Meet Our Students
Current Student Q&As
Tori Melerine
Why did you choose JMU for your graduate experience?
I liked everything that the program offered (cohort model, professors who work in the field, counseling focused, required assistantships), heard great things about the school, and really saw myself fitting in here!
What do you do in your assistantship?
As a Hall Director for Residence Life, I support the safety, well-being, and engagement of residents!
What one word would you use to describe your experience in CSPA?
Fruitful – I know I am learning and growing in skills, knowledge, and community.
What’s your favorite spot on the JMU campus?
I love UREC! It is an amazing facility.
Keresa is pictured to the left of the Shorts Hall sign.
Keresa Murray
Why did you choose JMU for your graduate experience?
I chose JMU for my graduate school experience due to its size, location, and reputation of the school. JMU’s CSPA program had a robust curriculum with assistantship sites that suited my wants and needs out of a Student Affairs program.
What do you do in your assistantship?
As a Hall Director, I supervise Resident Advisors, manage everyday building operations/administration, and host educational programs for the residents. As the Transfer Student Staff Graduate Assistant in the office of Orientation and Transition, I supervised the Transfer Orientation Peer Advisors, helped teach a leadership course for the Orientation Leaders, and oversaw Transfer Weeks of Welcome and Orientation.
What one word would you use to describe your experience in CSPA?
Splendid
What’s your favorite spot on the JMU campus?
Alumni Testimonials
I chose JMU because I wanted to learn from experienced professionals who live what they teach on a day-to-day basis. From these professionals, I gained a strong understanding of student development, counseling theory and methodology, and administration. And from my graduate assistantship and practica, I learned how to put that information into practice for the benefit of the university communities I serve.
Katie Kinniburgh
Class of 2017
I chose JMU’s CSPA program because of the emphasis put on experiential learning opportunities, counseling strategies, and the insight provided by current Student Affairs practitioners. After being in the program, I have come to recognize the importance of having those experiential learning opportunitites, through assistantships and practica, as an invaluable way to practice what is being taught in the classes. Additionally, I found a passion for counseling strategies and find that I utilize them every day in my conversations with others. Overall, CSPA prepared me well to be successful in my first professional position.
Robert Smith
Class of 2019
Department of Graduate Psychology
- Johnston Hall
- MSC 7401
- 70 Alumnae Drive
- Harrisonburg, VA 22807
- Email: cspa@jmu.edu
- Phone: (540) 568-6439
- Fax: (540) 568-4747
- Last Updated: February 9, 2023
