Published on Oct. 21, 2019
Hello, everyone! My name is Kathryn Gluesenkamp, and I am planning on double majoring in Biological Sciences and Public Health. I am from St. Louis County, so I’m ecstatic to be going to school in the state I was born and raised in! We are now entering my tenth week at Mizzou and a lot has happened. I already changed my second major from Spanish to Public Health, I was appointed secretary of the Public Health Club, I joined the Language Partners Program, and I began working in a research lab! I struggled with being away from my parents and home at first, but it’s gotten much easier as the weeks pass by and I’m way too busy to be homesick anyways. Weekends here are jam-packed with football, homework, and exploring Columbia. I am among the fortunate few who have been able to become good friends with their roommate, and we enjoy going to the games, finding new study spots, and seeking out new coffeehouses.
My roommate Abby and I at the Homecoming game!
My involvement in research keeps the beginning of my week incredibly busy, but I have successfully learned how to perform DNA Extraction and PCR–two things I have never experienced before. At first, it was difficult to learn these processes, but everyone in the lab has been helpful and understanding. I am a tactical and visual learner, so being in a lab is especially enriching to what I am learning and will learn in class!
Around Columbia, people hide rocks with words of affirmation painted on them, and this was one found at my lab.
I am so excited for the rest of the semester here at Mizzou because every day, campus feels more like it belongs to me and more opportunities open up. Go Tigers!
– Kathryn Gluesenkamp, Stamps Scholar Class of 2023