Yuriy Sardarov, class of ‘06, moved to Northbrook his junior year of high school. While at Glenbrook North, he spent much of his time with the theatre program, competing in Individual Events and as a vice president on SA Board. After graduation, he studied acting at the University of Michigan and has continued to pursue acting ever since.

Recently, he has been a part of t he TV show “Chicago Fire,” which chronicles the experiences of firefighters in the Chicago Fire Dept. In early Mar, the show was picked up  by NBC.

Sardarov returned to GBN to speak at the pride assembly and left Spartans with some helpful advice for their futures.

What did you gain from your time at GBN?
Sometimes you grow up and you realize that the people that taught you didn’t want to be teachers. They wanted to be something else, and then they fell into teaching. Teachers [at GBN] are teachers first, and then they’re mathematicians, and then they’re scientists. They’re here because they want to teach. This is where they want to be. They’re all here because they’re passionate about what they want to do. As long as you’re accepting of that, you’re going to go places.

What did that experience as an SA Board Vice President teach you?
When you’re on SA Board, everyone knows who you are, but I had just moved here a year before so I had no idea who anyone else was. Sometimes it was hard to tell the difference between someone I knew really well and someone who just knew me, and SA Board taught me to know the difference between the two.

What did you take from your time at the University of Michigan?
By the end of college, and with the help of being in a few films, all of my experiences combined helped me feel completely comfortable with where I wanted to go and what path I wanted to take. I think that’s the key to college. It’s not about the grades it’s about being able to be comfortable with who you are by yourself, without having your family around to be like ‘You’re the best!’

What has been the key to your own success?
Being nice to people is the thing that makes your career, and it has to come from an honest place. It has to come from a place where you’re just genuinely being nice to people, but then people will be nice back. You love what you do, so you love yourself, so you love other people. Life is all connected. Everything ebbs and flows in specific ways, and being nice to people is the key.