According to junior Elliott Rickert, who started his job at the St. Louis Park Chipotle Mexican Grill location toward the end of June, his responsibilities consist of overseeing the restaurant.

“I’m a kitchen manager,” Rickert said. “I have to make sure all of the food is kept up so that we don’t run out of food, as well as I have to keep the people who are on the line (on task to) make sure that they are staying friendly and don’t run out of food.”

Sophomore Denzel Thomas said he believes Rickert’s occupational success is impressive and influencing those around him.

“That’s super cool,” Thomas said. “He’s setting examples already.”

Rickert said the convenience of Chipotle and the income inspired him to get a job there.

“I wanted money and it’s a 15-minute walk from where I live,” Rickert said.  

According to junior Shaqued Ben-Harush, Rickert’s hard work can be seen both inside and outside of the classroom.

“I feel like he deserves it because I know what he does in school and I have him in my class,” Ben-Harush said. “He works really hard and he gets the job done. His personality is just normally hardworking.”

Chipotle general manager Joshua Simms said Rickert has advanced while learning new skills.

“Going through his retraining, he was very attentive with detail and that really pushed him to improve with the retraining,” Simms said. “His performance has improved so much.”

According to Rickert, he works at Chipotle almost full time, balancing his work and academics by taking courses online.

“On a average week, I’m probably picking up around like 39 hours, 40 hours,” Rickert said. “I’m doing online courses actually.”

Thomas said having a successful work life is intriguing, but includes a lot of effort.

“Who wouldn’t want to be a manager?” Thomas said. “Although, being a manager means you’re going to have more responsibilities and leadership skills at the end of the day.”

Rickert said his employment helped him become a better leader and improve upon his communication skills.

“I’ve developed a lot of leadership abilities as well as I feel I’ve helped develop my friendliness,” Rickert said.

Simms said in the restaurant, Rickert is very lively.

“(Rickert can be described as) high energy, spontaneous,” Simms said.