Our Alumni
The Bridges program has been funded by the National Institutes of Health for the past 20+years. During that time, the program has trained over 160 Haskell students. Many of those students have transitioned to KU or another four-year university to obtain their degree in a bioscience field.
Alumni of the Bridges program have successfully gone on to become employed in the bioscience field in jobs such as:
- environmental health specialists
- water quality specialists
- educators
- biotech researchers
- engineers
- tribal communities
- government organizations (EPA, EG, BLM, USDA)
- non-government organizations
They have also gone on to other programs such as:
- PhD and MA programs in e.g. Molecular Biosciences, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
- Professional degree programs in nursing, medical school, dentistry, chiropractic
- NIH-funded post-baccalaureate opportunities
Example stories of several recent alumni from our program are below.
Dorothea Summers
Dorothea Summers (Dori), Dine', is currently a graduate student in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at KU focusing on grassland, soil and restoration ecology. While a Bridges scholar, Dori worked with Dr. Matt Gillispie in SPLH to focus on Developmental Disabilities and Services to Native American Communities in Kansas. She transitioned to the study of Plant-Soil Microbial Ecology in Dr. Peggy Shultz's lab. Dori was also instrumental in establishing a Monarch Butterfly way station on the Haskell Campus.
Dominique Lebeau
Dominique Lebeau (Dee Barton), Dine', entered Bridges seeking a research experience to qualify for a nursing degree. Dee worked in Dr. Brian Ackley's lab during her stint in Bridges and transferred to KU's School of Nursing to complete her Bachelor of Science in Nursing. Dee is currently employed at Haskell Indian Health Service serving the area Native American community.
Kynser Rae Wahwahsuck
Kynser Rae Wahwahsuck, Kickapoo, Shoshone, and Sac & Fox, serves Indian Country by working as a Tribal Climate Resilience Liaison for the Great Plains Tribal Water Alliance. She works to connect 32 federally recognized Tribal Nations to tools, information, and other resources for building resilience to anthropogenic climate change. Kynser worked with Dr. Amy Burgin, to study nitrogen cycling in headwater stream affected by land-use change.
Thaius Somchai Boyd
Thaius Somchai Boyd (Thai), Ohkay Owingeh, he completed his academic pursuit of a medical degree at the University of Minnesota Medical School. Thai was also awarded a Professional Science Master's Degree in Environmental Assessment from the KU Edwards Campus. He plans to use these degrees to address health disparities in Indian Country.
