 |
Whitney Worthington Jones '11 |
Whitney Worthington Jones ’11 spent a lot of time on R-MC’s campus before she made her final decision about where to go to college. “I had applied to liberal-arts colleges throughout the mid-Atlantic before it boiled down to four schools, including Randolph-Macon,” says the Lexington, Virginia native. “I attended an all-girls boarding school in Chatham, Virginia, and I knew that one-on-one contact with professors is advantageous for personal growth and networking opportunities.”
To read more Student Experience stories, click here.
Location, location, location An overnight stay on campus convinced Jones that R-MC was the right college for her. “I stayed with Erin Bumgarner ’06 for my Prospective Student Overnight, and she was incredibly helpful in explaining how life at R-MC might be good for me,” says Jones. “Erin is from Amherst, Virginia, so she helped me see that Ashland is a lot like our hometowns and that I wouldn’t feel overwhelmed from the change in location. She introduced me to a lot of her friends and she took me around to classes. It was such a great experience!”
A lot of Jones’s friends attended R-MC. “Most are people I grew up with, so it has been fun to have my hometown so well-represented by such talented classmates,” she says. In addition, Allen L. “Mac” Felts Jr. ’62 “has been a family friend for decades and his enthusiasm for R-MC is really contagious. When I told him I was accepted, he had Barclay DuPriest (
bookstore) send me a beautiful care package containing a bunch of R-MC gear. I was well-dressed when I arrived on campus!”
Once she started classes, it didn’t take Jones long to get to know people. “Everyone was so energetic and pleasant to be around, and that made what could have been a difficult adjustment period incredibly easy for me,” she says.
Major Decisions Jones is a
political science and
environmental studies major. “I took an environmental science class in high school and really enjoyed it, so when I was offered the opportunity to participate in the
First-Year Experience (FYE) program at R-MC, I was very excited,” she says. The course, “A River Runs Through It,” was taught by Professors Lauren Bell (political science) and Chas. Gowan (
biology). “Working through real-world problems and finding solutions using environmental studies and political science skills in my freshman year,” says Jones, “helped me confirm that these areas of study could be a part of my ideal career path.”
Making a Commitment Jones left R-MC after her freshman year to travel and to work. “I needed to make sure that I was genuinely ready to commit to my education,” she explains. She worked for the U.S. Department of Justice-U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlottesville, Virginia for two years as a paralegal assistant. “That gave me the opportunity to learn about law and criminal prosecution,” she says, “but I knew that finishing my education was important for my future.” Jones returned to R-MC with renewed zeal in 2009.
“The
Registrar’s Office was accommodating with my transfer credits from a community college that I attended from 2006-2009,” she says, “and the entire faculty treated me as though I had never left! It is hard sometimes to be in a pond surrounded by lots of new fish, but the community at Randolph-Macon is so welcoming and kind."
Campus Life Jones is an active member of many
student organizations, including Macon Outdoors, the Yellow Jacket Newspaper, the Political Science Student Association (PSSA), Students for Environmental Action (SEA), Campus Events Committee, Habitat for Humanity, Commuter Student Association and the Pre-Law Society.
Jones, who made the Dean’s List in spring 2010, also makes time to work on campus. “I work three days a week in the
Marketing & Communications department,” she says. “I write press releases, distribute mailings and publications, write articles for the faculty/staff newsletter
The Buzz, write stories for the alumni magazine and assist with taking photos for R-MC publications and events.” Jones also works two days a week at the circulation desk in the
McGraw-Page Library, assisting students in locating items, checking texts out and in, and arranging for inter-library loans. “It is great to help students in such an intellectually stimulating environment,” she says.
Making Plans
“Ideally, I plan on working in the environmental field after I graduate,” says Jones of her post-R-MC plans. “My area of expertise is public policy. As a jumping-point, I hope to work with non-profits while in graduate school. The environmental field is expanding rapidly and job opportunities are open to anyone who has a lot of energy, a progressive mindset and good attitude. I would enjoy attending law school, particularly one with an environmental certification program. I would like to get my master’s in environmental management, public policy or social work. Working as a consultant, analyst or planner for a local government, law firm, or a non-profit would really be ideal.”
For information on R-MC’s environmental studies department, visit
http://www.rmc.edu/academics/environmental-studies.aspx For information on R-MC’s political science department, visit
http://www.rmc.edu/academics/political-science.aspx For more information about the breadth of programs and opportunities available at Randolph-Macon or to schedule a campus visit, contact our Admissions Office at (800) 888-1762 or at admissions@rmc.edu.