Cool Choices is the culmination of decades of experience of two people that have helped thousands of people of all ages find meaningful employment. Jan Lowe, co-developer of Cool Choices, began her career in vocational counseling 30+ years ago. After completing a Masters Degree in Vocational Rehabilitation in 1973, she found employment as a Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor in Minnesota. Jan’s unbelievable understanding of the workforce, the role of education and training, and her awareness of industry and labor market needs was the inspiration for the development of Cool Choices. Lowe has been a vocational expert since the late 1970’s, and she has conducted thousands of employability evaluations. She has prepared and presented testimony for hundreds of federal, state, and county cases relating to personal injury, marital dissolution, and employment law.

Lowe’s experience as a vocational practitioner required her to be action-oriented. She not only had to evaluate thousands of people’s cases, but she also has had to judicisiously place them back into the work force or into training to help them be successful in the labor market. It is from her practical experience that this system can work for all people.

In July of 2000, Tracy Lungrin, the co-developer of Cool Choices, met Jan at a wedding. The chance meeting was a true connection as they both had a mutual interest in vocational counseling and similar western Nebraska heritages. Tracy was the catalyst to the Cool Choices project. Lungrin completed her Masters Degree in Counseling with an emphasis in College Student Development and worked in a variety of student personnel roles.
Serving as an admissions/recruitment coordinator, an academic advisor, and a residence hall director, made her aware of the overwhelming need for career counseling. She developed a strong desire to better serve the college population—a group investing millions of dollars in education with little awareness of how they fit into the labor market! Tracy observed Jan perform client assessments and was fascinated by the process. It was then that they decided to collaborate their skills and experiences. A partnership was born and plans were made to fulfill their shared dream of helping people find fulfilling careers.