d e t p i r c Uns spring 2016 | waynesburg.edu
Who will I become? RACHEL NARASIMHAN BIOLOGY MAJOR AND PSYCHOLOGY MINOR _______________________
The Reward of Service
Learn about a criminal justice professor and his passion for service. pg. 3
_____________ Day in the Life Gain insight into the typical day of two Waynesburg students. pg. 4
_____________
“I enjoyed learning about how to make the world a better place…”
Internship Highlight
Rachel Narasimhan’s time in the classroom at Waynesburg uniquely provided her with a blend of skills and knowledge that ultimately allowed her to enjoy a successful internship experience in Panama.
Learn about the experience of a Waynesburg student’s internship. pg. 5
_____________ Letter to Parents Hear from parents of a current student about their experiences. pg. 7
Last summer, she spent four weeks at the Alouatta Sanctuary, a wildlife rehabilitation, research and education center, on the Chiriqui Peninsula in Panama. Narasimhan conducted research and worked with many different types of monkeys during her internship, including two capuchins, two Geoffry’s Tamarins and two baby howlers. She had the opportunity to interact and observe these monkeys on a daily basis, which enabled her to
compile an ethogram, an inventory of behavior exhibited by the animals. “It is one thing to see them in photographs and to learn about their behavior in a textbook, but nothing compares to seeing it in person,” said Narasimhan. The internship utilized the blend of skills Narasimhan acquired through her biology major and psychology minor, but as she applied her classroom-learned knowledge in the middle of the jungle, she also found that Waynesburg University had provided her with another ingredient vital to the success of her internship – confidence.
“The Biology Program at Waynesburg is one of a kind,” said Narasimhan. “Throughout my courses and interacting with the professors, I have developed a level of confidence without which I would not have been able to perform the internship.” Narasimhan will graduate in May. Her plans are to pursue graduate school for further study in animal behavior. “[During the internship] I overcame my fears and doubts because I was passionate about the work I was doing,” said Narasimhan. “I enjoyed learning about how to make the world a better place, one step at a time.”