For me, graduate school had always been one of those vague goals in life, like taking a trip across Europe, or trying bungee jumping someday. It wasn’t until I became involved with the Illini Algae Research Group that my passion for research and learning started to coalesce into something more concrete.

Not only did I gain some research experience, but Illini Algae gave me the chance to practice presenting information to various audiences, gleaning information from academic journals, and writing a research paper.

I’m a senior majoring in Animal Sciences and minoring in Natural Resource Conservation. My future career goal is to work for an accredited zoo in a laboratory setting to conserve endangered species through genetic conservation and applied reproductive science.

This summer, I studied abroad in New Zealand and worked at the Wildbase Hospital. I helped care for their endangered bird species through specialized enrichment and conservation programs created to protect the biodiversity of New Zealand’s avian populations.

The Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics (ACE) hosted its third annual Financial Planning Day on December 6, 2019. Students in the ACE Financial Planning concentration and those interested in financial planning and consumer economics all across campus were invited to participate in the all-day event.

My work as an ACES Global Food Security Graduate Fellow, reported in a previous blog post, leads me to explore how technology can improve crop production for smallholder farmers. Recently, I went to Mexico to know the reality of the farmers where the data I am using for my research is being collected.

“Agriculture is our wisest pursuit, because it will in the end contribute most to real wealth, good morals, and happiness.” I’ve long held this famous quote by Thomas Jefferson close to my heart. Growing up on a corn, soybean and beef cattle farm, agriculture has played a significant role in shaping me into who I am today. After deciding to pursue a career in agriculture, I realized there would be no better place to equip myself for that future than the University of Illinois. This decision, and these people and classes, will forever have an impact on my life and career.

Thanks in part to the generous support of the ACES Graduate Student International Research Grant, I was able to visit Mozambique twice during the fall semester to train extension workers and later evaluate their learning retention.

Over a year ago, I made the decision to stop eating meat. I thought that since I had more control over what I eat while away at college, I could easily make this change. However, it wasn't very easy at first, but I powered through the first few months and finally got used to meatless meals. I’ll admit that there were times when I slipped up and ate meat, but I didn’t let these instances stop me. A vegetarian diet is one way to be more sustainable, but the rise of cultured meats may prove to be another option.

Last semester in HDFS 225: Close Relationships, we were assigned to create a soundtrack that reflects changes in relationships across our lifespan, known as “The Music of Our Lives” project. The requirements included a minimum of ten tracks in chronological order (reflecting a developmental course beginning in early life and ending in later life), an explanation of the lyrics’ meaning, a personal reflection, and relation to course material. Our professor, Dr.

This semester I had the opportunity to take ACE 291, Agricultural Leadership and Policy, with Jon Scholl as the instructor. I was excited to begin the course as I have had many friends and peers highly recommend taking it. The central component of the class was a trip to Washington, D.C., and after taking this trip, I am confident that the course has been one of the most valuable and impactful classes I have taken throughout my education. 

“If you could sequence any genome, what would it be?” This was the question posed to ACES 399 students last Wednesday at our weekly seminar. Dr. Tony Studer, assistant professor in the Department of Crop Sciences, was giving a talk on the defining challenges facing the department.

Dr. Studer emphasized several major issues facing agriculture, such as adjusting key crops to climate changes, increasing the efficiency of photosynthesis, and how to properly analyze deluges of data. The latter was of especial interest to Dr. Studer, as his background is in genetics.