天美传媒

by Cari Costa 鈥�16

Sociology Major (STEP)
Transferred from St. Joseph鈥檚 College

鈥淲hen I originally applied to colleges, I didn鈥檛 even apply to Adelphi,鈥� Melissa Biscardi said. 鈥淲hen I decided to transfer, I was looking for a school close to home and found out Adelphi had a five-year education program. I decided to go to a Transfer Day, and that鈥檚 when I got accepted.鈥�

A sociology major in the five-year Scholar Teacher Education Program (STEP) for elementary education and a St. Joseph鈥檚 College transfer, Biscardi has had her heart set on becoming a teacher since childhood.

鈥淢y second-grade teacher was the first teacher to acknowledge how much I struggled with school and worked with my family and me throughout the year,鈥� said Biscardi, a senior. 鈥淲ithout her, I probably wouldn鈥檛 have excelled in school as much as I did. I decided that I wanted to be a teacher so I could hopefully one day impact a child鈥檚 life like she did for me.鈥�

Now that she鈥檚 attending a school closer to home, Biscardi is able to commute. Although she doesn鈥檛 live on campus, she has found plenty of ways to get involved on campus beyond the classroom.

Biscardi鈥攚ho until November 2015 was a transfer ambassador, assisting new transfers with their transition to Adelphi鈥攊s president of Adelphi鈥檚 chapter of Tau Sigma, the transfer honor society, and is involved in Greek life.

As Tau Sigma president, she has enjoyed getting to know other transfers and helping them become more involved on campus. 鈥淲hen I first became president,鈥� Biscardi said, 鈥渢he chapter was almost nonexistent at Adelphi. I worked alongside CSI [Center for Student Involvement] to build it up on campus and create a constitution.鈥�

Biscardi also belongs to the Future Teachers of America (FTA), which she calls a great resource for her career aspirations. 鈥淭he FTA serves as a way to broaden our horizons as future teachers.鈥� For instance, she said, 鈥淭hey recently invited different people to speak about their experiences teaching internationally.鈥�

Though she expects to graduate in May 2016, Biscardi still has more time at Adelphi ahead of her. As part of STEP, Biscardi will go straight into the master鈥檚 degree program in childhood special education at Adelphi. After completing the master鈥檚 degree, she said, she hopes to teach first grade.

Biscardi greatly values the time she鈥檚 gotten to spend at Adelphi, along with everything that she鈥檚 learned. She hopes that other transfer students will be able to feel as comfortable with Adelphi as she has.

鈥淢y biggest piece of advice for transfer students is to get involved,鈥� Biscardi said. 鈥淎delphi has so much to offer, you have to take advantage. Once you get involved in one thing, you end up getting more and more involved and, soon enough, Adelphi becomes your second home.鈥�