Jena Konieczka

After a visit to campus, she knew that Oklahoma Panhandle State University was the place for her. Konieczka loved the small town with strong community support that would provide her with an excellent education.

This spring, she’s finishing her studies in Political Science with a minor in history. Jena was not always interested in history, but her first class with Dr. Duren was the game-changer. She recapped, “I’ll never forget the day that he handed back my first Historical Analysis paper and asked me if I had ever thought about majoring in history. I hadn’t, but he told me that I had a knack for history, that I was a natural.”

Jena played softball for Panhandle State, although their season was cut short. She believes that the girl’s and coach’s dedication had them set up for a season of success. As an athlete, she found that one of her favorite things about Panhandle State was sporting events. Konieczka said one of her favorite memories was being crowned 2019 Panhandle State Homecoming Queen. With a joking tone, she said, “Dr. Faltyn loved to bring it up in front of his ENTIRE CLASS of 100+ students so they would clap for me, on the most random days, and I would be so embarrassed!”

After graduating this spring, Jena plans to stay in the Panhandle. She was able to obtain an internship last summer with the City of Guymon. She will start a full-time position once classes are finished.

Jena is one of the many seniors that will continue moving forward. She acknowledged, “As I finish my classes this spring, I want to thank all of the faculty who believed in me. Sometimes, all anyone needs are one person to believe in them so they can start to flourish. I got that support here at OPSU. I would not be where I am today or have the opportunities that I do without everyone who supported me. So thank you, thank you, thank you, and go Aggies!”