Meghan Fogarty, Class of 2009, Watertown, CT

What are you up to? I'm currently working at Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield as an Escalations Specialist in Customer Service. I love my job because I love helping people. Currently, I assist on-shore and off-shore vendor representatives. I teach them how to work their calls and correctly assist members with daily inquiries. This job is not something I would have ever been able to predict would fall onto my lap, but I'm so glad it has. Anthem has become a second home for me, I love the people I work with and enjoy getting to help people!

How'd you get here? I got here because I networked. I graduated from Iona College in 2013 with a degree in psychology. I was working at a family daycare (which I loved... really) but it kind-of ran it's course. Once college loans started coming in I knew I had to move onto bigger and better opportunities. It's so easy to stay in a job that's comfortable, but it's important to push yourself and continue to do so in any career path you choose. I asked around for any kind of job openings that family and friends might be able to refer me to. My uncle told me Anthem was hiring and, to be honest, at first I turned my nose up at him. A customer service job didn't seem like a job that I ever wanted to partake in. I'm so glad I did because, as I've found out, Anthem is a company of ladders to not only higher positions but to many versatile careers. It's dedication that will move me up in the company and I can't wait to see what's in store for me.

What are your goals? My ultimate goal, career-wise, is to become a Provider Contractor Specialist. I want to make connections and draw up contracts with providers and hospitals who choose Anthem. Moving from the bottom of the company to the top tier is something that can be obtained with the knowledge of every moving part in Anthem. I have worked in the Customer Service department for two years and now I am currently interviewing for an open position within Anthem, which will only get me closer to that goal. 

*Update: I got the job! :)

Advice for WHS Students? My biggest piece of advice: Never turn away from your true friends. Life after college can bring you right back home or far away from home. Either direction, always keep your true friends from high school - no matter where you or they go. I'm living in Watertown, working in Wallingford, and I still have a close-knit group of friends and family who have known me from the beginning. It's biggest sigh of relief at the end of the day, knowing they are there for me. To have people around you that are routing for you to succeed, and have never stopped, is empowering. We all need a community. So keep your friends from high school close; that is the best piece of advice I can give. I can't thank them enough for getting me where I am today, for making me who I am today.

How hungry are you right now? About to have a yogurt and a banana!