The Incomparable Ms. Yargici-Cooper
Even if you donβt know her name, youβve almost certainly seen Ms. Yargici-Cooper before. Sheβs at almost every school event, and if she wasnβt physically present, odds are she helped coordinate it. Despite that, she has a relatively understated role in the schoolβs culture. She runs the Blake Signature Pathway and Blake Ambassadors, both small programs. Past that she only teaches 3 class periods, two piano classes, and one piano class for special education students. So I wanted to take some time to shine a light on Ms. Cooper the signature event coordinator here at Blake.
Ms. Cooper grew up, basically everywhere. She moved continents every 2-3 years of her childhood and has lived in Zambia, Nigeria, England, and more. Because of this, she grew up surrounded by different cultures and peoples. She speaks 4 languages: English, French, Spanish, and Turkish. A constantly changing living situation like that certainly couldnβt have been the easiest to grow up in but Ms. Cooper holds the experience in high regard. βI just loved the opportunity to meet new peopleβ¦ and just being surrounded by a bunch of people that were different and the same as me at the same time,β Ms. Yargici-Cooper stated.
Music was the one constant in her life, and she had always had a passion for it, starting at a young age. Even after getting a Master’s in Business, she decided to apply for the opening at Blake to stay in touch with her lifelong passion while using her business skills. Her actual job as the Signature Event Coordinator is handling the logistics of school events such as sports games and performances. Sheβs responsible for things like making sure they have enough chairs and tables, and ensuring we have quality products to enhance the studentsβ overall experience at school. Despite the seemingly tedious nature of the job Ms. Cooper seems to have an unprecedented amount of fun with it. A quick conversation with Ms. Cooper will tell you that she is an energetic livewire with true expertise and love for the school she feels has βawesome in every corner.β
The actual job is more chaotic than it is on paper, however, with there being βno [such] thing as an average day.β Ms.Cooper often spends her time interfacing with the community and organizing collaborations between programs and resources so events can get underway. In her own words she βhelps Blake talk to Blake.β She also talks on behalf of Blake to the rest of the North East Consortium along with the Blake ambassadors who she personally trains. Though more complicated than the business side, this is Ms. Cooperβs favorite part of the job. She βloves helping Blakeβs best foot come forward [because] so many amazing things [are] going on here βso much talent and ingenuity and serious awesomeness.β Ms.Yargici-Cooper is a tremendous asset to the school both managerially and socially. Sheβs been working the job for about 11 years and I, selfishly, hope she stays for 11 more.