INDIANAPOLIS — Emily Jones, a record-holding pole-vaulter at her alma mater of Greenfield-Central High School, is now launching herself into the professional world through a selective fellowship.
She was selected for an Orr Fellowship, a two-year post-graduate program that places high-achieving college seniors from across the Midwest in full-time, paid positions at companies and organizations in Indianapolis.
A senior at Hanover College, Jones joins Orr Fellowship’s 20th and largest cohort to date. Of the nearly 1,300 applicants, just 100 were invited to the fellowship’s finalist day in November. Of those 100, just 79 received job offers.
Jones said she was shocked to learn she was among those 79.
“There were a lot of us that were up for it,” she said.
Orr Fellowship’s interview day, typically held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Media Center, was turned into a virtual event this year. Candidates and Indianapolis business executives conducted more than 420 interviews over eight hours.
After graduating with degrees in communication and business and a minor in economics from Hanover College, Jones will begin in a rotational program at Ingram Micro, a company that aims to help businesses maximize the value of technology they make, sell or use.
Jones said she’ll spend her first year of the fellowship working in several of the company’s departments, including marketing, distribution, finance and accounting. That will determine what her best fit is for spending the entirety of her second year.
She’s looking forward to getting to experience a little bit of everything.
“I’m super excited for this opportunity because I don’t 100% know what I want to do yet,” she said.
Having grown up on a fourth-generation family farm in Hancock County while participating in 4-H and FFA, Jones is considering working in the agricultural industry one day. She also enjoys public speaking and educating people about the agricultural industry.
In addition to working at Ingram Micro, Jones will participate in Orr Fellowship’s programming dedicated to nurturing the entrepreneurial spirit and developing strong leadership skills. Jones will also enter Orr’s networking communities via the program and help recruit the next cohort of Orr Fellows.
Greg Arnold, Jones’ pole vault coach for all four of her years at Greenfield-Central High School, said she was the hardest-working athlete he’s had in his 16 years at the school.
“As good of an athlete she is, she’s an even better person,” Arnold said. “She’s just an amazing young lady.”
He wasn’t surprised to learn of her recent accomplishment.
“She continues to excel at just about everything she does,” he said.
