Colleen Martin, Excelling at AU, Ashland University

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Colleen Martin

ASHLAND, OH (10/04/2012)(readMedia)-- Westland resident Colleen Martin, who has a double major in hospitality management and marketing, has fit in well with the busy student lifestyle at Ashland University.

Martin, a senior at Ashland University in Ashland, Ohio, is a 2009 graduate of North Penn High School. She is the daughter of Jonathon and Sandra Martin of Westland.

Martin is active in many student organizations on campus. She is involved with Alpha Delta Pi, The Well, and National Society of Minorities in Hospitality (NSMH.) Martin is also the Public Relations intern for auxiliary services and works in the loges at the football games.

Martin said she is very pleased with her decision to go out of state for her college education.

"My older sister went to Ashland, so I visited her a lot when she was there and I immediately felt comfortable at Ashland. I visited six or seven other schools all over the northeast but none of them made me feel as comfortable as I did at Ashland. I also knew that Ashland's business program was great and there were a lot of activities I could get involved in," says Martin.

Martin explained how Ashland University has become a second home.

"I'm here eight months of the year and my friends have easily become like family. Being so far from home, I only go home for breaks. I'm always here on weekends and I always find something fun to do on Friday and Saturday nights. I have also found my best friends here that I will be friends with for a long time. So I feel like I've had a really good college experience."

Although AU has become a second home for Martin she did admit to going through a bit of a culture shock when she first arrived in Ashland.

"There was a little bit of a culture shock. I was definitely not used to seeing buggies on main streets. I'm also not used to not having a decent shopping mall within five minutes of my house. I also had to get used to some new phrases and names. In Philadelphia, we call "Pop" "soda" and I call 'tennis shoes,' 'Sneakers," says Martin.

Academically Martin is a very strong student with an outstanding grade point average. "Academics is a top priority for me. I really enjoy my hospitality management classes as well as my marketing classes. I've made the Dean's list every semester and I am part of several honoraries such as Alpha Lambda Delta, Rho Lambda, Gamma Sigma Alpha, and Delta Mu Delta," says Martin.

Martin will graduate in May of 2013 and is now putting together her plans for the future.

"After I graduate, I hope to get a job doing marketing in the hospitality or tourism industries. I would like to stay close to family in Philadelphia or Canton, where my sister lives. But I'll go wherever I find a job. I'll probably look for jobs in the mid-west and along the east coast. I completed the Disney College Program during my sophomore year and I did an internship with Hershey Entertainment and Resorts this past summer. I'm hopeful that my academics and work experiences will help me get a job when I graduate," says Martin.

Ashland University, ranked in the top 200 colleges and universities in U.S. News and World Report's National Universities category for 2013, is a mid-sized, private university conveniently located a short distance from Akron, Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio. Ashland University (www.ashland.edu) values the individual student and offers a unique educational experience that combines the challenge of strong, applied academic programs with a faculty and staff who build nurturing relationships with their students. ###