In the ninth grade, I entered the Glynn Academy choir room. I was in a new school, in a town I’d only lived in for a year, and I didn’t know anyone. Although I didn’t know it then, that classroom and the teacher who ran it would take my interest in music and cultivate a passion that would carry me through the rest of my life. Although I have been singing for 12 years and writing music for 10, I had never considered pursuing music as a potential career option. With the support of my peers and professors, I am now pursuing a double major in music and neuroscience. I am also the Recording Manager of Barksdale Treble Chorus, a gender-inclusive treble chorus and one of the most welcoming groups I’ve found on campus. And I am currently recording and producing an album of original songs, which will be released in the Spring ’24 semester.
Neuroscience
My interest in neuroscience began in high school when I participated in the Penguin Project, a special needs theater group in my hometown of Brunswick, Georgia. I love the kids I worked with and wanted to make a better world for them. Now, I am studying neuroscience at William & Mary with an emphasis on developmental stages. I have worked in the Autism Research Lab under the direction of Drs. Joshua Burk and Cheryl Dickter, and I will be working in the Developmental Biology lab under the guidance of Margaret Saha in Fall ’23. I am also active in the special needs community in my free time, both at William & Mary and in my hometown of Brunswick, Georgia. At William & Mary, I am a member of Best Buddies, a program that pairs college students with special needs adults in the greater community. At home, I still help with the Penguin Project over the summer and babysit kids in the community. After undergrad, I plan to attend graduate school to get a masters in developmental neuroscience and continue researching Autism Spectrum Disorder and other neurodevelopmental disorders.
