Reflection of my researcher story

My final days of my undergraduate journey are coming to an end, and it is very bittersweet. For the last four years, I have adapted to a new environment in Eau Claire that shaped me into the person I am today.

From 2017 to 2021, I have completely transformed into a new person, professionally and personally. The start of my journey was difficult and challenged me in ways I've never been challenge before. Adapting to an environment so different from my diverse and culturally rich hometown was by far the hardest part of attending UW-Eau Claire.

Finding the McNair program was part of the finding myself. Being in the College of Business, I always felt as if I did not belong. Being uncomfortable in the classroom became my new normal because there wasn't students that looked like me. I felt like an oddball and was seeking a place where I felt welcomed and as if I belonged. The McNair program was exactly what I was looking for. Although I had never officially done research before, I was intrigued with the new challenge. I was also very interested in educating myself on how to move onto graduate school and eventually earn a doctoral degree.

I was very intimated by what the future held for me. Heavy researching, presentations, and eventually the construction of my Astra article were factors that contributed to my fears. As junior year went by, I was determined that although I was a business student, my research would take a different route and focus on higher education and students of color. From my experience, I felt as if men of color were spoken more of, and women of color were often left out when speaking about the struggles UW-Eau Claire faced. My research was a way for me to speak our experience. I felt as if I was given the power to amplify the voices of women of color.

My research process was easier done when I broke it down by small segments instead of trying to attack the project as a whole. By doing so, I gained control over it and also learned techniques that will help me in the future. My research eventually began gaining an audience and recognition throughout campus. People would thank me for taking the initiative on speaking about the struggles as a woman of color at a predominately white institution. During presentations and symposiums, I would get many questions and could tell the audience was engaged in what I was doing.

Becoming a researcher through the McNair program was the best college decision I made. I created a bond with the McNair program directors and met so many intelligent and wonderful students in my cohort, which I will miss the most. I will forever be grateful!