Ferrell Named Distinguished Alumna
From Indiana University of Pennsylvania:
Indiana University of Pennsylvania’s Department of Student Affairs in Higher Education (SAHE) is pleased to announce Jennifer Ferrell as the recipient of the Ronald Lunardini Distinguished Alumni Award for 2014.
Jennifer is a 2005 graduate of SAHE and is currently the director of Student Involvement at Keene State College in New Hampshire. Prior to that, she was the coordinator of Student Activities at Keene State College, the position she assumed after graduating from IUP.
Jennifer’s contributions to the profession are highlighted by publications and numerous national conference presentations plus many service activities for professional associations, including the Northeast Greek Leadership, National Association for Campus Activities, Phi Kappa Phi National Honor Society, and American College Personnel Association, for which she was recently elected as the assembly coordinator for the Standing Committees.
Numerous letters of support from professional colleagues, Keene State alumni, and Keene State students were submitted in support of her nomination. Quotes from those letters describe Jennifer in the following ways: “her main priority is about individuals and their development,” “she has a way of instilling confidence into people just by believing in them,” “she will always be an example that I strive to follow,” and “Jen has demonstrated her appreciation for life-long learning and ongoing professional development, and she has taught us to do the same.”
The award selection committee (comprised of faculty, students, and alumni), in their review of the nomination materials for Jennifer, unanimously affirmed that she meets and exceeds the award criteria, particularly in the areas of promoting student success, collaborating with colleagues, embracing lifelong learning, and contributing to the profession.
The award was presented to Jennifer at an alumni reception hosted by IUP on Tuesday, April 1, 2014, at the annual convention of the American College Personnel Association in Indianapolis, Ind.
The Ronald Lunardini Distinguished Alumni Award, begun in 2006, was created to acknowledge an alumna or alumnus of the SAHE department whose experiences and accomplishments as a student affairs professional significantly reflect the standards and values of the SPS program/SAHE Department. In 2008, in recognition of Ron Lunardini’s 37 years of service to IUP (18 as an SAHE faculty member), the award title was changed to honor him.
