Kevin

Spring break is over and done with here at Linfield, and that means we are coming down the home stretch for the year. This has been an eventful year, one in which I have definitely seen a lot growth in myself personally. I feel like I’ve finally nailed down how the next two years are going to go while I’m here, and I believe that I have the years after graduation somewhat figured out as well! It’s been really cool to see how Linfield has helped shape me into who I am at this point in my life. I know that my Linfield experience has helped me be successful while I am here, and I am convinced that it will help me be successful long after I’m gone. As a Chemistry major, one way I know this to be true is the research that I have been able to be involved in from the start. This is paying off in a number of ways. This summer I have an internship at Northwestern University doing research there for 9 weeks. This can be attributed directly to the opportunities I’ve had at Linfield. Next week I will be presenting my research from two separate projects in two separate posters at the American Chemical Society National Meeting down in New Orleans, Louisiana. It’s one thing to read about a certain subject in the book and learn about it in lecture, and it’s another thing entirely to get hands on experience. My Linfield education has been all about the hands on experience, and I know the same can be said for a number of departments here on campus. I am really excited for my trip down to New Orleans. The Chemistry department here at Linfield has become my second family, my home away from home, so I know that it is going to be a great time. Be sure to check out my next blog post to hear about my experience at the ACS Conference and to see lots of pictures!

Til next time,

Kevin

Looking back on this past week I literally have to stop myself and think “What happened?” and “Where did all that time go?”. We are in the midst of midterms here at Linfield and Spring Break is right around the corner. Last week was intense to say the least. I had a number of things that kept me busy all week and an Organic Chemistry test looming large on Friday. In class on Wednesday our professor offered to hold a review session that night, and that was extremely helpful. This is one of the many times that I have seen or benefited from a professor going the extra mile to ensure their student’s success. We reviewed the test material for two hours Wednesday night, which was a great supplement to my usual studying. As a result I believe the test went really well – I should find out on Wednesday. Friday night was definitely the highlight of my week. My roommate’s girlfriend had a solo in the Linfield Chamber Orchestra’s performance, so I attended that. I was in awe of the talent portrayed by many of my fellow students, and a couple hours of orchestral music was exactly what I needed to relax after a busy week. I also did the radio broadcast for the baseball game on Sunday as we swept the Whitman Missionaries. It was a solid week, and I’m looking forward to another solid one prior to going home for Spring Break!

Til next time,

Kevin

As we get into March that means Spring is starting. The birds are chirping, the grass is green, and the sun is out! Many people think of Oregon as a place that is cloudy and/or rainy all the time, and that is definitely not the case. Coming from Reno, Nevada, one of my biggest concerns was the rain, but it has yet to be an issue at all. Here in McMinnville we usually only get a light rain when it does rain, and at times that can be rather pleasant. It is also usually just an off and on rain, and it keeps things nice and fresh and, most importantly, green. But now that it’s March the rainy season is winding down and there are many sunny days ahead. Linfield has a beautiful campus to enjoy, which is why I am going to cut this blog post rather short so I can go outside and do just that! For those of you that have yet to see the beauty of Oregon, you are missing out. Come visit campus this spring and see what it’s all about!

Til next time,

Kevin

Hello again everyone. Today I would like to briefly talk about some of the fantastic opportunities that students have here at Linfield. First and foremost, one of the best things about Linfield is that we are a strictly undergraduate institution. This means that there are no graduate students. This also means that professors teach classes, not TA’s, and it really levels the playing field for the undergrads when it comes to taking advantage of the opportunities available. Personally I have had the opportunity to do research in collaboration with a number of Chemistry faculty since the beginning of my freshman year. As a Chemistry major this is the exact experience that I want to both learn about the subject I love and build my resume for life after Linfield. As you may know from some of my previous blog posts, I spent the summer here at Linfield doing research, and also gave a poster presentation at the Murdock Conference last fall. This past weekend we went to the Oregon Academy of Sciences Conference, which was hosted at Willamette University. The Chemistry Department alone had students give a total of 6 of the 14 oral presentations in Chemistry. Members of the American Chemical Society’s Portland Chapter were present for these and judged each presentation based on the quality of the presentation and experience of the presenter. Yours truly took first place, and another Linfield student took third! Not too shabby, if I do say so myself. Opportunities such as these are not present in just the Chem Department here; on the contrary there are many opportunities in every department and truly something for everyone here at Linfield. These opportunities are really what makes Linfield stand out to me, and hopefully you see that too! If you’re curious about opportunities at Linfield, my best advice would be to contact a professor from the department you’re interested in. They are always more than happy to hear from students, especially those that share a passion for knowledge in their subject of expertise. So that’s all I have for today, but stay tuned as there will be many blog posts to follow. Until then check out a picture of me giving my presentation!

Til next time,

Kevin

This is a picture of me giving a presentation about my research at the Oregon Academy of Sciences Conference on March 2, 2013.

Yes, the title of this blog post is indeed Scuba Diving in January. This past January Term here on campus I took Linfield’s Scuba Certification Class in addition to a Chemistry class called Quantitative Analysis. While the Chemistry class was a lot of fun, Scuba was truly the highlight of my January. We spent the first few weeks meeting at the pool and learning all about everything we needed to know, and then we went up to Hoodsport, Washington for the weekend to do our certification dives. Cold doesn’t even begin to describe just how frigid the water was, but it was definitely one of those life experiences that I will always reflect upon. Scuba diving may even become a hobby of mine now that I’ve gotten my foot in the door of the scuba community! The scuba class is just one of a number of classes that introduce students to new worlds, and I’m glad to have been given such a great opportunity. My next blog post will be more about some other opportunities I’ve had here at Linfield, so stay tuned!

Til next time,

Kevin

About to head into the water for one of my certification dives up in Hoodsport, WA.