Eva Holcomb ‘02 was elected president of the Undergraduate Scholars Program Administrators Association (USPAA) at the group’s recent fifth annual meeting. Holcomb will serve a two-year term as president.

Park Scholarships Director and Undergraduate Scholars Program Administrators Association President Eva Holcomb ‘02.

USPAA develops best practices for the fast-growing number of undergraduate scholars programs at colleges and universities across the nation. The organization began in 2006 as an informal collaboration between colleagues to serve and support higher education professionals whose primary duties are to recruit, select, advise and develop enhanced learning experiences for students invited to join these highly selective scholars and scholarship programs. Since it was chartered, USPAA has grown to serve more than 300 members in more than 60 programs at 40 institutions.

“Eva has been a part of USPAA since even before we officially had a name, and has provided leadership in an informal way for five years,” says USPAA past president Jamie Williams, associate director of the National Scholars Program at Clemson University. “Now that she has a formal leadership role, Eva’s creativity, vision and experience will help USPAA become an even stronger organization in the coming years.”

Past USPAA conferences were hosted by Clemson University in 2007, North Carolina State University in 2008, the University of Texas at Dallas in 2009, the University of South Carolina in 2010, and at East Tennessee State University in 2011. Conference sessions have focused on the distinct topics that represent the core work of scholars program administrators: recruiting and selecting top students; collaborating across campus and with alumni to create challenging programs that support students’ intellectual, professional, leadership, personal and civic development; and working with donors and development to support scholarly endeavors. The organization’s 2012 conference will be hosted at The Ohio State University.

USPAA BOARD OF DIRECTORS
- President: Eva Holcomb, North Carolina State University, Park Scholarships
- Past President: Jamie Williams, Clemson University, National Scholars Program
- Vice President: Rebecca Ward, The Ohio State University, Honors Collegium
- Secretary/Treasurer: Sherry Marek, University of Texas at Dallas, Eugene McDermott Scholars Program
- Members-at-Large: Butch Hill, Ohio University, Cutler Scholar Program; Derrick Miller, Scholarships and Donor Relations, University of Texas at Austin; Maureen Sweatman, Emory University, Emory Scholars; Stefani Thachik, Clemson University, National Scholars Program