Class of 2026: Jay Artis

A little nervous, but also very excited. I always knew I wanted to go to college, so I was proud of how far I’d already made it. But I was also a little intimidated going into such a new environment.

Proud of everything I have accomplished in my time at McDaniel. I rang in as a freshman hoping to smoothly adjust to campus life and find a career I would be passionate about, and I will be ringing out as a senior who found spaces to thrive on campus and feels prepared to step into my career.

During my junior year, I did a service-learning internship for my Social Work courses. I interned at an organization called Flying Colors of Success as well as the Boys & Girls Club. Currently, I am an intern at Sheppard Pratt. If I had to pick a favorite, I would say Sheppard Pratt because I’ve had the opportunity to be there longer, and my knowledge of and practice in the social work field has grown so much in my time there. Fortunately, all of my supervisors from my internships have been McDaniel alumni, and they have all been very helpful and supportive in my journey.

During my time on the Hill, I have learned how to let go. I have always been someone who isn’t a big fan of change, but since being at McDaniel I’ve had to adjust to a lot of changes and new experiences. So, I have become better at welcoming those changes and letting things go. I think that accepting things I can’t change and learning how to come to terms with things that have already happened has overall made me a happier person.

I want to be remembered as being a welcoming contribution to someone’s adjustment to campus life. During my time at McDaniel, I have been a Local leader, peer mentor, and EDGE mentor. Those roles were very important to me because those were the people that made me feel comfortable coming in as a first-year student myself. Whenever I felt like I had a “dumb question” or got lost, they were the people that I could turn to and rely on for that guidance, and I hope I have been that for others.

Amanda Gelber was very helpful in shaping who I have become. She has always been one of the most supportive staff members. Being able to work closely with her has shown me what it means to truly care about the needs of students and how to go about enacting change within the systems of the campus. She always sees the potential of students and what they are capable of, and she has made me see that potential in myself throughout my time here.

My favorite class was a religious studies class called Sex, Drugs, & U.S. Religion. Initially, I wanted to take the class because the description of it sounded very interesting, and in the grand scheme of things, I think that as a Social Work major it’s important to be open to learning about different cultures or religions that may not be your own because it helps better your ability to work with your clients. The course material was very fun to learn about, and the way that Professor Brad Stoddard taught the lectures made it easy to understand the topics and overall made it very interesting.

I was a Local leader in the summer after my first year and the summer going into my senior year; I was a peer mentor during my sophomore year as well as my junior year; and I was an EDGE mentor my sophomore year and my junior year. EDGE was a program for students from Baltimore City, and I enjoyed my own experience during my first year as a part of the EDGE program with an assigned mentor. I have been a member of the Black Student Union (BSU) since my first year, and served as the secretary during my junior year. I ran for a position for the Student Government Association (SGA) during my sophomore year, served as the vice president during my junior year, and am currently the president. I am also a member of the President’s Advisory Council of Students (PACS).

In one of my Social Work courses, I learned about a neighborhood in Baltimore City called Sharp Leadenhall. It is recognized as Baltimore’s oldest continuous African American community. It was founded by free black people dating back to the late 1700s. I’ve grown up in Baltimore my entire life and I know a lot about its history, but I didn’t learn about this neighborhood until my senior year of college, which made me want to look into the city a little more than I have before.

I did my senior Social Work internship at Sheppard Pratt Mosaic in Westminster.

During my fall semester, I was able to run day program groups at Sheppard Pratt and participate in note documentation and shadowing. This semester, I am able to have more one-on-one client interactions, view more client interventions, and participate in client transportation and treatment plan making.

I want to pursue my master’s degree in Social Work, but I think I will take some time to work and try to gain a bit more experience in the social work field with my bachelor’s degree before working to get my master’s.

I am looking forward to being an alum and being able to work with McDaniel through different alumni events. Also, there are students at McDaniel that I have mentored during my time here, and I plan to stay connected to them and potentially help them through the rest of their college journey.

Receiving financial aid meant so much to me. I always knew I wanted to go to college, but I also knew that I didn’t want to go if it meant taking out too much money in loans. So, I worked very hard throughout high school to set myself up for success when applying to colleges. Initially, I didn’t receive as much in aid as I’d hoped when I applied to different schools, but when McDaniel offered me a full-tuition scholarship, it significantly opened my opportunity to go to college. I have been able to enjoy my college experience without many financial stressors and focus on other things during my time here.

Yes, I am a first-generation college student. It has meant so much to me to be able to go to college. Though it’s not something I saw growing up, I knew it was something I always wanted to do. Being the youngest sibling, it has meant even more to me to see how proud my family is, seeing how far I have made it and all I have accomplished so far.