Written by Yendira Pineda, Transfer Jacks Senior Peer Mentor
The NAU Office of Graduate and Professional Studies organizes the Outstanding Graduate Awards, which happens every academic year. It’s a time for faculty, staff, and administrators to nominate and acknowledge superb achievements of NAU’s graduate coordinators, graduate research assistants, graduate teaching assistants, and graduate service assistants within various departments. These awards help us to express our enormous appreciation for those students who have gone above and beyond in their graduate assistant roles. Awards for NAU Master’s and Ph.D. Students | Office of Graduate and Professional Studies
The Transfer Jacks Team would like to recognize our Transfer Jacks Graduate Assistant, Giselle Soto, on the 2021-2022 Outstanding Graduate Service Assistant Award! Giselle received her award in the Spring 2022 semester and was recognized for all the outstanding work she has done for the Transfer Jacks Program during the 2021-2022 Academic Year.
Giselle began her journey with the Transfer Jacks Program back in 2017, as a mentee participant who utilized our lounge space and by 2018, she transitioned into a Transfer Jacks Peer Mentor. Over time, she was promoted to a Senior Peer Mentor role, and has been the Graduate Assistant for the Transfer Jacks Program since Fall 2020. Having been a part of the Transfer Jacks Program for many years, Giselle has worked with a plethora of people, who would like to recognize her for all she has accomplished.
Leslie Mitchell, Academic Success Coordinator – Senior (and former Transfer Jacks Coordinator), mentions that when she first met Giselle, she was a shy program participant who came to our lounge space but didn’t come out of her shell for a while. Over time, Giselle blossomed to be an active mentee participant then to a mentor, after that becoming a Senior mentor before moving into the role of Graduate Assistant. Through it all she has never wavered in her commitment to transfer students and the mission of the program. When I transitioned out of my role as the Coordinator for the Transfer Jacks, I was confident that with all of her years of experience, Giselle would be able to step up as a leader and keep all of the ball in the air to keep the program going and serving students. She completely achieved all of that – even with additional staff turnover- she was the constant, north star guiding the ship for a while. In all our years I have known her, I would have to say I love her creativeness. We share a love of Halloween, and she brought in a skeleton to the office – and boy did we incorporate him into everything! We would even dress him up for Homecoming! She even “out spirited” me during Homecoming and was always game for an event that helped students’ express creativity and have fun. Giselle is truly a Transfer and a student Champion!
Faith Novak, Kathlyne Kerns, and Sabrina Proffitt, former Transfer Jacks Peer Mentors, all highlight that Giselle was really understanding of situations and did a great job with communicating. They also mention that Giselle always advocated for all the mentors.
Kathlyne shares that Giselle works hard every day and always steps up to the plate, even if not asked directly. She cares deeply for everyone and goes out of her way to make sure each person is doing alright. “My favorite memory with Giselle would be when we would talk and laugh about everyday life and the funny things that would go on. She always had a funny or interesting story and would really seem interested in the ones I even told.”
“Giselle is amazing! She’s always been such a huge help and has always put her heart and soul into the program. She really made sure every one of the mentors felt connected, loved, and cared for,” according to Sabrina. She also shares her favorite memory with Giselle: “We were having a TOC Lock In one year on my birthday and Giselle made me cupcakes! Still one of my favorite transfer office memories.”
Stacey Calvert, Transfer and Online Connections Director, mentions that Giselle has been with the Transfer Jacks team for years, starting as a mentor, and then becoming our graduate assistant. “I can think of nothing better than this award to recognize her for all the time, hard work, and dedication she has done for the team and the students we serve! She is so very generous and caring of others, many times thinking of others’ needs above her own. She is passionate in what she does, always willing to step in whenever needed, always thinking of what is in the best interest of our transfer students and mentors. If you know Giselle, you know she has your back, in good times or bad, and wants to do whatever she can to support you and help you grow into the person you were meant to be!”
Katherine Lawlor, Transfer Jacks Coordinator, shares her favorite memory of Giselle, which is watching her use counseling skills in one-on-one coaching with students since her career goal is to become a counselor either in a school or professional setting. “We are a better team because of her care for students and she balances the responsibilities given to her by leadership as well. She stepped up to be the interim supervisor during the turnover and most teams wouldn’t refer to a GA as a co-supervisor, but she has my trust as a leader.”
Anyone that has had the pleasure of working alongside Giselle knows that she is amazing at what she does. She dedicates her time to ensure that everyone feels welcomed and appreciated. The Transfer Jacks team is incredibly lucky to have Giselle and we’re all very happy and excited for her recognition and accomplishments. Best wishes from the entire team and we can’t wait to see what the future has in store for her! Go Giselle!
