(Editor’s Note: The following is the latest in a series of feature stories highlighting The Ohio State University South Centers Staff)
By Bradford Sherman
CFAES/OSU South Centers
Change can be one of life’s wonderful blessings, in that it keeps things fresh and exciting.
Perhaps no one at The Ohio State University South Centers has been going through more exciting life changes lately than Jordan Maxwell. Within the past year, the 24-year-old became a first-time mom, changed jobs, moved into a new home, and now is preparing to welcome a second child into the world.
We’ve all gotten to know Jordan as the Program Coordinator of Aquaculture Boot Camp II (ABC), a position she is still fulfilling through the end of the year, since joining South Centers in 2016. But now, amid all the changes going on in her personal life, she is learning the ropes of a new position as a Research Assistant in the Soil, Water, and Bioenergy Program.
All of that is fine with Maxwell, who, in fact, credits her employment with OSU as a major catalyst for all the blessings she is experiencing right now.
“Becoming a member of The Ohio State University family here at South Centers has led to many great opportunities,” she said. “It has allowed me to settle down here in the area, start a family, and now I’m blessed to be able to continue my career here in this new position.”
Maxwell interviewed for her new position in July and accepted the job offer in August. This new role came along at just the right time for her, as her temporary appointment with ABC was set to expire in December.
Like the last, her new job is also a term position that will keep her with South Centers for at least another three years. She says she loves the work, the atmosphere, and the people at South Centers, and that she would someday love to move into a permanent role and someday retire as an OSU employee.
“Working here has allowed me to expand and grow, and the people that you work with really make a difference in how much you love your job. Even though my drive to work is about an hour, it doesn’t seem like it at all, because I enjoy coming here and working so much.”
Before joining OSU, she worked as a fisheries technician at Apple Grove Fish Hatchery in West Virginia.
Maxwell is originally from Beavercreek, which is located near Dayton. In her free time, she enjoys being outdoors and engaging in related activities such as hunting, fishing and hiking. It was these interests that led her to pursue an education in natural resources. She earned an associate’s degree from Hocking College and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Rio Grande in Fish and Wildlife Management and Conservation.
It was at Rio Grande that Maxwell met her husband, Coleton, and they now reside in Cadmus at the family farm he recently inherited. They plan on raising cattle and a few crops, alongside their growing family. The couple welcomed their first child, Emersyn, in February of 2018 and are expecting a second daughter who is due to be born in February of 2019.