PC Profile: Jeffrey Soffer OPC '15

What happens after Penn Charter? We asked alumni to reflect on the moments, mentors, and experiences that shaped their paths—and how those lessons continue to guide them today.

Q: What is your current employment, education program, or passion project?
A: I'm currently a freelance video editor and producer with a focus on music and technology. I've worked on projects with Harry Styles, Billie Eilish and Travis Scott and companies like Google, Square and Nike.

Q: How did your experience at PC prepare you for your personal and professional life?
A: I always felt like the teachers and faculty treated me like an adult. Whether that was reporting to Ms. Landon as editor-in-chief of The Mirror, pitching The Wednesday Weekly to Mr. Larabee and Mr. McCluskey or putting together Showcase with Mr. Fitz. As students, we were given the freedom to experiment and see how the community took to our (sometimes crazy) ideas.

Q: What extracurricular activities were you involved in?
A: I created the Wednesday Weekly (a weekly news-ish show shown during advisory) because I wanted to find a fun and engaging way to let the school know what was happening on campus. As helpful as that was to everyone else, it also became an outlet for me to grow as a filmmaker, making mini-documentary pieces of students and the happenings at Penn Charter. Ultimately, the weekly cadence of that show taught me how to edit videos so quickly, and working with Mr. Dziedzic (our Executive Producer!) pushed me to highlight the incredible parts of the PC community.

Q: What person, course, or experience most influenced you while at PC?
A: My junior year we wanted to do the final Showcase on the lawn outside the Kurtz Center. What followed was a full-on marketing rollout, mostly masterminded by Jimmy Paolini OPC ‘15, in which hundreds of flyers were posted that said only “MAY 9TH.” A few days later, they were swapped out for signs that read “MAY 9TH KIDDER’S BIRTHDAY” (a nod to senior Kidder Erdman’s actual birthday). Eventually, the final signs were put up announcing the Outdoor Showcase, coinciding with the first (of many) musical parodies aired on the Wednesday Weekly. This time, we spoofed Frozen with “Do you want to come to Showcase?” Those outdoor Showcases were so special because it really felt like a big community effort to help get the stages put up and the sound system built, along with probably our biggest turnout of the year. Helping manage these types of big projects and events really taught me how to collaborate and execute on what I was passionate about.

Q: Do you have a favorite PC memory?
A: During my sophomore year running cross country, state championships happened during basically a blizzard. It was snowing at Belmont Plateau and I was freezing, yet somehow I ran my personal best that day, which Coach Farrell wouldn’t let me forget until I finally beat it senior year. I still claim it was because I was cold and wanted the race to be over as soon as possible.

Connect with Jeffrey:
Visit his Website and/or his Instagram account.