The Trinity Perspective | Summer 2020

SUMMER 2020

Cool to the Core Alumna conducts glacier research in Antarctica

Moving Forward TUgether Trinity’s spring 2020 semester was unlike any in the University’s history. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, students were asked to move off campus following their spring break and finished their semesters through remote synchronous learning.

All on-campus University events were canceled, including sporting events, concerts, and lectures.

But Trinity has a legacy, stretching back generations, of rising to meet challenges with innovation, compassion, and an enterprising spirit.

The University knows life will eventually return to normal, and meanwhile, Trinity is prepared to continue offering the same standard of academic excellence to students during these challenging times.

Life on campus may have come to a halt for now, but together, we will remain a force in motion.

The Trinity Perspective magazine is produced quarterly. Through these pages, explore the many facets of life at Trinity University and get to know the students, faculty, and staff who call Trinity home. With the vibrant city of San Antonio as a backdrop, discover the many benefits and opportunities our community has to offer. We invite you to read these pages to explore some of the many ways we make a great education possible, then take a virtual tour to get a sense of our 125-acre skyline campus.

Get Connected Join the conversation:

Facebook: /trinityuniversity Twitter: @Trinity_U or @TrinityU_Admiss Instagram: @TrinityU Snapchat: leeroythetiger

Have a question for a current student?

Email your questions to our current students at AskATiger@trinity.edu.

Have a question for an admissions officer, faculty member, or other staff member?

Email us at admissions@trinity.edu and we’ll get it answered.

THE OFFICE OF ADMISSIONS Trinity University One Trinity Place San Antonio, Texas 78212 admissions@trinity.edu www.trinity.edu/admissions 1-800-TRINITY

ABOUT TRINITY Trinity University is a private, residential, co-educational institution with an undergraduate focus. So, what does that mean? It means that we focus on YOU—connecting you with the best possible resources, caring faculty members, committed staff members, and other world-class students destined to have a positive impact in our community.

03

A Wolff and a Tiger

Wolff joined the Stand Band, playing music at athletic games.

Student thrives in internships with FBI and Dell

Wolff has learned how to rock climb while at Trinity.

By Margaret Miller

In May, Allison Wolff ’20 became the first person at Trinity to graduate with a double major in accounting and business analytics and technology (BAT). And with internships at Dell and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) already on her resume—and Ernst & Young nailed down for the summer— this Wolff is one accomplished Tiger.

Students who major in BAT learn the technology and quantitative skills needed for the converging fields of information technology and business analytics. And because every company uses data, the opportunities post-graduation are endless— Tigers can take their skills and impact any field that piques their interest. Wolff is grateful for the encouragement her professors gave her to pursue a double major that would open doors for experiential learning opportunities even before she graduated.

Wolff, armed with a unique mix of accounting and analytic skills, drew the

04

attention of corporate sponsors at Trinity’s biannual Career Fair each year she attended.

She met a representative from the FBI there her sophomore year, which led to her internship with the organization. The following year, she approached the Dell table.

“I was getting really excited about a project I was working on and asked their advice about some things I could learn to better prepare me for the future,” Wolff recalls. “We had what I thought was a very casual and fun conversation, and before I left, they told me that I would have an offer letter in my inbox the next day!”

With the FBI and Dell under her belt, Wolff will join the vast majority of accounting majors at Trinity–more than 90 percent– who serve paid internships with global public accounting firms. She will intern with Ernst & Young this summer, then continue coursework in the fall to earn a master’s degree in accounting from Trinity.

When she’s not crunching numbers or analyzing data, you can typically find Wolff singing in one of Trinity’s choirs, working on the yearbook, performing in a Momentum dance production, or supporting the transition of students and their families during orientation as part of the O-Team.

“During my time at Trinity, I’ve had the opportunity to explore passions both old and new,” Wolff says. “I’ve been a dancer for 15 years now, a member of various choirs for 10, and a photographer for as long as I can remember. Trinity has allowed me to continue these passions. However, I also love to learn new things and have taken up playing the bass drum in Stand Band, learning to boulder, and fundraising for nonprofits. These are things I never would have been involved in if I hadn’t joined the supportive and enriching Trinity community.”

That Much Sweeter Pyar Seth ’19 receives prestigious minority fellowship from the American Political Science Association

By Miriam Sitz Grebey ’10

Pyar Seth’s short undergraduate career has set him up for a long, productive future in academia. The 2019 graduate—a transfer student and Norfolk, Virginia, native—finished his bachelor’s degree in just three years, but still found time to forge meaningful relationships with faculty members, undertake groundbreaking research, and win a prestigious fellowship, which will support his work as a Ph.D. student investigating the intersection of race and political thought.

Encouraged by his first adviser at Trinity, Seth pursued an interdisciplinary second major (ISM) in African American studies, alongside his primary major of political science. His ISM incorporated classes from disciplines across campus: anthropology, education, communication, English, and history, where the chair, Carey Latimore, Ph.D., became a close mentor during Seth’s time at Trinity.

“What I really appreciate about Doc [Latimore] is that we had the kind of relationship where we could just sit and talk,” Seth says. Those chats would often become the starting place for new academic research. For instance, they studied the relationship between grief and black nationalism, and as Seth recalls, “That project emerged from a conversation we were having about what it’s like to be

black in the U.S. today. We were just talking, and all of a sudden, Doc said, ‘I think we’re getting somewhere!’”

Seth actively participated in the broader Trinity community as a member of the Tiger track and field team, Black Student Union, and Residential Life, but his academic experiences—engaging in independent study, collaborating with professors, and developing his second major—set him down the scholarly path he’s still walking today.

The summer before his final year at Trinity, Seth was selected to participate in the American Political Science Association’s (APSA) 2019 Ralph Bunche Summer Institute Scholar program. After graduation, he landed a place in APSA’s prestigious Minority Fellows Program. The fellowship aims to increase the number of scholars from underrepresented and minority backgrounds in political science doctoral programs.

Seth will be attending Johns Hopkins University for his doctorate. “I want to be somewhere that folks are excited by the questions I’m interested in asking,” he says, emphasizing his intention to focus on black political thought, emotions, and racial violence.

“It’s been a privilege to work with a number of brilliant folks,” Seth says, “and it’s that much sweeter when they look like me.”

05

Temperatures get to be more than -20 degrees Celsius in Antarctica, but Lehrmann’s team keeps working. Photo: Barry Bjork

Cool to the Core Asmara Lehrmann ’19 conducts glacier research in Antarctica

By Miriam Sitz

G rebey

’10

Geologic field work has taken Asmara

Roughly the size of Florida, the Thwaites

Lehrmann worked the night shift, studying

Lehrmann from the banks of the Llano River

Glacier buttresses the West Antarctic Ice

the micropaleontology of sediment cores that

in the Texas Hill Country to the Flinders

Sheet. “It essentially acts as a bottle cap,

the team collects. “Each layer of sediment

Ranges of South Australia, but the 2019 Trinity

keeping the ice sheet from flowing out into

is like a page in a book that tells the story

University graduate’s latest adventure has been

the ocean,” explains Lehrmann. “If it were

of the past,” she explains. The desire to gain

her biggest—and coldest—yet. From January

to collapse, there would be a significant

a deeper understanding of history through

through the end of March, Lehrmann, who is

contribution to sea level rise.” She was part of

geology seems to run in the family: Asmara’s

pursuing her Ph.D. in geology at the University

a team of sedimentologists and geophysicists

father, Daniel Lehrmann, Ph.D., is a professor

of Alabama, lived and worked aboard the RVIB

studying the history of the glacier; their

of geosciences at Trinity, teaching courses on

Nathaniel B. Palmer, a research ship studying

research informs predictions about exactly

paleontology and sedimentary geology. “Even

the Thwaites Glacier in Antarctica.

what effects the glacier’s retreat might have.

though I tried very hard to be in a different

06

The research team goes through the sediment from the Kasten Cores to make samples. Photo: Rachel Clark

sub-field of geology than my dad, I find that we are still quite similar,” she says. “I think we are both pulled to the beauty of another world revealed to us through fossils and the rock and sediment record.”

Despite the Antarctic’s unpredictable conditions, research happened 24/7 on the RVIB Nathaniel B. Palmer. “Every day I woke up with a vague idea of what might be happening on board, but when I got to the lab, usually something different was going on,” explains Lehrmann. ”We had to work with the ocean, weather, and ice to do our science.”

Partway through their trek, the ship had to make an unexpected detour to rescue a stranded fishing vessel and escort it to safety. Although the effort paused the ship’s primary projects for several days, Lehrman remained optimistic: “Everyone was safe, and each science party got new data from the cruise. All was not lost!”

All those on the ship—from the scientists and students, to the crew and support staff—became part of a tight-knit community, encouraging one another in moments of homesickness or frustration, sharing treats (like Oreos or chocolate bars) and meals, and enjoying time together, outside of their work, with activities like game and movie nights. “I loved the attention that we all paid to physical and mental health while on board,” she says. “I learned a lot about how to be on a healthy team.”

Each layer of sediment is like a page in a book that

The research team works on the seismic streamer from the ship’s deck. Photo: Sarah Slack

tells the story of the past.

– Asmara Lehrmann ’19 Although this voyage was Lehrmann’s first time at sea, she came to feel right at home. “I tried to go outside on deck every time the sun was shining and the waves were low. I never got used to the beauty of the icebergs and the sky.”

Her first week on board, she noted a particularly magnificent sunrise, with colors shifting from purple to orange. “I went up to the bridge, stepped outside on the deck, and took a moment to reflect on all of the hard work I did at Trinity and all of the mentors who helped guide me to this moment,” she recalls. “I was overwhelmed with the feeling of gratefulness for those four transformative years. They led me to this opportunity to study topics I am so passionate about, in this new environment that I fell in love with more and more each day.”

Science team aboard the RVIB Nathaniel B. Palmer Photo: Mike Single NHNZ

07

Biology & Bollywood

Muppala helped put together Diwali and other cultural events on campus.

Pre-med student taps into religion minor for holistic approach to medicine

By Margaret Miller

08

Before deciding where to attend college, Natasha Muppala ’20 did her research. Contemplating a pre-med track but sure that she wanted to be in the health care field, she applied to several Texas schools with strong chemistry and biology departments. After that, she went with her gut.

“I came to Trinity and went on a tour—and I immediately loved it,” Muppala remembers. “I liked the small campus and the small class sizes.”

Once on campus, Muppala chose to major in biochemistry and molecular biology to give her a solid foundation for medical school.

“Each class is unique and geared towards a certain aspect of the medical field,” she says, adding, “Professors don’t just move students through a textbook. Most of the time they compile different resources, which I feel is more apt for the real world.”

Muppala even researched alongside one of her chemistry professors, Joseph Lambert, Ph.D., studying the chemistry and analysis of amber fossils.

“Ambers form from plant resin, and the chemistry of amber from different parts of the world varies. We characterized amber samples through what’s called ‘NMR spectroscopy,’” she explains. Muppala presented her project, “Chemical Characterization of Amber and Plant Exudates,” at the 2019 summer undergraduate research symposium—an event she cites as the highlight of her Trinity experience.

To complete other requirements, Muppala picked up an Asian religions course. She found it fascinating and, after taking several more religion classes, declared religion as a minor.

“The more classes I took, the more I was able to relate what I was learning to my interest in medicine,” Muppala says. “People have a different way of coping with their illnesses, and their spirituality and religion is a big part of how people deal with the stress of being sick and how they heal. So the connection I’ve made between my major and my religion minor was unexpected but very valuable.”

Outside of academics, Muppala sought out ways to express her cultural identity—she was born in Dallas but lived in Saudi Arabia for almost a decade growing up. She helped put together cultural events such as Diwali and Holi as past president of the South Asian Student Association.

In spring 2020, she was captain of the Top Notch Bollywood dance team and a member of Loon-E Crew, Trinity’s hip-hop dance team.

After graduation, Muppala will begin medical school at the A.T. Still University School of Osteopathic Medicine, aspiring toward a career in pediatrics. She chose the university because she likes the concept of “whole person healthcare,” which takes an integrated approach that includes the body, mind, and spirit of each patient. And it looks like her religion minor is the perfect complement to this approach.

It Is Rocket Science Alumnus’ journey to a Ph.D. includes leopard seal research, a NASA internship, and a startup surfboard company

By Mary Denny

Future NASA intern Tynan Guerra ’16 built and launched his own rocket in high school.

While the rocket performed dismally, “it quite literally ignited my interest in aerospace engineering,” he says.

To jump-start his career, Guerra was drawn to Trinity’s engineering science program and its broad curriculum, considering it “a great platform on which to start a career in a field as interdisciplinary as aerospace engineering.”

Armed with a double major in engineering science and physics and a mathematics minor from Trinity, Guerra then began a master’s program in aerospace engineering at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. His master’s adviser had developed an interest in leopard seals while working at a zoo, and for Guerra, studying why leopard seals are such efficient swimmers sounded like “a whimsical, interesting, and unconventional application of an aerospace engineering education.” He hopped on the project. His work on the subject eventually became the basis of his master’s thesis.

In the midst of his studies at Cal Poly, Guerra landed an internship at NASA Langley Research Center. “Interning at NASA was a dream come true,” he says. At Langley, he worked in the Probe Calibration Tunnel, a small wind tunnel that runs at Mach 3.5.

Also while at Cal Poly, Guerra and two buddies launched Lost Coast, a startup venture to design and build the next generation of surfboards. The product was a smart surfboard fin, equipped with sensors that would record force and GPS data and process it into meaningful data, sort of like a “FitBit for surfers,” Guerra explains.

Despite not being a surfer himself, Guerra joined the venture because he relished the opportunity of working with great friends and also because the project was “an opportunity to use our aerospace backgrounds on a really unconventional application, and that really excited [him].” The project won $5,000 in Cal Poly’s Innovation Quest competition and another $10,000 when it was accepted into Cal Poly Hot House, a summer incubator program.

Ultimately, the project lost steam as the three partners faced more immediate matters such as finishing their master’s degrees and, in Guerra’s case, entering a doctoral program in aerospace engineering.

“I learned a ton through the process,” Guerra says, “one thing being that I don’t think startup life is for me.”

What is for Guerra, at least at the moment, is working on his doctoral degree at North Carolina State. He is parlaying his work at Cal Poly, where he used existing software to study fluid dynamics. “For my Ph.D. I’m basically writing my own code to study turbulent mixing in scramjet engines. I avoided coding like the plague at Trinity (out of fear),” he says, “but I’m starting to really enjoy it.”

09

Interested in becoming a Tiger?

Apply Early!

Applications open for first-year students applying for the Class of 2025 on JULY 1, 2020 via Apply Texas or the Coalition Application and on AUGUST 1, 2020 via the Common Application.

Get to know Trinity University It’s important to take the time to visit the college campuses you’re interested in. There’s no better way to get a true sense of what it’s like to be a student.

Once Trinity University can safely welcome visitors again, we encourage you and your family to meet the people, try the food, see the sights, and explore our beautiful campus and sunny San Antonio.

Until then, the Office of Admissions is offering opportunities to experience the Trinity campus from the convenience of your home. We encourage you to check out the latest options at gotu.us/visit. There you will find opportunities to get to know Trinity University, learn what it’s like to be a Tiger, and meet our faculty, students, and admissions staff.

Get to know Trinity University

The College Search An experience for the whole family The college search can be a fun and exciting time for students and families.

Students get to celebrate their academic and co-curricular accomplishments and reflect upon their experiences

10

gotu.us/visit

as they chart their journeys forward.

Here at Trinity, we appreciate the significance of the college search experience, and it centers on you.

Throughout this process, we encourage future Tigers to discover new interests, grow existing passions, and become empowered citizens of the global community. Seek support from your friends, family, and parents along the way. They can help you with your essays, be another set of eyes and ears on a campus visit

or virtual tour, and guide you through the tough decisions that come along with the many opportunities in your future.

Stay tuned for more information about opportunities to register for virtual interviews over the summer, and a webinar series about a wide range of helpful topics related to the college search process!

Resources for parents and families are available online at gotu.us/parents.

Frequently Asked Questions We have heard from students, their families, and college counselors about a number of specific concerns regarding next year’s application process at Trinity. We hope the following answers provide some clarity. As the situation evolves, we will continue to handle the response to COVID-19 with transparency, timely communication, and a student-centric approach.

How will Trinity review grades and credit earned during the COVID-19 pandemic?

How will Trinity consider and accept SAT/ACT scores?

We are committed to working with students to better understand how their academic situation were altered due to COVID-19. We recognize that high schools have responded to current challenges through a variety of options such as online coursework, suspended classroom experiences, shifting to Pass/Fail grading, and even potentially dropping some classes. We will be flexible with curricular and grading changes as they are reflected on your final transcript. If you have specific concerns regarding course changes, please contact your admissions counselor.

Due to canceled standardized test dates, Trinity University is introducing a test-optional policy for all undergraduate applicants for a 3-year period starting with applicants who apply for the Fall 2021 semester. Applicants for firstyear admission to the University will no longer be required to submit any standardized test results to the Office of Admissions. We will re-evaluate whether to indefinitely extend the test-optional policy or reinstate a testing requirement at the end of the 3-year period.

With this move to test-optional admissions, we will continue to review and consider test scores for those applicants who want to submit them, but any applicant can also choose to be evaluated only on high school grades, curriculum rigor, essays, recommendation letters, achievements, interviews, and contributions to their school and community. We also views this as an opportunity to redefine achievement in a way that might have overlooked certain students in the past.

How can I engage with the Trinity community?

While it is impossible to replicate an actual campus visit, we can come very close! We invite you to discover the beauty of our campus by taking an interactive virtual tour. Additionally, you can attend a live information session occurring most weekdays, with an opportunity to discover the same information you would hear when visiting Trinity and submit questions to be answered by an admissions counselor. We want to ensure you clearly understand the distinctions and characteristics that make Trinity a vibrant community. Our aim is to provide new and creative ways for you to experience and learn more about Trinity from the comfort of your own home. Additionally, we encourage you to contact your assigned admissions counselor to express your interest in Trinity and request anything that will prove helpful in your college search. Please visit gotu.us/visit regularly for updates regarding potential visit options.

Will Trinity change its application deadlines for the 2020-2021 application cycle?

Per our typical timeline, we will release our application deadlines and merit scholarship opportunities and amounts during the summertime. Trinity University will offer several application deadlines, and we will work with students to choose the one that is right for them.

11

9:1 student-to-

QUICK FACTS

faculty ratio

93% of faculty hold doctoral or terminal degrees

Private, residential, co-educational, undergraduate-focused Founded in 1869 6 minutes from San Antonio International Airport Located in America’s 7th largest city

2,532

undergraduates from 47 states and 68 countries 9% international students

6

125 acre campus

located in a residential neighborhood

minutes from downtown San Antonio

Follow us on social media! @TrinityU

LeeRoyTheTiger

/trinityuniversity

/trinityuniversity

@Trinity_U or @TrinityU_Admiss

www.trinity.edu

A D M IT T ED S TUDENT P RO FILE

3.73 average GPA

A- grade average

Fall 2019 Entry Term

31.4

1398

30–33 mid 50%

1330–1470 mid 50%

average ACT

average SAT