The past academic year has been full of many exciting new experiences and opportunities. When the semester began, I was set on becoming a high school biology teacher, aiming to receive a bachelors degree in biology and a masters in education. After an exciting summer working as a camp counselor at the YMCA and interacting with kids and families, I was almost certain I had found my calling as an educator. Then, after taking a general microbiology course that fall, my plans changed. I was taken aback by how much I loved learning about disease mechanisms, immunology, and lab techniques, so I decided to change my major to microbiology. After a very successful fall semester, I decided to reconsider pursuing a health-related career. I had ruled out medicine after doing poorly in one of my general chemistry courses, but that semester I had proven to myself that I have the work ethic, brains, and passion people it takes to become an excellent physician.

In taking microbiology, I was also introduced to Dr. Mia Neil, who co-lectured the course. She shared her experiences with me as an educator, researcher, and mother in STEM over lunch provided by the ASC’s “Take Your Professor to Lunch” Program. It was nice getting to connect with her outside of the classroom, and she also told me about her non-profit organization, WHEP Ohio (Women’s Health Education Program), which educates young mothers about their health and the health and well-being of their babies. I was both touched and inspired by how passionate Dr. Mia is about helping these young women and children, so I decided to sign up as a WHEP volunteer, and I’m currently working on starting a student organization in support of WHEP. I’m very excited to participate in WHEP’s monthly workshops and establish a mentor program to connect the moms we serve with students in our student organization.

By far the most crucial and defining aspect of this academic year for me was getting involved with research. In January, I met Dr. Rob Baiocchi at one of our scholars events, where he talked to us about his experiences as a physician scientist. I was really intrigued by his talk, and ended up touring his lab with some other scholars members the following week. After getting in touch with one of his graduate students, Fiona Brown, I was able to secure a position in his lab as a research volunteer. Our lab is part of the Comprehensive Cancer Center under the College of Medicine, and we’re focused on EBV-driven lymphomas and drug development. The project I’ve been working on with Fiona deals with developing a novel therapeutic for Mantle Cell Lymphoma, a non-hodgkin’s B-cell lymphoma which is common in older men and has a high incidence of relapse due to drug-tolerant persister cells. Since starting in the lab in February, I’ve gained a ton of new skills ranging from sterile technique to writing grant proposals. I’ll be working in the lab full-time this summer as an employee, and I’m hoping to present my work at the Dennman Undergraduate Research Forum and applying for the Pelotonia Fellowship in the fall.

As my first semester of college comes to an end, I have a lot of things on which to reflect. When classes started back in August, I felt so unsure about whether or not I’d have a successful first semester. I wasn’t sure what to expect out of my classes, I didn’t know what kind of clubs/activities I wanted to partake in, and I felt a lot of anxiety and pressure about figuring out what career path I wanted to take. I was timid, scared, and overwhelmed. While my first semester hasn’t been a walk in the park, it has definitely been a time of growth, learning, and self-discovery. I’ve been successful in my classes, and I feel like I’ve truly absorbed and attained a lot of new and interesting information. My behavioral neuroscience class has shown me that no matter what career path I chose, I’m definitely in the right major. I have really enjoyed learning about the interworking’s of the brain, and I’m excited to discover more about neuroscience and the possible career paths I could take. I’ve also really enjoyed general chemistry! I remember being so worried about the class at the beginning of the semester because I didn’t have a very solid chemistry background, and I had heard a lot about it being a “weed out” class. However, after putting in a lot of time and effort to the class, I feel like I’ve gained a really solid understanding of chemistry and developed laboratory techniques that will come in handy as I pursue undergraduate research opportunities. Overall, I’ve had a really successful first semester, and I’m excited to continue to pursue my interests, both in and out of the classroom!