Mark Ellison, Prof. of Chemistry, Receives First-Year Advising Award
Advisers to our first-year students help them transition to college life at Ursinus before declaring their major. First-year advising begins during the summer orientation when students begin the process of selecting courses for their first semester.
Dedicated and caring first-year advisers guide students throughout the semester to help with personal and academic development, monitor their progress, and mentor them through the beginning of their college experience.
The award is based on nominations from students and the winner is selected by a committee of past recipients. The recipient of this year’s Award for Excellence in First-Year Advising is Mark Ellison, the David Laucks Hain Professor of Chemistry.
Nick Hanford, Co-Director of the Institute for Student Success, presented the award to Ellison at the August Ursinus Day Academic Convocation (UDAC) for the class of 2025. Nick explained the award to the class of 2025 and introduced Mark by saying,
“Dr. Ellison earned his bachelor’s at the University of Pittsburgh before going on to complete his doctoral studies at Stanford University. He started at Ursinus in the fall of 2005 and over the last 16 years has looked for new and exciting ways to demonstrate the principles of physical and general chemistry.”
Nick continued speaking about the connections first-year advisers make with their advisees with one student saying “from my first moments at Ursinus, every interaction with Dr. Ellison has made me love this place even more.”
Students who nominated Mark wrote similarly,
“Dr. Ellison has not only been helpful in conveying information to his advisees, but he has gone the extra level to develop a personal relationship with each of his students. He goes out of his way to answer his students’ questions and take time out of his day for us even when it is inconvenient. He is also encouraging and keeps up with us on our lives. To exemplify these characteristics, Dr. Ellison has set up impromptu Zoom meetings to answer my questions amidst balancing taking care of his family…”
Or
“… [he] engages us in captivating discussions that truly changed my perspective not only as an intellectual, but as a human being. He is a very compassionate and understanding man who made it a priority to reply to any emails or questions I had right away. His good intentions and genuine character always shine through as he greets my peers and I with a smile and a greeting every time we cross paths.”
Mark Ellison joins a few other faculty members from the chemistry department who were previously awarded this honor – Ryan Walvoord in 2019, Amanda Reig in 2016 and Ronald Hess in 2015.
Congratulations to Dr. Mark Ellison!