In My Shoes-St. Edward High School's Diversity Podcast

Mabry "Merv" Matheus '73 is one of the first African Americans to attend and graduate from St. Edward. He earned his degree from Case Western Reserve, then took on a career in data analytics, working for multiple major banks across the country. He discusses what St. Edward was like during the 1970s and how things have changed since then.

Frank Edmonds '07 is the CEO of Brighter Tomorrow Community Services, a behavioral health agency providing counseling, therapy, and case management services in Ohio. Frank is also an entrepreneur with multiple business ventures, a real estate investor, and a former investment banker at KeyBank. He talks to James and David about his time at St. Edward, and his transition from a Division I student-athlete at Ball State to a successful businessman.

Yoshi Nakamura '97 is a managing partner of NAKA Capital Partners, a firm focused on investing, owning, and operating high-quality companies in consumer and technology. Prior to running his own firm, Yoshi worked on Wall Street as a director at City Bank overseeing Blockchain & Crypto Interest & Investments. Yoshi graduated from the Wharton School of Business at UPenn, the #1 business school in the country. He was a 2x All-American wrestler and competed in the 2001 Olympic trials.

James Cunningham '02 is the State General Agent of American Income Life Indiana (Cunningham Agency). Cunningham Agency is one of the premier financial services companies in Indiana. James discusses how he translated his national championship football & track career at Mount Union, and NFL aspirations, into a successful career in the insurance industry.

Aseem Garg, St. Edward Man of the Year '06, is a compassionate and empathetic therapist who has extensive knowledge of mental illnesses. He discusses how mental illness can affect minority communities and what can be done to continue to redefine the narrative of mental health.

Judge Ryan is on the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas Juvenile Division. He discusses racial injustices and disparities in the legal system, and how his difficult upbringing led him to pursue a career in law. Judge Ryan is joined by his son, Mike Ryan Jr. '15. Mike talks to us about his time at St. Edward and his experience being a collegiate basketball player.

James and David sit down with Ibrahim Mohmed '15. Ibrahim founded Courtside Media, a start-up digital media management company. In this episode, he talks to us about social media influence and how he developed relationships in an unorthodox way to earn career opportunities.

James Knight, St. Edward VP of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, and David Dowell '15 sit down with Teon Smith '19. Teon is the 2019 St. Edward Man of the Year. He attends Boston College, studying Finance. We discuss what it is like to be a "Model Minority" at St. Edward, and how to achieve at a high level academically, athletically, and socially.

Aaron & Andre Eanes oversee A&A Management Group, a company that provides brand, image, personal, financial, and business management services to help maximize athletes' value on and off the field/court. Their clientele includes Travis Kelce, Denzel Ward, Dean Wade, Kent Bazemore, and more. They discuss how they leveraged relationships built at St. Edward and in their community into eventually starting a business. (Aired: 11/23/20)

Omar Fattah '18 plays football for the United States Air Force Academy and is pursuing a degree in management. He gives us an in-depth look at his rigorous military routine and how he balances it while also playing D1 football. (Aired: 11/16/20)

Samario Clancy '03 discusses his career path from college basketball coach to working with the Dallas Mavericks as a Basketball Analytics Assistant. He is also the founder and president of E3 Hoops Analytics, a company designed to provide an innovative analytical approach to high school and club-level basketball programs. (Aired 11/09/20)

Kipper Nichols '15 explains the process of being an athlete at the high school, collegiate, and now professional level. After his time at St. Edward, he graduated from the University of Illinois and is currently playing professional basketball overseas in England. (Aired: 11/02/20)

Dr. Aaron Quarles '06 is an Emergency Medicine Physician at Northwest Medicine. He grew up in East Cleveland, attended St. Edward, then went on to graduate from the University of Notre Dame and Harvard Medical School respectively. In this episode, he discusses his experiences and gives advice on how to safely manage the pandemic. (Aired: 10/26/20)

The Dowell Brothers, Andrew '15, David '15, and Michael '18, discuss what it was like to attend St. Edward together to playing D1 football at Michigan State together. They also talk about what it means to be a STUDENT-athlete and how St. Edward prepared them for it. (Aired: 10/19/20)

Pablo Lopez '14 and Farris Khouri '14 discuss their entrepreneurial endeavors and how the St. Edward Ken Layden program gave them the tools to succeed. (Aired: 10/12/20)

Shaun Crawford '15 shares his story of triumph and discusses his journey from St. Edward to playing football for the University of Notre Dame. (Aired: 10/05/20)