Undergraduate Student Organization (USO)

Thank you for your interest in the HDFS Undergraduate Student Organization!

We welcome all individuals with an HDFS major or minor and hope that you will become an active member in the organization! We hold regular membership meetings throughout the semester. Along with these member meetings, the officers meet regularly to plan events, which the student membership participates in.

We support a variety of annual events during Fall and Spring semesters, including Meet the Faculty, Resume Workshops, and the annual de Lissovoy Alumni Lecture on Child Welfare. Along with these annual events, we also offer a rotation of professional development and community service events on campus. These have included volunteering for Penn State’s LifeLink, informational sessions on applying to graduate school, talks by potential internship and employment sites, and alumni networking events.

By being a member of our Canvas group, you will receive activity announcements as well as see our schedule on the Canvas calendar. The list of officers is also posted on Canvas and you can contact them at any time to get more information. We do hope you will be involved in our upcoming events!

The Canvas page also has information that we receive about research opportunities in the department, volunteer opportunities in the community, and undergraduate scholarship and funding opportunities that students can apply for. Search for group ‘HDFS Undergraduate Student Organization’ under the Canvas Groups category or e-mail our faculty advisor, Dr. Sarah Kollat (sxh345@psu.edu), to be added to the group.

Also, become a member of our Facebook group by searching for ‘HDFS USO.’

Once again, thank you for your interest in the HDFS USO. We truly hope that you become a member of the organization and we wish you luck in your HDFS studies at Penn State!

Member Requirements

Attendance at 1 professional or community service event each semester.

Attendance is taken at each of our events via a sign-in sheet. When attending a USO event, make sure to sign-in.

Officers for 2023-24

If you are a sophomore or junior and are interested in an officer position, please contact one of our officers or faculty advisers. To be eligible for an officer chair, you must be an HDFS major, as well as in good standing with the organization (i.e., you have met the attendance requirements for the year).

• President: Grace Palmieri (gqp5198@psu.edu)
• Vice President/Treasurer: Aubrey Semler (ars6947@psu.edu)
• Event Planner: Emily Geller (epg5265@psu.edu)

Faculty Adviser

Dr. Sarah Kollat (sxh345@psu.edu)

212 Health and Human Development Building