Jennifer Phillips
Jennifer Phillips, assistant director for retention in the Center for Student Success and First-Year Experience, is September’s Staff Council Staff Member of the Month. To help us get to know her better, Phillips answered a few questions for Inside Ole Miss.
IOM: How long have you worked at Ole Miss?
Phillips: 15 years
IOM: What is your hometown?
Phillips: Carthage, Mississippi
IOM: What is your favorite Ole Miss memory?
Phillips: As a student, my favorite memory is when I attended the PACE pre-college program between junior and senior year. It was an amazing program in which I received college credit, but I also made lifelong friends. As a staff member, my favorite memory was receiving the 1848 pin at this past spring’s Student Affairs’ breakfast.
IOM: What do you enjoy most about your position or the department in which you work?
Phillips: The students are my favorite part of my job, and the staff in student affairs and the Center for Student Success and First-Year Experience is a close second. As an institution, we have made students and their experiences the No. 1 priority. This is what makes Ole Miss a leader in Mississippi for higher education. Because of our student-centered approach, I would not want to work anywhere else.
IOM: What do you like to do when you are not at work?
Phillips: I spend most of my spare time with my loved ones. During the fall, I love to watch college football and I attend all of the Ole Miss home games. I am also an avid reader.
IOM: What is one thing on your bucket list?
Phillips: I want to visit Russia.
IOM: What is your favorite movie?
Phillips: “Sliding Doors”
IOM: What is your favorite Ole Miss tradition?
Phillips: Football pregame; it feels like coming home.
IOM: What is a fun fact about you?
Phillips: I generally read over 100 books each year, but even at the current rate, I will never read all the ones I have on my to-be-read list.
To nominate a colleague for the Staff Member of the Month, email staffcouncil@olemiss.edu with the name of the individual you’d like to nominate as well as why you feel he or she should be recognized.