Alexis Hansen, senior

From: Homer, Alaska

Exploring: Biochemistry

Body work: Being involved in sports has always been a part of my life, but I didn’t realize until I got to college that it’s more than just fun for me—it’s also important to my mental and physical health. To be a whole, happy, healthy person, I have to be physically active. Playing on the Lewis & Clark volleyball team has been an important part of my education.

Brain work: I’m fascinated by neurology— it’s a new frontier in science. With the heart, every detail has been studied. But with the brain, there’s so much left to discover and learn. Through my studies, I’ve learned that movement and exercise can have a positive effect on neurological development. After I graduate, I plan to focus on neuroscience in an M.D./Ph.D. program and, some day, to have a medical practice that integrates holistic approaches.

Mental exercise: By minoring in religious studies, I am forced to think in a completely different way on a completely different subject than my major. If I hadn’t taken those classes, I might have forgotten how to write anything but a lab report. With the wellrounded liberal arts education I’ve received here, I feel fully prepared for medical school and much more.

Work hard, play hard: Between my honors thesis research, upper-division science classes, and applications for medical school, I was concerned that I might be too busy for volleyball in my senior year. But my coach helped me think it through, and I’m so glad I decided to keep playing. Through both my studies and my experiences, I have learned that staying physically active is essential to a balanced life.

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