Byte-Sized Acts With Big Volunteer Impact: Kevin Sweeney, '99, M.S. '00
By Lia Kizilbash Gillet

Kevin Sweeney, '99, M.S. '00, joined the Computer Science Alumni Council to help students prepare for their careers.
(Photo: Lance Studio Photography)

Inspired by the opportunities that shaped his professional journey, Kevin Sweeney, ’99, M.S. ’00, joined the Computer Science Alumni Council (CSAC) to ensure NIU students can thrive just as he did.

“I was given many opportunities during my education that prepared me for success, and my time at NIU was a big part of that,” Sweeney said. “I want to give back so that others can have the same opportunities.”

Sweeney became involved with the CSAC in 2022 and most recently took on the role of president. He has been involved in the job shadow program, career fair prep workshop, and as a panelist at the CSAC "Real Jobs in the Real World" event.

“I was looking for volunteer opportunities related to my professional life,” he said. “Over the past two years, I have found my time volunteering at NIU to be rewarding and enriching."

Sweeney said he recalls being very nervous about making the transition from student to professional and is grateful for the opportunities NIU offered that helped him to better understand what would come next.

"The events that prepare students for the transition to the working world rarely work without volunteers, including activities like practice interviews," he said. "It's worth my time.”

While at NIU, Sweeney learned that volunteering is an excellent way to learn and practice new skills.

“My freshman year resident assistant in Douglas Hall pushed me to get involved in group activities to help raise my confidence,” he said. “It worked!”
 

Volunteering enables you to practice skills in an approachable way because if you get it wrong, it won't come up in class or a performance review." 

Sweeney quickly took leadership positions on campus. He served as a Grant Towers North resident assistant his sophomore year, a Grant Towers assistant security supervisor his senior year, and a graduate assistant teaching a section of CSCI 330.  

Earning a bachelor’s degree in computer science with university honors and a master’s degree in computer science prepared Sweeney for his first role as a programmer at ScudderKemper Investments in 2000. Working there for nearly 20 years, through several corporate transitions, including a merger and rebranding to DWS Investments, Sweeney held positions such as mainframe programmer, reporting developer and data warehouse developer. He left his role as a software engineer in 2020 and joined Cyber Korp as a senior data warehouse developer. Today, Sweeney is principal enterprise data engineer at UScellular and leads a production support team responsible for the enterprise data warehouse and data lake systems.

Sweeney and his wife, Michelle, '01, remain connected to NIU through visits to campus and tailgating at Huskie games. They are also charter members of the alumni association.

He encourages others to find an opportunity to volunteer at an organization meaningful to them.

“It doesn't have to take a lot of time, and you'll probably get more back from it than you put in,” Sweeney said.

NIU alumni volunteer their time in meaningful ways. Want to brainstorm ways you can get involved? Contact Liz McKee, M.S.Ed. '14 at lmckee1@niu.edu or 815-753-7400.