Development from the University of Bridgeport, a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Sociology from the University of Buffalo, and a Certificate in Non-Profit Management from the University of Washington. He served on the Board of Directors of The Children’s Music Foundation. Steve has dedicated his career for over twenty five years to making the community a better place through education, human services, healthcare, and cultural arts.
Tracey Turcotte, PROGRAM DIRECTOR
Tracey manages the overall program delivery for the Summer and Community / In-School Programs. Previously, she was involved with Business Week as a volunteer Company Advisor, Judge and Speaker. Tracey has an extensive background working with teens as an educator, speaker, camp counselor, and student recruiter. Tracey works with various groups around the state in efforts to motivate teens to explore their future goals. In her free time, she enjoys movies and travel.
Herman Calzadillas, PATHWAYS DIRECTOR
Students need to discover their passions along with the career opportunities in the world of work. Herman manages the Manufacturing, Energy and Agri-Business Week pathways working with students, educators, and business professionals to build programs that meet today’s workforce needs. He enjoys working with students in non-traditional hands-on educational programs like those offered at Washington Business Week. He has served in education for the past 15 years and enjoys spending time with his family.
Lizzie Braicks, STUDENT COORDINATOR
As the Student Coordinator Lizzie spends her time travelling throughout Washington State talking to students and educators about all of the wonderful perks Washington Business Week has to offer. Lizzie graduated from Gonzaga University in 2012 with a degree in public relations and has a strong background helping organizations and nonprofits with communication and outreach. Remembering her own uncertainty in her post high school plans, Lizzie loves the experience of working with students to help them discover themselves and their futures through the Business Week programs. In her spare time she can be found reading books and fashion blogs, going for runs around Seattle, and perusing farmers markets.
Alisa Johnson, PROGRAM COORDINATOR, REGISTRAR
Alisa supports the Program and Pathways Directors, prepares program materials and processes registrations for the summer programs. She has a broad background in office efficiency, systems and business management. In her spare time, she can be found following her kids, playing on the wii or computer, exploring the vegan lifestyle, all the while dreaming of travelling anywhere outside of Washington State.
John Idstrom, DIRECTOR OF PHILANTHROPY
As Director of Philanthropy, John assists donors in defining and achieving their philanthropic goals. Prior to joining FFPEE, John operated his own fundraising consulting business, where he assisted the Youth Marine Foundation in developing the Tacoma Youth Marine Center. As a professional fundraiser for over 25 years, he has spent much of his career in higher education, serving in a variety of capacities for the University of Washington, Tacoma, University of California Santa Cruz and his alma mater, the University of Minnesota. In his free time, John cooks, writes and fishes with a fly rod.
Janice Jaworski, RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR
Washington Business Week is the ultimate way for Janice to combine her experience as a corporate and nonprofit manager with an enthusiasm to see young people discover their potential and experience success! She is priveleged to work with the many corporate partners and volunteers that make sure Business Week is available in Washington and Poland. If she is not at Business Week, you can find her gardening, cooking or on her next travel adventure.
Alma Alvarez, DEVELOPMENT/RESOURCE ASSISTANT
Alma is in charge of providing administrative assistance and support to the Development and Resource teams. Alma graduated from the Federal Way High School in 2007 and received an Associate of Arts degree from Highline Community College in the fall of 2009. In her spare time, she can be found at the park with her dog or cooking a new recipe she found on Pinterest.
Pam McKiernan, OFFICE MANAGER
Pam oversees the management of our office on a daily basis. She has an extensive background in office management procedures and systems; from Human Resources, IT Issues to Accounting. During the summer programs you can find her in the WBW office on campus or in Federal Way. In her spare time Pam is often found creating new and exciting recipes to try out on friends and family.
Megan Marchand, OFFICE/STUDENT REGISTRAR ASSISTANT
Megan is thrilled to be working full-time at Washington Business Week after spending the past three summers as program support staff. She spends her days at the reception desk, providing general office support and assisting with registrations and student payments for the summer programs. Megan’s background is in education and she spent time before working at Business Week teaching orchestra at both public and private schools and assisting in camp management. In her spare time, Megan is often found chasing after her 2-year old son, playing violin in the symphony or playing on the worship team at her church.
Stephen Hyer, SPECIAL CONSULTANT
Steve is the former Executive Director and President of Washington Business Week, from July 1996 through March 2013. He is currently assisting the Foundation as a Special Consultant to facilitate a smooth transition to the new Executive Director, Steve McGraw. Steve and his family also own Olympia retail businesses, The Alpine Experience in Olympia, specializing in serious mountaineering equipment, skis and snowboards.