Our Wildwood, Summer 2019, Volume 45

projects that form an important part of the science curriculum at Wildwood’s elementary campus, where I fondly remember building Lego robots, rubber- band-powered cars, and other projects requiring originality and outside-the-box thinking. Wildwood’s unique approach to STEM education demystified the process of research and showed me that my ideas and contributions could matter in a scientific project, even as a comparatively untrained student. As a result, when I became involved in research as an undergraduate, I was already eager to start asking my own research questions. I have been fortunate enough to have mentors who supported me in pursuing a research project largely guided by my own ideas. Undoubtedly, the questions I seized on as a first-year undergraduate were not as well-chosen or as well-formulated as those I could devise now or will be able

“” WILDWOOD’S UNIQUE APPROACH TO STEM EDUCATION DEMYSTIFIED THE PROCESS OF RESEARCH AND SHOWED ME THAT MY IDEAS AND CONTRIBUTIONS COULD MATTER IN A SCIENTIFIC PROJECT, EVEN AS A COMPARATIVELY UNTRAINED STUDENT.

most important, as I begin to consider what area of the life sciences should define the scope of my scientific career, it’s deeply important to me to consider what areas of research will have the greatest benefit for human health and for the health of our planet (Habit of Service to the Common Good). I am extremely grateful for the preparation Wildwood has given me for a career in scientific research, and I hope to be able to put that preparation to good use in the service of others.

to devise by the end of graduate school. However, by following my own initiative, I learned far more about how to articulate a research question and evaluate its value and the feasibility of answering it than I would have otherwise. As I look ahead to the coming five to six years I will spend in the biological engineering Ph.D. program at MIT, it seems to me that the Habits of Mind and Heart that I learned at Wildwood will be more essential to my success than ever. To conduct honest and fruitful research, a scientist must carefully document everything as a matter of course (Habit of Evidence), integrate pieces of knowledge across multiple disciplines (Habit of Connection), and work effectively with others (Habit of Collaboration), just to name a few examples. Perhaps

Owen recently graduated from the University of Chicago and begins a Ph.D. in biological engineering at MIT this fall.

37

OWW SUMMER 2019