Major: Theater
When he was in the fourth grade, Josh Keske was part of a small musical at his church.
“I had a lot of fun doing it,” he said. “I continued to do the spring musicals at my middle school and my love for it just kept growing with each year, so I continued to do more and more shows throughout high school.”
However, when it came time for college, Keske did not know what his major should be. Instead of attending a four-year school with no clear career path, he decided to enroll at College of DuPage. This allowed him to finish his general education requirements while saving money.
Keske also realize his passion for theater could become something more.
“COD truly re-instilled the hope in my own dreams,” he said. “I was starting to grow further from acting as a major, but the classes I took and the professors I had made me feel like it was possible. COD showed me that if I put in the effort, then I had a shot. For both career and personal reasons, COD made me believe in myself again.”
COD truly re-instilled the hope in my own dreams.
Josh Keske
Helping Keske gain experience—as well as pay for college—was the John Belushi/Second City Stage Management scholarship awarded through the COD Foundation. It allowed him to work alongside the Theater program’s faculty chair as her stage manager for one of the fall productions.
“It was a lot of fun, as I hadn’t done anything like that before,” he said. “I got to know the cast really well and we all got along together, which made it that much more of an enjoyable experience. It also helped me realize that I had an interest in the technical side of theater, as well as directing.”
Keske majored in theater and minored in directing at Columbia College Chicago, after receiving the 2022 Chicagoland Transfer Award (CTA) scholarship. The $12,000 annual award was granted to 10 Chicago-area community college students seeking to transfer to Columbia College. He was among 108 applicants who had a minimum 3.0 grade point average and wrote an essay to apply for the merit-based, renewable scholarship.
Having earned his bachelor’s degree, he plans to apply for a master’s program. Keske is not sure whether to pursue film or theater but plans to stay in Chicago and see where his career goes.
As for COD and the Theater program, Keske advises students to just have fun.
“The professors at College of DuPage are phenomenal and fun to work with, and you'll get the most out of the class if you just be yourself,” he said. “Follow your heart, and you'll never go wrong.”