2020 Scholarship Winner update!
Running the Distance (RTD) Scholarships helps support student success stories like this one 🙂
School – Oregon State University
I was diagnosed with dyslexia in second grade and although it has been a challenge, I now consider it to be one of my greatest strengths because it has taught me to not be afraid of challenges. I am currently majoring in microbiology and botany in the Honors College at Oregon State University with a minor in chemistry. I am currently in my junior year. After completing my undergraduate research in an optical physics lab I have moved on to work in the Vega-Thurber Lab at OSU, where I am completing my honors thesis on increasing interest and involvement in microbiology with high school students. In this project I am helping make a week-long summer camp for high school students interested in microbiology. The camp will strive to serve underrepresented people in STEM and encourage them to continue in microbiology or a STEM field in the future. Along with my research I am also an academic learning assistant which is similar to an RA but with a focused on helping students succeed academically in the OSU residence halls. After I graduate from OSU I plan to do scientific outreach, and possibly pursue a masters or Ph.D.. I want to pursue a career where I can make science accessible to more people, in particular
neurodivergent folks like myself. In my free time, I enjoy gardening, knitting, and learning more about fungi. I also love exploring Oregon’s biodiverse landscape to discover fascinating types of fungi, plants, and animals.
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