UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Michala E. Zembas has been selected as the College of Education's student marshal for Penn State's fall 2021 commencement ceremony, which will be held at 12:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 18, in the Bryce Jordan Center. Stephanie Hopkins has served as her academic adviser.
From Schuylkill County, Zembas has been on the dean's list every semester. She is graduating with a 4.0 GPA, with a bachelor of science in elementary and early childhood education and a minor in education policy studies. She also is a Schreyer Honors College scholar.
Attending Penn State was a lifelong dream for Zembas, and she considers being selected as a student marshal to be a great honor that she will hold in her heart forever.
“I could not have done any of it alone. I am so thankful to all of the professors and support in the College of Education I have had, because not one of them ever settled on me or let me settle on myself,” she said. “I have been challenged and pushed to think in new ways and try different things to become the best version of myself possible. Every single professor I have had the privilege of learning both from and with has impacted my life in one way or another; because of Penn State, I have grown as a learner, an educator, a Penn Stater and a human being, and I will be forever grateful.”
During her college career, Zembas earned the President's Freshman Award in 2018 and the Sparks Award in 2019. She received multiple scholarships, including the Provost Award and the Academic Excellence Scholarship. She was inducted into the Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society in 2019, as well as the Penn State chapter of the Honor Society Alpha Iota and the National Society of Collegiate Scholars, both in 2020.
She was active in multiple organizations including the Student Pennsylvania State Education Association, the International Literacy Association, National Association for the Education of Young Children, the Children’s Literature Association, OHANA General Organization for THON, The Navigators, Club Tennis and Disney Club.
Her experience includes working as a substitute paraprofessional with Education Staffing Solution in the Saint Clair Area School District in Schuylkill County, and as an assistant classroom teacher with Child Development Inc. in Pottsville.
After graduation, she plans to pursue a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction with an emphasis in children’s literature from Penn State and begin her career as an elementary classroom teacher in her hometown.
Zembas’ parents, James and Michele Zembas — along with her brother, grandmother, aunts, uncles and cousins — plan to attend the ceremony.