Jalyn Dagenais-Gendron

Board Member

Since 2021, Jalyn Dagenais-Gendron has been a Bay College Foundation Board member. According to Jalyn, she has been glad to have a chance to serve on this board over the past two years.

An Escanaba native, Jalyn graduated from Escanaba Senior High School in 2013. In 2017, she graduated from Northern Michigan University with a degree in public relations. After earning her degree from NMU, she returned to Escanaba to work for Elmer’s County Market—a business founded and owned by members of her family—as a marketing coordinator.

Jalyn already had a few connections to Bay before she became a Foundation Board member. She had previously attended Bay for a semester and taken some summer classes there; additionally, her father Mike Dagenais was named Bay’s Distinguished Alumni of the Year in 2018.

“In 2021, [Vice President of College Advancement] Kim Carne reached out to me to see if I was interested in joining the board. I thought it would be a great opportunity to give back to our community,” she said.

That June, Jalyn officially joined the Foundation Board. Along with her other duties as a board member, Jalyn is on the board committee responsible for planning Swing for Scholarships. The annual golf outing is held to raise funds for scholarships; since its introduction, the event has generated more than $400,000 and supported over 388 students.

Jalyn said she appreciates being able to help Bay students through her involvement with the board.

“My favorite thing about being on the board is hearing the success stories of students who may not have been able to get a degree without scholarships from the Foundation Board,” she said.

She noted that her knowledge of the marketing field has helped her thrive in this role.

“A big part of marketing is spreading awareness, which has made it easier for me to be an advocate for Bay College and the Foundation Board,” Jalyn said.

So far, Jalyn said she has been extremely satisfied with her decision to join the board.

“I’ve been learning a lot about Bay College, and I think it’s just an excellent resource that our community has. We’re really lucky to have Bay in Escanaba and Iron Mountain,” she said.