Kevin

How is it already August 2013 and I’m soon to be starting my Junior year in college?? I am sitting here starting to think about classes this fall, buying textbooks, and moving back to campus and I have no idea where the time has gone. It seems like not too long ago I was finishing up a summer’s worth of Chemistry research at Linfield, and not too much longer before that I was just heading off to college. Instead both of those are one and two years ago, respectively. I’d like to take a step back and reflect on my sophomore year and where I am to date after two years of my Linfield education. This past year was one I will never forget. I made some awesome new friends while enhancing old friendships. I have developed more relationships with professors than I can even name off the top of my head, all of which have undoubtedly had a major positive impact on my education. I have had numerous opportunities to explore my passions, both in and out of my majors. I have had opportunities for research as well as presenting at both regional and national conferences. All of these opportunities have allowed me to build a substantial resume for an undergraduate, one that led to one of the greatest opportunities of all: a summer research internship at Northwestern University. I am here through a program called Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) in the Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC) here at Northwestern. There is not doubt in my mind that the opportunities I have taken advantage of at Linfield have put me where I am this summer. So as I look back on my last two years Linfield I am very thankful. At the same time I look forward, and I honestly can barely contain the excitement. I can only imagine the great things these next two years have in store as I continue my education at the school I have come to call home.

May is upon us here at Linfield College, and that means one thing is at the forefront of everyone’s mind. I know what you’re thinking, but no, it’s not finals (not yet anyways…). It’s Wildstock! What is Wildstock you might ask? It is an end of the year celebration that we have in May every year, and it’s usually the last big event on campus. Last year Macklemore and Ryan Lewis were the headlining act, and this year we are bringing Outta Sight and The Ready Set to campus. The concert takes place outside on the IM Field in the middle of campus. There’s food catered by a number of local establishments as well as quite a few carnival and field games. This year Wildstock is this coming Friday, May 10th, so there is definitely a lot of anticipation on campus for that. The event is a great break from all the stress that usually accompanies this point in the semester, and I am definitely looking forward to it. So with that I’ll be cutting today’s post rather short since as I said it is May now and the workload is piling up, but there’s definitely a light at the end of the tunnel!

Til next time,

Kevin

In all of the craziness that has gone on these last few weeks since I returned from New Orleans and finally got caught back up in classes in time for the next round of testing, I forgot to write about how I was able to attend the game versus the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Portland Trail Blazers. This was a trip sponsored by Linfield Activities Board, or LAB. The trip took 15 students to and from campus, and also paid for our ticket and food at the game! LAB puts on a number of events like this, both on and off campus. Being a member of LAB is a great way to get involved in student government, and participating in the LAB trips is an awesome way to have some fun. The Campus Information Center (CIC) has a master calendar of all of the different events and trips that LAB sponsors, and students are able to sign up on a first come first serve basis usually about a week in advance. LAB has done trips and events of all nature, from the great outdoors to Portland cuisine and culture. LAB is just one of the many ways to stay involved here on campus, and these events are something I look forward to participating in for the rest of my time here at Linfield!

Til next time,

Kevin

A picture from our seats in the 200 level of the Rose Garden.

As the title suggests, this is going to be an entirely sports related entry in my blog about my Linfield experience. Though we are NCAA Division III, which means that there are no athletic scholarships offered, I personally feel that sports are an important part of the college experience, and they definitely play a role here at Linfield. I have been involved in athletics in some way shape or form for my entire life, and I have been lucky enough to continue that here at Linfield. I am a part of the Sports Broadcast Team for KSLC 90.3 FM McMinnville, Linfield’s student-run radio station. I do play-by-play and color commentary for mainly football, basketball, and baseball, though I have done other sports as well. Of all the sports I have called on the radio, baseball is most near and dear to my heart because I played it so much growing up. For those who may not know, Linfield’s baseball team is currently ranked #1 in the nation under the excellent leadership of 6th year head coach (and former Yankee, 3-time World Series Champion, 1998 World Series MVP as well as Linfield College alumnus) Scott Brosius. As the voice of Linfield baseball, this season has been quite exciting for me. This last weekend was no different. We hosted a three game series against George Fox University from a couple towns over in Newberg. Coming into the weekend, Fox was ranked 19th in the nation and 2nd in the Northwest Conference behind Linfield. Both teams needed to win the series in order to take control of the conference championship race. I did the broadcast for both games of the double header on Saturday, which we won, and then I attend the game on Sunday, which Linfield won in a 13 inning thriller. With the sweep Linfield clinched its third conference title in four years. Needless to say, being behind the microphone for those games was an amazing experience! I love that though my playing days are over, I have still found a way to stay close to the sports I love. Linfield as a whole is full of unique opportunities like this in just about every department. Though I don’t plan to ever take a class in the Mass Communications Department, I will continue to be a significant part of the Linfield Sports Broadcast Team. I am truly grateful that I attend a school that has opportunities like this, and I look forward to the unforeseen opportunities that lie in the future! They can be found all over campus, no matter what you may be interested in. If you don’t want to take my word for it, come and visit and hopefully you’ll see for yourself why Linfield is such a great school!

Til next time,

Kevin

Panoramic picture of the stands and the field at the game on Sunday!

The Northwest Conference Champion Wildcats celebrate!

I mentioned in my last blog post that I would be attending the American Chemical Society National Meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana from April 6th through 10th. I’ve been back at Linfield for just over a week now and I’m still pinching myself to try and figure out if it was a dream or if it was real. The numerous souvenirs tell me that it was a real experience, and what a great experience it was! I went to workshops on applying to graduate school, met with graduate school recruiters, listened to talks about how to better write and speak about science, and much much more. We spent a lot of time at the Career Exposition, talking to people with numerous jobs in Chemistry, seeing where their degrees have taken them. I experienced all of this on top of the research aspect of the conference. We had a very strong showing at the Undergraduate Poster Session, and several Linfield alumni gave talks about their research as well. I even won a competition while speaking about my research, putting to use the advice I had received in many of the workshops. I was inundated with Chemistry for five days, and I absolutely loved it! It was almost as if I was on Spring Break Part 2: Chemistry style. The networking with other undergraduates and graduate school representatives was invaluable. We did also have time to see some of the tourist attractions of New Orleans, heading down to the French Quarter for lunch and dinner multiple days. Of course we had to get beignets, so we went to Cafe du Monde for that. Overall, going to ACS was an experience of a lifetime, and one that I’ll never forget. I look forward to future conferences that I will attend with the Chemistry department, and I know that opportunities like this will be what makes my time here at Linfield truly life-changing. I have built a solid resume full of amazing experiences thus far, and I still have over two more years to add to it! So if you’re currently reading this as you sit down to try and make your decision process as to which school you will attend in the fall, I would like to end with this thought: a Linfield education, regardless of major, sets you up for success in more ways than are even tangible enough to describe. It’s a gut feeling that I have where I just know that I’ll be successful after I graduate. The statistics and numbers speak for themselves. Linfield is the place to be, and we would love for you to join us.

Til next time,

Kevin

Standing in front of my poster at the Undergraduate Research Poster Session.

Taking a picture in front of the sign at Cafe du Monde.