Jones, Langietti named Thiel College Student of the Month honorees for February

Posted February 15, 2023 Print

GREENVILLE, Pa.-- Thiel College announces Nielah Jones ’23, of Baltimore, Md., and Julia Langietti ’23, of Greenville, Pa., as Student of the Month honorees for February.

The Student of the Month honor is awarded to seniors. It is among the most prestigious student awards at Thiel College, with only six students each semester earning the honor.

Jones is a neuroscience and health systems major. Jones is part of the Dietrich Honors Institute and plays women’s lacrosse. She has also held several positions across campus and in the Greenville community. Jones is the secretary for the Organization of Black Collegiates. She has roles as a peer mentor, resident assistant, student-worker in the Office of the President, biochemistry lab assistant, peer notetaker and manager at Taco Bell. In 2019, she was first-year class president.

Jones graduated from The Catholic High School of Baltimore in 2019. Following graduation, she plans to attend Chatham University to complete a Master of Biomedical Studies degree and then attend Johns Hopkins Medical School to complete a medical degree. She is the daughter of Cynthia Jones, of Catonsville, Md.

“I came to Thiel because of their neuroscience program, and I was recruited for basketball,” Jones said. “Most schools only offer neuroscience as a minor or concentration, so I am grateful to Thiel for giving me the opportunity to explore both of my interests while enjoying my time on campus.”

Jones would like to acknowledge Assistant Professor of Neuroscience and the chair of the Department of Neuroscience Neil Lax, Ph.D. for all his help over the years with scheduling, advising, as her professor, writing recommendation letters, and as someone with whom she could just go and talk to whenever she needed.

“He has been with me every step of the way since I became his advisee, and I could not ask for a better advisor as I would not have made it this far without him.”

Langietti is a history and early childhood education and special education double major. She is a member of Kappa Delta Pi (education honor society), the president of Phi Alpha Theta (history honor society), and a peer mentor and peer notetaker for the Thiel Learning Commons. Langietti assisted Professor of History David R. Buck, Ph.D. with a research project about Camp Reynolds. In this project, they were able to conduct research through the Council of Independent Colleges Humanities Research for the Public Good Grant, and then present their findings in multiple areas around the Greenville community, including the Phi Alpha Theta regional conference.

Langietti is a 2018 graduate of Greenville Junior/Senior High School. After graduating from Thiel, she hopes to get a job locally as an early childhood educator and then pursue a master’s degree in education. She is the daughter of Lynn Rinella, of Greenville, Pa., and Bryan Langietti, of Beaver, Pa.

“My experience at Thiel has been wonderful,” Langietti said. “Although I am a commuter, I have spent most of my time on campus because there are so many activities. I love how students can have more of a voice here at Thiel because of the small community.”