Penn State student graduates with top honors from two academic departments

University Park, Pa. — Graduating at the top of the class would be a crowning achievement for any diligent college student, so for one Penn State student who will graduate at the top of two separate academic departments this December, the accomplishment is near heroic.

Amanda L. Gifford will serve as a co-student marshal — the student with the highest grade-point average in each department — for Penn State's College of Communications as well as the College of Education at their fall commencement ceremonies on Saturday, Dec. 18. At a university with more than 41,000 students, Gifford's accomplishment is a rare phenomenon.

"The important thing for me was going above and beyond," Gifford said. "I felt it wasn’t just enough for something to be completed. I always want to do things correctly. If I had something to be done, I wanted it done well."

The dual broadcast journalism and elementary education major will graduate with a cumulative 4.00 grade-point average and has achieved Dean's List recognition every semester of her undergraduate career.

During her studies at Penn State, Gifford received honors from Kappa Tau Alpha, Phi Kappa Phi and Pi Lambda Theta. She also was named an Evan Pugh Scholar, an honor given to the top 0.5 percent of a graduating class. Her activities on campus have included volunteering as a peer mentor for the College of Communications, as a sports broadcaster for the college's student radio station, and as a basketball coach for third and fourth graders.

"I think it is terrific that Amanda was able to excel in two very different majors: journalism and elementary education," said Doug Anderson, dean of the College of Communications. "In my 28 years at universities, I don't recall a single double major in those two fields. It amazes me that she was able to excel in classes across the university, earn top marks for student teaching in the College of Education and find the time to excel in multiple broadcast journalism internships. She's simply a gifted, versatile young woman who clearly is destined to have a profound impact on any field she chooses to enter."

Gifford placed second in the Region I sports reporting competition for the Society of Professional Journalists, and earned 17th place in the national Hearst Award competition. She also was an active member of Penn State's Student Chapter of the State Education Association, and she served as treasurer for Pi Lambda Theta, an international honor and professional society in education.

Combining her interests in a unique way, Gifford will begin her career in broadcast journalism at ESPN Radio in Bristol, Conn.--where she also completed an internship--while maintaining her contributions to education through substitute teaching, coaching and volunteering in the schools. Other past internships include those at WTAJ-TV Channel 10 in State College, Pa., and WTOP News in Washington D.C. By the time of her graduation, Gifford also will have completed student teaching at Houserville Elementary School.

"Besides being brilliant, her attitude about work and her resourcefulness is just so far above what is expected," said Barbara Hartle, instructor of education and Gifford’s student-teaching supervisor this fall. "She has put it to great use and in an unassuming way. She’s quiet, but when she speaks you better listen because it’s always going to be worth hearing. She’s very gifted, and she’s not just book smart. Amanda is also very socially aware, very politically aware. In class as a teacher, she is always relaxed and has a wonderful rapport with the children. During the whole experience, no student could ever be too much trouble."

Gifford is the daughter of Jeff and Wendy Gifford of Penn Yan, N.Y.