Alumni on the Move: Taylor Jordan ’17 Web Director | March 16, 2018

Until the last week of high school, Taylor Jordan planned to go to college out of state and study nursing.

“One night, I was sitting at dinner with all of my family and friends and realized that once I left for school, I wouldn’t be able to participate in any of our family outings or parties,” she said.

Then, she wondered if she really even wanted to be a nurse.

“After some serious thinking, I realized that I didn’t want to be a nurse, and I wanted to go to school in Maine,” she said.

The next day, she applied to Thomas for marketing. She was accepted the day before she graduated high school and accepted the offer that same day.

“Deciding to go to Thomas was the best decision I have ever made,” said Taylor.

Taylor loved Thomas because it reminded her of home in Kingfield, ME.

“Growing up, I was surrounded by a majority of my aunts, uncles, and cousins. I loved being around them. And, I loved going to the local stores where the clerks knew my name and account number. Everyone waves to you when you meet each other on the road, and most importantly, everyone acts like we are family.”

At Thomas, the students, administration, staff, and professors all knew each other and went to sporting events together.

“Thomas acted like one big family where everyone cared for one another.”

Taylor is the first person to graduate from college in her family.

“My parents were not given the opportunity to go to college because they had to carry out my grandparent’s dream to buy and operate their hardware and lumber store when they graduated from high school,” she said.

Taylor said it did not negatively affect her to be first generation, but there were definitely more surprises because her parents could not tell her what to expect.

“I feel that my parents and I got to experience college for the first time together,” she said.

Now, Taylor is working at Sugarloaf in the conference and wedding sales department. Her job is to assist sales managers to secure new and previous accounts. She works one-to-one with clients leading up to the event to ensure everything goes smoothly.

“My job offers me a lot of variety. I am doing something different every day,” she said. “I really like that I am able to get out and interact with guests and not have to sit in my office all day. I also like that my job can be difficult at times and challenges me to overcome obstacles.”

Taylor was able to secure this job because of an internship during her last semester at Thomas. Her internship at Sugarloaf in the lodging department opened up an opportunity for a job after graduation in the wedding reservations department. She began working shortly after graduating in May 2017. After a couple of months, she was offered a job to switch to her current position in sales – which is where she has always wanted to be.

“I love what I do for work, and I am excited to see where this job takes me,” said Taylor.

Taylor said Thomas was a tremendous asset in preparing her for her career.

“Thomas shaped me into being a professional business woman by teaching me the core values of being a hard worker, having a good work ethic, and how to be a driven and motivated salesperson,” she said. “I owe it to Thomas for helping prepare me for life after graduation and shaping me into the worker I am today.”

*This story was originally published in the Winter 2018 Thomas Magazine.