William Penn University didn’t become what it is today by sitting stagnant. Decades of changemakers and trailblazers have passed through the school and left with it new ideas, advancements and possibilities. Ena Baker is one of those changemakers.
The senior business management major has had a busy run at the university, playing on the women’s golf team and participating in student government on top of excelling in jobs and internships. If there were more hours in a day, Baker would only be involved in more.
The outgoing woman that Baker is today would surprise her high school self, who was more of a wallflower. She wasn’t heavily involved in her school or community, but something about Penn’s nurturing environment inspired her to just go for it – whatever “it” is in that moment.
She got involved in student government her freshman year at the suggestion of a teammate and from there, her engagement snowballed as her confidence and willingness to participate skyrocketed. Today, Baker serves as vice president of student government. On and off campus, she has seen room for improvement and actively worked to find and implement solutions.
“Coming to Penn has really brought me out of my comfort zone,” she said. “Having those opportunities to be creative in a space where I know I can be creative is really nice because when I look at myself from high school, I’m like ‘wow I’m literally a completely different person.’”
Baker has played a role in numerous campus enhancements, a type of involvement that may not have been seen from her just four years ago.
Her freshman year, she noted that there wasn’t enough outdoor lighting on campus. She brought the issue to student senate, who then jumped into action and more lighting was added. Baker has served on student senate since the spring of her freshman year. In that time, they have also added to campus debit-card operated laundry payment and doggy bag stations for cleaning up after pets.
Currently, she is co-heading the 2023 Senior Class Project: permanent outdoor ping pong and corn hole. “I want to leave this place better than I found it and that is a prime example of being able to do that,” she said.
Penn’s modest size is in part to thank for Baker’s success and involvement here on campus. It allowed her to more comfortably come out of her shell and have a larger impact as an individual.
“A lot of people say smaller schools aren’t the best, but for me personally, it is the best,” she said. “Where can you say that the university president and the dean know you by first name and they know where you’re from just from having a relationship with you? Every professor, you have a one-on-one relationship with.”
Originally from New Hampshire, Baker was approached by William Penn’s golf coach her senior year in high school and decided to learn a little more about the school. She accepted a tour of the campus and was immediately enamored by the people of Penn.
“It’s all about the people for me,” she said. “I have been very fortunate with the people that I have met here and the team and the girls that I have been able to be a part of. Yeah, I’m not home, but home is where your people are and I definitely have found my people here”
The intimate setting at WPU has allowed Baker the opportunity to build essential relationships and form connections that even helped her to land a full-time job as a Regional Sales Associate at Musco Lighting in Oskaloosa come May.
She credits much of her accomplishment to the professors, coaches and mentors who have supported her during her time here. Whether she was missing class for golf events or dealing with something back home, Baker said that her professors always worked with her life and circumstances in a way that made success possible.
“It’s very close-knit and everybody wants you to succeed and they’re going to do everything in their power to get you to succeed,” she said. “I’m really glad I decided to go to a smaller school because at big universities, I think I would have struggled to get nice work done and actually make something of myself. Here, you have an interpersonal relationship with all your professors, all the administration, people that work in the cafeteria. At Penn, definitely, if you want to succeed, they’re going to give you the avenues to succeed.”
