Political science alumnus recognized by ‘Crain’s Cleveland Business’

Patrick Mohorcic ’18, the director of workforce development at the Lake County Board of County Commissioners, was part of this year’s “Twenty in their 20s” list published by Crain’s Cleveland Business. The annual program recognizes the hard work of Northeast Ohio’s rising stars in all fields of endeavor, and of note, Mohorcic, 24, is the second-youngest honoree this year.

“It’s really nice to be recognized by Crain’s Cleveland Business,” said Mohorcic, who earned his degree in political science with a minor in business economics at The College of Wooster. “Any time you can be recognized at that level, you feel proud of what you’ve done. It was really humbling to receive that. I’ve had great bosses and a great first job to put me in the position I’m in now. I’m really fortunate and really blessed to be with the Lake County Board of County Commissioners.”

Thanks to countless connections both at Wooster and throughout Northeast Ohio, Mohorcic quickly landed a role with the Lake County Ohio Port & Economic Development Authority upon graduation and was promoted to his current role in May. Since then, Mohorcic hosted a virtual job fair for manufacturing in late June, and noted it was the third one in the state since COVID-19 hit, with the others taking place through similar organizations in Cuyahoga and Franklin Counties, home to Cleveland and Columbus, respectively. Mohorcic’s involved with the board’s partnership with Google, where Lake County residents can obtain online training through Coursera in a variety of areas for free through a workforce recovery act, and those newly-acquired skills will help with marketability in the job market. Mohorcic helped secure close to $400,000 in grant money to increase training programs and business services outreach. He is also working on a partnership with LinkedIn to help attract and retain talent in Lake County through advertisement and direct messaging campaigns, centered around letting aspiring professionals from outside Northeast Ohio know of exciting opportunities in the area.

“My job is to help others,” said Mohorcic, who was selected as the Ohio Economic Development Association’s “Economic Development Rookie of the Year” in 2019. “It’s inspiring to get up every day and make the world a better place. I’m able to help our community, Lake County, and the Greater Cleveland area thrive, especially in the midst of the pandemic, with how we can pivot and help make sure people get back to work in a safe way.”

Mohorcic still sticks to the “student-athlete schedule” he had at Wooster to this day, and the discipline and time management skills obtained while attending the College and playing football have helped the 2017 Allstate American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Good Works Team® captain immensely. And while “Independent Study is what makes Wooster, Wooster,” according to Mohorcic, the “hidden gem at Wooster is actually APEX,” the College’s center for Advising, Planning, and Experiential Learning.

“APEX is what helps Wooster graduates the most,” said Mohorcic. “It provided experiential learning outside of the classrooms and professional development. APEX helped hone the soft skills I needed in my professional career at a very young age. That set me apart from an applicant pool and helped me move up the ladder very quickly.”

Posted in Alumni on July 15, 2020.