2016 Year in Review

How was my 2016? Well! This year, I witnessed a complete transformation in my career goals: in the spring of 2016, I finished out my sophomore year, unsure of where I stood in regards to my intended career – working in academia as a sociolinguist. Though I loved the subject, through my work with PassGo, I felt myself being pulled more and more towards criminal justice and the law.

To confirm my suspicions one way or the other, that summer I traded in the humid heat of Ohio for the sunny skies of Palo Alto, California, where I interned with Dr. Cleo Condoravdi through the Center for the Study of Language and Information summer internship program. While Dr. Condoravdi herself is a semanticist (a linguist who studies language meaning), the program is highly interdisciplinary, bringing together scholars from areas such as cognitive science, psychology, computer science, linguistics, and more. It was incredible to witness the exchange of ideas between these various fields, as well as the diverse ways in which they each approach the same issues. Furthermore, in working with Dr. Condoravdi on a study of conditional perfection, I was able to experience what it is actually like to work full-time as a researcher. I learned that the life of an academic involves brainstorming areas of inquiry, building projects, and attending lab meetings, often with flexible hours and places of work. And I learned that though the field of linguistics is collaborative, the work can often be solitary on a day-to-day basis.

All in all, though I thoroughly enjoyed my time at Stanford and truly admire and respect the work of everyone in the field, I realized that a career in linguistics would not be the best fit for me. In the fall, then, I began the semester with the new task of determining exactly what I could see myself doing post-graduation. At the recommendation of a similarly social justice-oriented friend, I took a introductory course on the criminal justice system, which further spurred my interest in corrections. I had been seriously considering public interest law as a profession, but realized during the course of the class that I was less excited about working with case law and more interested in working with the people and policies affected by the law.

In the meantime, I also became more involved with the PassGo Employment Opportunity Committee as we initiated a relationship with Alvis, a local reentry organization, and began reaching out to businesses in the community as well. (PassGo is an organization which, among other things, strives to connect formerly incarcerated persons with employment and advocate for them within the community.) In the spring I was elected chairperson of the PassGo Employment Opportunity Committee, and we hit the ground running, working harder than ever to encourage businesses to be receptive to formerly incarcerated job applicants, and to connect the clients of Alvis with employment at said businesses. During this time, we established a relationship with one outstanding local business in particular, where we were thrilled to place our first two clients in April!

That same month, the staff at the Ohio Reformatory for Women graciously offered to show me around the facility, where I learned about some of the incredible reentry programs they have there, as well as the work that still remains to be done to support the rehabilitation and reentry of the incarcerated. I look forward to training with them in July, and beginning volunteering there in the fall.

And finally, at the end of the year I was elected President of PassGo. As incredibly proud I am of the work that our organization has done so far, I am even more excited to lead us into more successes in the coming year, as our founding members graduate and we usher in a new generation of PassGo. I look forward to connecting many more people with employment through our Employment Opportunity Committee, strengthening and expanding the Alvis GED program, and much more! And for anyone who would like to learn more about our organization or even get involved, please feel free to contact me at maier.139@osu.edu. Have a great summer!

About Me

Hi all,

My name is Jordan Maier, and I am a class of 2018 Eminence Fellow at The Ohio State University. I am double majoring in linguistics and Korean studies, and am looking forward to a career in criminal justice.

Born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, I attended high school at St. Ursula Academy, where I developed strong interests in sociolinguistics through my exposure to Latin and Korean. After graduating, I was fortunate enough to receive a scholarship to study abroad in Korea for a year via the National Security Language Initiative for Youth, a State-department funded program which promotes the learning of languages not commonly taught in schools. There I was able to quickly develop proficiency in Korean, and learned much about the ways in which culture impacts the day-to-day functioning of societies and individuals.

As an entering freshman at Ohio State, I was awarded the Eminence fellowship, an all-encompassing scholarship without which my college education would not have been possible. In the first few years of my time here, I explored the possibility of a career in linguistics research, working with Professor Campbell-Kibler on a study of language and masculinity, and assisting a graduate student in processing data for her dissertation on intonation change in Jewish English. In the summer of 2016, I was one of 13 students invited from 374 to participate in an internship at Stanford University through the Center for the Study of Language and Information. I worked with semanticist Dr. Cleo Condoravdi in a preliminary exploration of conditional perfection and the contexts in which it does or does not occur.

Throughout my time at OSU, however, I have most passionately pursued advocacy. As a freshman and sophomore, I volunteered as a helpline advocate for the Sexual Assault Response Network of Central Ohio, spending several days each month answering calls from survivors and their loved ones. As a helpline advocate, I offered emotional support, safety planning for those in danger, and connections to invaluable local resources that offer more long-term care.

Additionally, for the past three years I have joined my fellow Eminence fellows in building PassGo, an organization which seeks to advocate for formerly incarcerated citizens by connecting them with meaningful employment, and by working to dispel the stigma they face within the local community. In particular, I act as chair of the Employment Opportunity Committee, where we work with local small businesses to help them understand the benefits of hiring restored citizens, and then bring information regarding any job openings they may have to the clients at Alvis, a local re-entry organization. So far, we have successfully connected one person with employment, and are on our way to placing several more.

Through my work with PassGo, among other experiences, I developed an interest in corrections, a system which touches some of the most vulnerable members of our society. Many inmates have been affected by untreated mental health issues, histories of physical and sexual abuse, and drug and alcohol abuse. Moreover, after being released from prison, both legal and social restraints often prevent them from accessing employment, housing, and other social supports, making successful reintegration extremely difficult. After graduation, I plan to continue to be an advocate for this population, both within the system and beyond.