From Wamego to Topeka, Joey Holley is certainly going in the right direction.

Just like several others, Holley went from the small midwest town of Wamego, Kansas to Topeka. He is a junior with a double major in marketing and entrepreneurship in the School of Business at Washburn.

“I grew up [until 7^th grade] in Rossville, Kansas, and then I moved to Wamego and finished off middle school and high school there, but I tell most people I’m from Wamego,” Holley said. 

Holley decided on Washburn because he liked the smaller university.

“It was a smaller school, the class sizes were smaller [and] I thought I’d get a more personable experience out of it. Meaning I’d be able to be more involved in stuff. I’d be able to do more, get more out of the college experience then getting lost in the crowd of a bigger school,” Holley said. “It felt like a family. It would be a fit for me.”

Holley’s thoughts echo many others for choosing Washburn, and that is for the size and more personable professor experiences here. Holley is a busy student on campus being part of Washburn Student Government Association, the Dean’s Student Council, the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity and he was also the vice president of Student Ambassadors. 

“I wanted to stand out a little bit,” Holley said. “At first it was a kind of resume builder, but it also kept me busy, on top of things, and it gave me that schedule.”

Holley also discussed his decision on his dual major.

“I actually started out with management, then I took a big change and studied forensics chemistry for a week,” Holley said. “I was in chemistry for a week and everything they where talking about I realized I can’t do this. I panicked and went back to business, and switched to marketing and entrepreneurship, and I’ve loved it ever since.”

For his first marketing internship, Holley interned with Century Business Technologies in Topeka, as well as jones huyett Partners and the Kansas Expocentre. Soon, he will also be an intern for Capitol Federal in Topeka.

Holley has proven himself as a more than competent student, and that thought is echoed by faculty and staff at Washburn with assistant director of law school admissions Priscilla Samarripa.

“He is a genuine guy and is not afraid to show his compassion for others. He has a very strong head on his shoulders and very driven. He definitely embodies what an Ichabod is,” Samarripa said. 

Shane Vandalsem, assistant professor of finance also talked about Holley, stating how positive he is.

“His only downfall is that he’s not a finance major,” Vandalsem said. 

School of Business Dean David Sollars thinks Holley tries to make a difference on campus.

“I think he’s one of those guys that tries in things on campus, tries to make a difference and is a good example of what students should be trying to do while they’re here, getting involved in something and making a difference,” Sollars said.