UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Jordan Emely has been selected as one of five 2020 Jordan Smith Undergraduate Student Fellows by the National Resource Center for the First-Year Experience and Students in Transition.

Emely, of Salisbury, Maryland, is a junior studying educational theory and policy. He will represent Penn State at the center’s annual conference to be held in Washington D.C. Feb. 21-24.

Emely has served as the Welcome Week executive director in Student Orientation and Transition Programs (SOTP) since October 2018, helping to plan Welcome Week events for new and returning students at University Park. In this role, Emely has been integral in the development of new Welcome Week programs, including Tip Off the Semester and the Campus Traditions Tour. He also served as an orientation leader during the summer of 2017. 

“In my role as the Welcome Week executive director, I assist with daily check-ins at New Student Orientation and spearhead the creation and execution of Welcome Week events,” Emely said. “I am grateful that these responsibilities go in tandem, as I can assess the attitudes of students during NSO to be able to create specific, attractive and intentional Welcome Week programming. With my participation in the conference, I think that Penn State will benefit immensely in the way that we design and structure events.” 

Founded in 1986, the National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition is located at the University of South Carolina. The organization supports higher-education professionals as they work to help students through their transition to the college environment. Their five core commitments are student transitions, connection between research and practice, inclusion, collaboration and lifelong learning.

The fellowship program is designed to “advance the leadership skills and knowledge based of undergraduate students” in hopes that they will use the information they learn during the conference to aid in the transition of new students on their home campuses.

“We are quite proud to have Jordan representing the work we do in Student Orientation and Transition Programs to facilitate successful academic, social and personal transitions to the University,” said Dan Murphy, director of Student Orientation and Transition Programs. “For three years Jordan has committed himself to serving new Penn Staters, and this fellowship provides him an opportunity to showcase some of that hard work on the national stage.”

The Office of Student Orientation and Transition Programs is part of Penn State Student Affairs and Penn State Undergraduate Education. Penn State Undergraduate Education is the academic administrative unit that provides leadership and coordination for University-wide programs and initiatives in support of undergraduate teaching and learning at Penn State. Learn more about Undergraduate Education at undergrad.psu.edu.