HPU senior Grace Todd, a biochemistry major from Johnsontown, Ohio, was accepted to six medical schools and plans to attend Ohio University’s Heritage College of Medicine after graduation. She is pictured in the Wanek School of Natural Sciences, where orange, green and blue colors climbing the lobby’s walls represent the earth’s core, surface and atmosphere.
Grace Todd wanted to go to medical school but knew it was a competitive path.
When searching for colleges as a high school student, she often worried, “Will I find the college that will help me, or will I be just another pre-med school who gets weeded out?”
After all, the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) reports that only about 40% of pre-med majors get accepted into medical school.
After visiting High Point University and meeting the faculty in the Wanek School of Natural Sciences, Todd knew she had found the university that would help her become a doctor.
“I chose to attend High Point University primarily because I admired its values of God, family, country, and I believed that with its state-of-the-art facilities and personable faculty members, it was a place where I would thrive,” says Todd, a senior biochemistry major.
The proof is in the results. Fast forward to the spring semester of her senior year, and the Johnstown, Ohio, native will soon head off to medical school thanks to her HPU education.
“The class sizes were small enough that I knew my education would be personalized, with each faculty member taking the time to get to know their students and actively taking an interest in every individual’s education,” says Todd. “With the chemistry department’s ACS (American Chemical Society) certification as well, I knew the academics would be rigorous enough to challenge me and make me a better student, especially when it came to taking the MCAT prior to applying to medical school.”
Real-World Research
Ultimately, Todd’s HPU education and the experiences she amassed led six medical schools to accept Todd. She plans to attend Ohio University’s Heritage College of Medicine after graduation. She says her HPU student experience made that possible by providing her hands-on involvement with research and boosting her self-confidence making presentations.
Dr. Pamela Lundin, assistant professor of chemistry, became Todd’s most impactful faculty mentor. Todd joined Lundin’s research lab for two years after hearing Lundin’s lecture about polymers, which are what form plastics, during an organic chemistry II class.
“For a medical-school bound student, this is not a common path, but Grace is willing to push her boundaries to learn new information and bring it all back together to view the world in a new light,” says Lundin. “Academically, Grace is a stand-out student in all areas. She pushes herself to turn in her best work on every assignment, even on those which she does not consider to be her strength. She is a very intellectually curious person and willing to put herself out there to learn something new.”
HPU helped fund the opportunity for Todd to present research at the spring National ACS meetings in both 2022 and 2023. Todd also secured a summer research internship at the Orthopedic Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to improving the quality of patient care and medical services, in the summer of 2020.
“While there, I worked with a current medical student to design a study on the safety and efficacy of posterior lumbar interbody fusions in the outpatient setting,” says Todd. “Through this internship, I networked with medical students at the medical school I plan to attend next fall, and I learned about how to conduct research in a clinical setting.”
Total Transformation
None of that could have happened prior to her experience at HPU. When Todd arrived, she was shy, introverted and dreaded speaking in front of large groups.
“Dr. Lundin pushed me beyond my professional boundaries by encouraging me to get involved in research at HPU and supporting me throughout these research endeavors,” says Todd. “As a woman in STEM, Dr. Lundin has always provided me with support and a unique perspective on the challenges faced in the field.”
Todd says she has noticed the drastic change in her persona and sometimes reflects on who she once was and how much HPU has helped her flourish.
“With the help of my faculty members and peers at HPU, I found that I have grown into a confident woman who is no longer afraid to host a meeting with 30 students, to visit a professor’s office or to approach someone new and introduce myself,” says Todd. “I have even found myself signing up for roles and getting involved in events that my younger self would have avoided at all costs.”
Her involvement included becoming a Peer Mentor, being elected the president of ACS and Alpha Epsilon Delta, attending networking luncheons with HPU alumni, and presenting a bill for her organization in front of the Student Government Association’s Senate.
“If High Point University had not provided me these opportunities to challenge myself to grow, I would not have become the person I am proud to look in the mirror and see every day,” says Todd. “I know there is still much growth to be had; however, I am undeterred and excited for my future because HPU has instilled in me the skills necessary to excel in life. I am blessed and grateful to have called High Point University my home these past four years.”
In addition to the God, family, country values that attracted her, being part of the HPU community helped Todd develop the value of integrity, which will serve her future medical career.
“I have always believed the best way to do something is to do it the right way and that those who maintain moral uprightness will be rewarded,” says Todd. “If you see wrongdoing, someone being mistreated or someone engaging in academic dishonesty, it is your duty to stand up for what is right. As stated by Immanuel Kant’s deontological ethical theory, it is our moral duty to do what is right and for the right reasons. As a believer in Kantianism and this ethical theory, I believe in doing what is right because it is my moral obligation. Honesty and integrity are the most important values for a person to have, and I am grateful that High Point University recognizes the importance of these values and has helped me develop them for long-term success.”