ALUMNUS SPOTLIGHT

Once in Germany, I began to appreciate the more practical aspects of my education. It's one thing to be able to order your food in a restaurant and another to discuss your eligibility to receive a residence permit at the foreigner’s office. My time as a teaching assistant has only strengthened my will to be an educator. The school where I teach allows me to work with students of various ages and language levels and even lead the lessons at times. Because of this, I am excited to continue where I left off in the Master of Education degree, empowered by the extensive classroom experience that the Fulbright Scholarship has provided.

Philip is a senior and a non-traditional, pre-med student majoring in Spanish with a minor in chemistry. He had been living in central Alabama and working in emergency medical services (EMS) for ten years when he decided to move back home to the Shoals to attend UNA. While working in EMS, he found a desire to work with medically underserved and economically disadvantaged populations.

He chose UNA because of its outstanding reputation, proximity to family, and its specific course offerings that facilitated his specific academic goals. During his time at the school, he has found an excellent mix of didactic offerings, experiential learning opportunities, personalized and in-depth career and academic advising, incredible teachers, and amazing extracurricular activities When asked what his favorite thing about UNA is, he can confidently answer “the relationships I’ve built here.”

He loves UNA and notes that in his home department, the Department of Foreign Languages, he has learned to speak Spanish and is in the process of refining his linguistic skills in a desire to be part of the solution in meeting the growing healthcare need for Spanish speakers. He says that he is proud to be a member of a department and school that provides such a wide array of offerings beyond the classroom ranging from internship to study abroad and experiential learning opportunities tailored to the student. In the Department of Chemistry and Physics, he has found teachers willing to go the extra mile to support their students, develop relationships, provide personalized feedback, and leave each of their students feeling like an individual and not simply a number.

Philip and his family are very happy they chose UNA as their home for his undergraduate education. His experience has been extremely positive, and he is proud to consider himself part of the UNA Pride!

Hi everyone! My name is Jasmine Sherman, and I am so excited to start my graduate journey here at UNA working for CASE. I recently received my undergraduate degree from UNA in Criminal Justice with a minor in Psychology. During my time as an undergraduate student, I worked for the university’s Housing and Residence Life Department as a Senior Resident Advisor for three years. I also had the pleasure of working for the SOAR program for the past two years. This past summer I was fortunate enough to become Head SOAR Counselor. One of my proudest accomplishments was during the fall of 2020 when I pledged Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated. I am very grateful for those experiences because I met many amazing individuals. My initial journey started five years ago in the Summer of 2018 while I worked as a summer employee for one of Birmingham’s YWCA Programs. One Friday they drove the summer interns to Florence, AL to visit UNA’s campus. I was fortunate enough to have met a Lagrange tour guide who was a Criminal Justice major. This was important, because I was able to connect with him and envision my UNA experience through his story. He detailed how amazing the campus was and how the university’s size allowed for better access to his professors anytime that he needed help. This was important to me, because I wanted to attend a university where I was a name and not just a number. Ever since that day I was sure that UNA was the right place for me. During my time here I have grown tremendously as an individual, and part of that is due to the amazing leadership/mentorship that I was blessed to have found right here on campus. I love the university so much that I am now in pursuit of my Master of Science in Family and Community Services. I have a passion-filled purpose for helping others and I cannot wait to go out into the world and change lives, all while expressing how UNA has changed mine. I would encourage anyone who is looking for a home away from home where the professors genuinely care for you and pour into your life to please consider UNA The people, experience, and opportunities here are truly one of a kind.