Kevin

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.

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