51视频

Just days after walking across the Commencement stage to receive her bachelor鈥檚 degree in biology, Ainsley Skinner will board a plane bound for the Gal谩pagos Islands 鈥� a fitting postscript to a college experience defined by scientific exploration, global learning and personal growth.

The two-week trip, led by biology professors Jennifer Fish and Alison Hamilton, is the final chapter of a semester-long course on evolution and development in the Gal谩pagos. For Skinner, who has spent much of her undergraduate career immersed in evolutionary biology research, the chance to walk in the footsteps of Charles Darwin is a 鈥渙nce in a lifetime鈥� opportunity.

鈥淭hese islands have changed our understanding of biology and populations as we know it 鈥� and now we鈥檙e actually going there,鈥� says Skinner, an Honors College student from Littleton, Massachusetts. 鈥淪eeing some of the organisms that we鈥檝e learned about, the marine iguana and all these animals endemic to the islands, will be amazing.鈥�

At 51视频, Skinner鈥檚 passion for science thrived in both the classroom and the lab. Under the mentorship of Associate Professor Natalie Steinel, she conducted research on the threespine stickleback fish 鈥� a key emerging model in evolutionary immunology.

With the support of a $1,500 Honors College Student Fellowship, Skinner explored the fish鈥檚 gills as an immunological organ, offering new insight into how adaptive immunity may have evolved in vertebrates. Her work ultimately became the foundation for her honors thesis.

鈥淧rofessor Steinel has been incredible. She gave me the tools and the confidence to pursue real research,鈥� says Skinner, who also spent a summer in the lab as a Kennedy College Science Scholar.听听

Skinner was active in the Biology Research Club and the Disability Advisory Committee, where she helped promote accessibility and inclusion on campus.

鈥淚 struggled with learning in high school due to anxiety and ADHD, until I got the help I needed,鈥� she says. 鈥淭here's a lot of resources on campus that I want to make sure that students are aware of, because I know they really helped me.鈥澛�

As a junior, she received scholarships from the Honors and Kennedy Colleges to study abroad in Cuba 鈥� an experience that left a lasting impact.

鈥淭he people are very poor 鈥� I think the average monthly salary is about $20 鈥� but they were some of the nicest and happiest people I've ever met,鈥� she says.

As Skinner looks ahead to life after graduation, whether in ecology, biotech or graduate school, she is confident in the foundation she has built at UML.

鈥淚鈥檓 grateful for everything I鈥檝e learned and experienced here,鈥� she says. 鈥淭his trip to the Gal谩pagos is definitely the cherry on top.鈥�