Friday, April 13, 2007
A Legacy of Involvement: Jason Goodwin
 After he graduates, Jason Goodwin plans to make a career teaching that history is a lot more than simply memorizing dates, names, and places.“Most history classes we had growing up were in the old mindset: you had to know dates, important people, and statistics. What really matters in history are themes, and an understanding that what has happened in the past has a major effect on what we’re doing today.” Goodwin is the son of Emily Combs Goodwin of Evansville and James Goodwin of Mount Vernon. He was the valedictorian of his class at Mount Vernon High School, and received a full scholarship to come to USI from the Lilly foundation. He is currently student teaching at Mount Vernon Junior High School under the supervision of Danny Kinnaird, his former eighth grade social studies teacher. He will graduate in May with a bachelor’s degree in social science education. “I’ve always wanted to help people and found that history was something that interested me,” he said. “Having the ability to help others see how important it is and get excited about history is one of my goals.” Goodwin has been extraordinarily involved in campus activities during his time at USI. He seems proudest of his role as a founding father of a new fraternity at USI, Sigma Pi. A resident assistant, he formed the chapter with other RAs. They formed a colony in fall 2005 and were officially chartered in mid-April. They have about 37 members. “We decided that we needed to leave our mark within the Greek system,” he said. “We saw what Greek Life could offer students if the group upheld its values and principles. Greek Life can offer leadership opportunities, personal growth and reflection, and scholarship opportunities. There’s a lot of networking involved with the whole process, but you also learn about how government works and build organizational skills.” Sigma Pi was appealing because it is the only Greek organization that gives back to its host institution through its Altruistic Campus Experience (ACE) program. Last year the forming chapter’s ACE project was to pick up trash throughout campus housing in preparation for a Southern Hospitality Day. On Earth Day 2006, members planted trees around residence halls. This year, they helped out with a USI Foundation Phone-A-Thon. Goodwin serves as recruitment chair, scholarship chair, and national delegate to the Biennial Convocation for the USI chapter of Sigma Pi. He said Sigma Pi members have the highest individual member GPAs in all of Greek Life. As an RA for three years, he worked on the Residence Life newsletter, Living at USI; won the Residence Life Vision Award and is in the Residence Life Programming Hall of Fame. Goodwin was a member of USI’s Chamber Choir and traveled abroad to Ireland in 2002 and 2004. He served for a time as opinion editor for The Shield. His name consistently appears on the Honors List, which recognizes students who earned a 3.5 or better grade point average for a semester, and he is a member of Alpha Chi National College Honor Society and Sigma Zeta National Science and Mathematics Honor Society. He won the Social Science Award for dedication and academic success in his major three years in a row and received the Academic Achievement Award in U.S. History at the 2007 Honors Convocation. He will graduate magna cum laude and is one of the finalists this year for the USI President’s Medal. Each year, the Student Affairs Committee of the Faculty Senate selects finalists and the President’s Medal recipient from the graduating class. The award recognizes commitment to academic excellence and service to the University and community, and is awarded at the Commencement ceremony. |
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