Current projects

Resident physician at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.

Undergraduate Research

As an undergraduate student at Hendrix College, I was encouraged strongly to participate in research, both within the college and outside of campus. This encouragement was critical to my decision to pursue a research-centered career. Growing up in rural Arkansas, I had never been exposed to the option of a career in research until I came to Hendrix. When I entered Hendrix, I had every intention of only going to medical school and becoming a clinical physician but Hendrix College opened my mind to so much more. After becoming active in research while at Hendrix, I realized my passion for science and I now hope to fuse research into an integral part of my future clinical practice.

Following my junior year at Hendrix I was encouraged to apply to the Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) at UAMS. The participation in the program would ultimately be what sparked my interest in research, and in fact I am currently doing my dissertation work under the same mentor that I participated with that summer at UAMS.

Following the SURF program at UAMS and my realization of my passion for science, I pursued undergraduate research on-campus at Hendrix College. I worked in the lab of Dr. Duina my senior year and the following summer before attending medical school. This was a great experience that taught me valuable scientific skills and furthered my interest in science. Dr. Duina is a great teacher who is very patient (essential to being a great undergraduate instructor) and has an obvious passion for science. He was in the lab every day that summer working with the students and performing experiments himself, and you could see his excitement about the results of the experiments. His passion really inspired me and still does to this day on those late nights and early mornings.

How Hendrix prepared me for success

The personal attention and encouraging academic environment of Hendrix laid the foundation for my career as an academic physician-scientist.

Future plans

After residency, I will complete a fellowship and begin a career in translational medicine focusing on bridging the gap between bench research and implementation of novel therapeutic options in clinical practice.  

My advice

Stay focused and learn from those that came before you.