UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Nate Ashton, son of Bill and Kelley Ashton, both of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, will serve as the college marshal for the College of Health and Human Development at the Dec. 17 Penn State commencement ceremony.
Escorted by faculty marshal Kimberly Van Haitsma, associate professor of nursing and director of the Program for Person-Centered Living Systems of Care, Ashton will graduate with a Bachelor of Science degree in health policy and administration with minors in gerontology and human development and family studies, and a 4.0 GPA.
A Schreyer Honors Scholar, Ashton is the recipient of the Penn State President’s Freshman Award, the Evan Pugh Scholar Award, and the President Sparks Award. He is also the recipient of the Jean Phillips Shibley Memorial Health Education Scholarship, Richard Albanus Smith Scholarship, and Schreyer Honors College Academic Excellence Scholarship.
He conducted the thesis project, “Resident Perspectives of Religious and Spiritual Care Preferences in Nursing Homes: A mixed-methods approach,” for the Schreyer Honors College under the supervision of Van Haitsma.
While at Penn State, Ashton served as president of the Penn State student chapter of the American College of Health Care Administrators and of Cru, a Christian organization on campus. He also completed an internship and works part-time at Foxdale Village, a continuing care retirement community in State College.
Ashton is a 2013 graduate of Bethel Park High School in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania. Following graduation, he plans to pursue an administrative career in long-term care services and supports to foster high-quality, meaningful care for older adults.