At the beginning of my freshman year at AU I was not quite sure what the best way was to get the most out of my four years here. Towards the end of my first semester, I was asked to apply to be one of Dr. Mattingly’s research assistants and once being chosen, it opened up the door to so many other things. Being a research assistant has been an opportunity in itself, but it has also allowed me to branch out even further than I would have thought. I worked with Dr. Mattingly and a colleague of his and received the honor of being selected as one of fourteen winners of the Psi Chi Summer Research Grant. With this award I was able to complete research in New Jersey and step off the AU campus. The numerous research projects that I’ve been able to work on have led me to 3 conferences across the country. While scary at first, these conferences have made me more confident in talking about research and with dealing with other professors and students outside of Ashland. In fact, Sarah Guarino, Lauren Goossens, and myself won a Regional Research award at the Eastern Psychological Association Conference in Pittsburgh, PA this past March. Being a part of Dr. Mattingly’s research lab has given me countless opportunities and has taught me a great deal, especially while being lab manager. This position has helped me come into this year more than ready to tackle my Honors Capstone research thesis.
Outside of the lab I have just begun an internship at Appleseed—Community Mental Health Center and I look forward to going through the extensive Domestic Violence and Rape Hotline training in order to volunteer later this year. In addition, I enjoy helping out in Psych Club as social chair, being involved with Psi Chi, and volunteering at events as a CAS Scholar. The opportunities that I have gained at AU—specifically within the department—are countless and have taught me so much.
