Kirsten Young

Born and raised in Mechanicsville, Virginia, I took my first leap away from home to attend Old Dominion University (ODU). At ODU, while completing a Bachelor of Science and a Secondary Education Teaching License, I developed a passion for research by participating in Research for Undergraduates in Math and Science. Under supervision of Dr. Gaff, I contributed to field and lab work investigating the invasive Virginian tick species Amblyomma maculatum.
After graduating ODU, I spent a year as a veterinary assistant at Friendship Veterinary Hospital and my next leap away from home was large. This leap carried me across the Atlantic Pond into the start of my veterinary career attending Royal Veterinary College (RVC), London, England. Between my third and final year of veterinary school, I was accepted into the Cornell Leadership Program for Veterinary Students and am participating in a study of sialic acid and alternative chimeric receptors and the binding and infection by influenza viruses with the Parrish Lab.
I am looking forward to my expected graduation from RVC in June 2022, upon which I will make my next leap, location to be determined.