[ad_1]\n<\/p>\n
Video by Zack Eagles<\/strong><\/p>\nFor this installment of the student-athlete series<\/a>, we take a look at three graduating seniors.<\/p>\n<\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3>Fernanda Contreras: Women\u2019s Tennis\/Engineering<\/h3>\n<p>By Zac Ellis<\/p>\n<p>Fernanda Contreras grew up as a kid knee-deep in a pile of LEGOs in her living room.<\/p>\n<p>Now, as the Vanderbilt <a href=\"https:\/\/vucommodores.com\/index.aspx?path=wten\">tennis<\/a> senior prepares to graduate with a degree in mechanical engineering, Contreras feels her path has come full-circle.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHonestly, after these four years, I feel like I can build anything,\u201d Contreras said.<\/p>\n<p>Contreras, an Austin, Texas native, has also built a remarkable college career during her time on West End. She is a three-time All-American, a top-five singles player in the country and will finish as the vaunted tennis program\u2019s all-time leader in career singles wins. Contreras has helped the Commodores win four SEC championships during her career \u2013 earning MVP honors at 2018 SECs \u2013 and reach the Final Four three times, finishing as NCAA runner-up in 2019.<\/p>\n<p>Off the court, Contreras has thrived as a mechanical engineering major. She has helped design and build robotic circuits as part of a mechatronics class, the kind of experience that helped her decide to attend Vanderbilt in the first place.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn the recruiting process, I would tell coaches I was interested in engineering,\u201d Contreras said. \u201cCoaches would say, \u2018No, you can\u2019t do that. If you want to play tennis, you\u2019ll have to pick something else.\u2019 But when I told Coach [Geoff] Macdonald I wanted to do engineering, he was very excited for me. I knew Vanderbilt was going to work out right then.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cI wanted to put myself in a position that I would have no regrets at the end of my four years at Vanderbilt. I took my chances and opportunities, and I\u2019m happy.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Since then, Contreras has made it a point to get the most out of her Vanderbilt experience. She spent time as a member of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vanderbilt.edu\/studentathletedevelopment\/student-athlete-advisory-committee-beta\/\">Vanderbilt\u2019s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee<\/a>, serving as president as a junior. Contreras has taken part in Vanderbilt Student Government and embarked on service trips abroad, most recently to Morocco last August. She was named \u201cMiss Commodore\u201d for her all-around involvement at Vanderbilt athletics\u2019 annual Golden Dores ball last month.<\/p>\n<p>Macdonald said Contreras has grown immensely during her four years at Vanderbilt.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe has come a long way,\u201d Macdonald said. \u201cThere were a lot of schools who didn\u2019t recruit Fernanda because they thought she was a little too slight and could get overpowered. But she\u2019s proven to be a brilliant tactician and had a great career. She\u2019s quite a remarkable young woman \u2026 You look at what these young people do, it\u2019s amazing. I\u2019m lucky to be here, because you get to offer SEC tennis and a world-class education.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Contreras realized early on the importance of the full student-athlete experience. At Vanderbilt, she told herself, I can have it all. Now, as she prepares for her next chapter as a professional tennis prospect with an elite engineering degree, Contreras said she is thankful for her all-encompassing time at Vanderbilt.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think if you don\u2019t do that, you\u2019re letting yourself down,\u201d Contreras said. \u201cI just explored everything that Vanderbilt had to offer. I took classes I never expected, like theater and other random classes. I joined VSG for a year. Vanderbilt just has so much to offer, it\u2019s insane. I wanted to put myself in a position that I would have no regrets at the end of my four years at Vanderbilt. I took my chances and opportunities, and I\u2019m happy.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3>Kristin Quah: Women\u2019s Bowling\/Engineering<\/h3>\n<p>By Rod Williamson<\/p>\n<p>Vanderbilt graduate and highly decorated Commodore bowler Kristin Quah, who regularly displayed her talents on the lanes, recently represented Vanderbilt among another group of elite talent.<\/p>\n<p>She traveled to Montreal May 15 to present an academic abstract on focused ultrasound (non-invasive surgery) at the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine\u2019s 27<sup>th<\/sup> Annual Meeting and Exhibition \u2013 the world\u2019s largest and most influential meeting of MRI professionals.<\/p>\n<p>While the vast majority of collegiate athletes have had their hands full working toward graduation and giving their all for their sport of choice, Quah worked overtime as a dominating force on Vanderbilt\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/vucommodores.com\/index.aspx?path=wbowl\">nationally prominent bowling team<\/a>, and performed research at Vanderbilt\u2019s renowned medical center.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNon-invasive surgery \u2013 focused ultrasound \u2013 is up and coming,\u201d Quah said, \u201cIt is the ability to apply heat to a very focused part of one\u2019s body without having to make a surgical incision. Surgeons need some kind of visualization and the MRI comes into play because you can get temperature maps from MRIs but the current methods don\u2019t give enough volume coverage. You can only see a single slice so you need to increase the volume and that\u2019s what I\u2019ve been working on.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>This isn\u2019t a topic that comes up between frames on the bowling lanes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe\u2019s the best undergraduate student I\u2019ve ever worked with,\u201d William A. (Will) Grissom, Quah\u2019s academic mentor and an associate professor of biomedical engineering,\u201dsaid bluntly. \u201cShe has the unusual ability to work on open-ended problems and come up with her own solution to technical problems. Most students need solutions spelled out for them, a lot more guidance. Her research is the same thing \u2013 she will try things, trusting her own ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cWhen I first got to school I thought I was going to bowl when I got out; that\u2019s what I wanted to do. But the more I got into school, the more I liked it. Last year, when I started research, I loved it and it\u2019s changed my perspective on how I think of myself, my identity.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Quah will head to Stanford University to perform PhD research on full scholarship next year, perhaps being able to focus solely on academics for the first time after a prolific student-athlete career.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI definitely think I had two lives on this campus,\u201d Quah said. \u201cI joked about it sometimes. A professor would ask me if I could do something and I\u2019d say, \u2018Hold on, I need to check into the other half of my life.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen I first got to school I thought I was going to bowl when I got out; that\u2019s what I wanted to do. But the more I got into school, the more I liked it. Last year, when I started research, I loved it and it\u2019s changed my perspective on how I think of myself, my identity. Now I think they are both fun.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The three-time All-American says each discipline made her better. Academics taught Quah how to logically think through a process, a way to think outside the box. She now understands there is probably a solution out there, and if one way doesn\u2019t work, try another.<\/p>\n<p>Athletics taught Quah life skills such as time management, goal setting and, especially, communication.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen I was younger I really couldn\u2019t communicate,\u201d Quah said. \u201cI didn\u2019t talk a lot. Through bowling and having to work with coaches and teammates it\u2019s made me better. By no means am I great at it \u2014 in fact, I will say communication is one of my weaknesses. But my skills have definitely improved.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It is tempting to assume all the success comes easily to Kristin, and that\u2019s not entirely true. The Singapore native follows the old-school philosophy of early to bed, early to rise and manages to stay well organized.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI usually am up by 6:30 a.m. and get some breakfast,\u201d she said, \u201cand then I do some work until my first class or meeting, which typically is about 8 or 9. I go to bed early, usually asleep by 10. I don\u2019t compromise my sleep.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She tries to keep some room on her agenda for relaxation.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOne of the reasons I like getting up early is so I can have my work done by 8:30 p.m. and have an hour or so at night to do things that relax me. Maybe that\u2019s watching some TV or working on jigsaw puzzles. We have four or five of us that really like puzzles, especially in the fall when we were around more.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Life was almost going too well for Kristin as last fall\u2019s bowling schedule came to a close for the holidays. The Commodores were winning, she had made three all-tournament teams and was leading the Southland Bowling League in 17 of the possible 24 individual categories. That would have put her into the national player of the year conversation and a first-team All-America selection at the very least.<\/p>\n<p>But Quah\u2019s wrist began acting up, and her fingers would go numb if she threw too many practice balls. She made several visits to one of the nation\u2019s leading hand-injury physicians at Vanderbilt Medical Center. The diagnosis was a rare condition that boiled down to this: she could continue bowling because she could not worsen her condition, but it also would not fade quickly into the Nashville night.<\/p>\n<p>Quah worked to cut her practice time in half, although that caused her to lose her timing. Every once in a while, rolling a bowling ball would send a shock through her entire arm, which created a subconscious fear of when the next jolt would occur. She went from a mainstay in the Vanderbilt bowling lineup to a less frequent substitute.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe most frustrating thing was the timing of the matter,\u201d Quah said. \u201cIf this were earlier in my career or a different time of year, I could recover and come back.\u201d But this was my last couple of months before I graduated \u2026 If I rested, I was done.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Quah has received many honors during her Vanderbilt career. She won the Undergraduate Design Award for an early version of her research at the 2018 Biomedical Engineering Society meeting in Atlanta (\u201cI\u2019ve never had a student win this award,\u201d Professor Grissom said). She is also a member of elite academic honor societies Tau Beta Pi and IEEE-Eta Kappa Nu. She also was a Vanderbilt Undergraduate Littlejohn Summer Research Scholar.<\/p>\n<p>In April, Quah became just the third student-athlete in Vanderbilt history to garner the Boyd. H. McWhorter Award, which is presented annually to the outstanding female student-athlete in the Southeastern Conference. She also repeated as the NCAA Elite 90 Award winner at the NCAA Bowling Championship, which is given to the student-athlete at each championship who boasts the highest grade-point average. A double-major in biomedical and electrical engineering, Quah earned a 3.97 GPA.<\/p>\n<p>On the lanes, Quah was named to nine all-tournament teams in her career, including four as tournament MVP. She was voted the program\u2019s Harry Stoddard Award recipient for her leadership and team contributions, was the 2016 national Rookie of the Year and named All-America three times. Quah helped Vanderbilt win the 2019 NCAA Bowling Championship and finish as NCAA runner-up earlier this spring.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think I most appreciate winning the <em>NCAA Elite 90 Award<\/em>,\u201d Quah said. \u201cThe way the team reacted when they announced my name, that it was an award I\u2019d always heard was next to impossible for a Vanderbilt student to win \u2026That was special.\u00a0 And, of course, last year\u2019s national championship. I\u2019ll never forget that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Quah\u2019s days as a Vanderbilt student-athlete have come to an end, but her legacy as an extraordinary woman of accomplishment on West End will long be remembered.<\/p>\n<h3>Evan Suzman: Men\u2019s Cross Country\/Peabody<\/h3>\n<p>By Zac Ellis<\/p>\n<p>Evan Suzman smiles when asked to reflect on his growth as a student-athlete at Vanderbilt.\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m definitely a lot faster,\u201d Suzman laughs. \u201cI can thank my coaches for that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Suzman, a <a href=\"https:\/\/vucommodores.com\/index.aspx?path=mcross\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">cross country<\/a> runner for the Commodores and a member of the Class of 2019, likes to clear his mind with long, winding runs across campus. Off the course, the native New Yorker is a double major in <a href=\"https:\/\/as.vanderbilt.edu\/history\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">history<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/peabody.vanderbilt.edu\/departments\/psych\/undergraduate_programs\/child_development.php\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">child development<\/a>, with a focus on the history of science.<\/p>\n<p>For Suzman, Vanderbilt\u2019s athletics and academics have offered the perfect combination for his college career.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI really like having something to do, but I also like competing,\u201d he says. \u201cOur team is a really great group of like-minded guys who like to compete and like to win. But we\u2019re all serious about our academics, which is why Vanderbilt is unique. I have friends at other schools who play their sport, and that\u2019s it. Our team here is very passionate about running, but we\u2019re passionate about things outside of school, too.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cOur team is a really great group of like-minded guys who like to compete and like to win. But we\u2019re all serious about our academics, which is why Vanderbilt is unique.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>In addition to his time on the cross country team, Suzman has spent the past two years as a research assistant in the lab of <a href=\"https:\/\/vkc.mc.vanderbilt.edu\/people\/woynaroski-tiffany\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Assistant Professor of Hearing and Speech Sciences Tiffany Woynaroski<\/a> at the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center for Research on Human Development. Suzman has teamed with Woynaroski\u2019s lab to study biobehavioral approaches in neurodevelopmental disorders, specifically focusing on sensory and multisensory processing in individuals with autism.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur research tries to understand how early sensory differences are linked with later communication and language outcomes,\u201d he explains.<\/p>\n<p>As part of his history major, Suzman has studied the intersection of history and technology. His work through an independent study with <a href=\"https:\/\/as.vanderbilt.edu\/history\/bio\/ole-molvig\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ole Molvig<\/a>, assistant professor of history, involved the language of modernity today and its parallels to the Industrial Revolution.<\/p>\n<p>While Suzman has enjoyed his academic work, competing as a Commodore student-athlete added another element to his time in college. He will graduate as a four-time member of the Southeastern Conference Academic Honor Roll, and last fall he clocked a personal-best time of 24:44.1 in the 8K race at the SEC Cross Country Championships in Auburn, Alabama.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI love running,\u201d Suzman says. \u201cIf nothing else, it\u2019s an excuse to spend an hour or two outside every day. You feel uniquely connected to nature that way. A lot of people view cross country very individualistically, but I\u2019ve come to appreciate the team nature of the sport more since being at Vanderbilt.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While graduation will mark the end to Suzman\u2019s athletic career, his time at Vanderbilt remains unfinished. Next fall he begins a master\u2019s program in <a href=\"https:\/\/gradschool.vanderbilt.edu\/postbac\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">biomedical sciences<\/a>, an opportunity to continue his lab work and take another step toward medical school or a Ph.D. program.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAt Vanderbilt, I\u2019ve grown a lot more comfortable in my own skin and grown more interested in subjects I am passionate about,\u201d Suzman says. \u201cPlus, cross country has provided me with a deep sense of camaraderie. It\u2019s a unique kind of friendship that takes place on a team.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>[ad_2]<br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"http:\/\/feedproxy.google.com\/~r\/vanderbilt-video\/~3\/Rgb77GuuOxU\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[ad_1] Video by Zack Eagles For this installment of the student-athlete series, we take a look at three graduating seniors. Fernanda Contreras: Women\u2019s Tennis\/Engineering By Zac Ellis Fernanda Contreras grew up as a kid knee-deep in a pile of LEGOs in her living room. Now, as the Vanderbilt tennis senior prepares to graduate with a …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":134033,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[20735,97967,92254,97968,97969,92257,33496,814,92980,49091,92250,92258,97970,5705,92251,92252],"class_list":["post-134032","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tie-world","tag-engineering","tag-evan-suzman","tag-featured-media","tag-fernanda-contreras","tag-kristin-quah","tag-myvu-highlights","tag-nashville","tag-news","tag-peabody-college","tag-research","tag-social-stories","tag-student-athlete-campaign","tag-student-athletes","tag-university","tag-vanderbilt","tag-vanderbilt-university"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134032","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=134032"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134032\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/134033"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=134032"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=134032"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=134032"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
For this installment of the student-athlete series<\/a>, we take a look at three graduating seniors.<\/p>\n<\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3>Fernanda Contreras: Women\u2019s Tennis\/Engineering<\/h3>\n<p>By Zac Ellis<\/p>\n<p>Fernanda Contreras grew up as a kid knee-deep in a pile of LEGOs in her living room.<\/p>\n<p>Now, as the Vanderbilt <a href=\"https:\/\/vucommodores.com\/index.aspx?path=wten\">tennis<\/a> senior prepares to graduate with a degree in mechanical engineering, Contreras feels her path has come full-circle.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHonestly, after these four years, I feel like I can build anything,\u201d Contreras said.<\/p>\n<p>Contreras, an Austin, Texas native, has also built a remarkable college career during her time on West End. She is a three-time All-American, a top-five singles player in the country and will finish as the vaunted tennis program\u2019s all-time leader in career singles wins. Contreras has helped the Commodores win four SEC championships during her career \u2013 earning MVP honors at 2018 SECs \u2013 and reach the Final Four three times, finishing as NCAA runner-up in 2019.<\/p>\n<p>Off the court, Contreras has thrived as a mechanical engineering major. She has helped design and build robotic circuits as part of a mechatronics class, the kind of experience that helped her decide to attend Vanderbilt in the first place.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn the recruiting process, I would tell coaches I was interested in engineering,\u201d Contreras said. \u201cCoaches would say, \u2018No, you can\u2019t do that. If you want to play tennis, you\u2019ll have to pick something else.\u2019 But when I told Coach [Geoff] Macdonald I wanted to do engineering, he was very excited for me. I knew Vanderbilt was going to work out right then.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cI wanted to put myself in a position that I would have no regrets at the end of my four years at Vanderbilt. I took my chances and opportunities, and I\u2019m happy.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Since then, Contreras has made it a point to get the most out of her Vanderbilt experience. She spent time as a member of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vanderbilt.edu\/studentathletedevelopment\/student-athlete-advisory-committee-beta\/\">Vanderbilt\u2019s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee<\/a>, serving as president as a junior. Contreras has taken part in Vanderbilt Student Government and embarked on service trips abroad, most recently to Morocco last August. She was named \u201cMiss Commodore\u201d for her all-around involvement at Vanderbilt athletics\u2019 annual Golden Dores ball last month.<\/p>\n<p>Macdonald said Contreras has grown immensely during her four years at Vanderbilt.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe has come a long way,\u201d Macdonald said. \u201cThere were a lot of schools who didn\u2019t recruit Fernanda because they thought she was a little too slight and could get overpowered. But she\u2019s proven to be a brilliant tactician and had a great career. She\u2019s quite a remarkable young woman \u2026 You look at what these young people do, it\u2019s amazing. I\u2019m lucky to be here, because you get to offer SEC tennis and a world-class education.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Contreras realized early on the importance of the full student-athlete experience. At Vanderbilt, she told herself, I can have it all. Now, as she prepares for her next chapter as a professional tennis prospect with an elite engineering degree, Contreras said she is thankful for her all-encompassing time at Vanderbilt.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think if you don\u2019t do that, you\u2019re letting yourself down,\u201d Contreras said. \u201cI just explored everything that Vanderbilt had to offer. I took classes I never expected, like theater and other random classes. I joined VSG for a year. Vanderbilt just has so much to offer, it\u2019s insane. I wanted to put myself in a position that I would have no regrets at the end of my four years at Vanderbilt. I took my chances and opportunities, and I\u2019m happy.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3>Kristin Quah: Women\u2019s Bowling\/Engineering<\/h3>\n<p>By Rod Williamson<\/p>\n<p>Vanderbilt graduate and highly decorated Commodore bowler Kristin Quah, who regularly displayed her talents on the lanes, recently represented Vanderbilt among another group of elite talent.<\/p>\n<p>She traveled to Montreal May 15 to present an academic abstract on focused ultrasound (non-invasive surgery) at the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine\u2019s 27<sup>th<\/sup> Annual Meeting and Exhibition \u2013 the world\u2019s largest and most influential meeting of MRI professionals.<\/p>\n<p>While the vast majority of collegiate athletes have had their hands full working toward graduation and giving their all for their sport of choice, Quah worked overtime as a dominating force on Vanderbilt\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/vucommodores.com\/index.aspx?path=wbowl\">nationally prominent bowling team<\/a>, and performed research at Vanderbilt\u2019s renowned medical center.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNon-invasive surgery \u2013 focused ultrasound \u2013 is up and coming,\u201d Quah said, \u201cIt is the ability to apply heat to a very focused part of one\u2019s body without having to make a surgical incision. Surgeons need some kind of visualization and the MRI comes into play because you can get temperature maps from MRIs but the current methods don\u2019t give enough volume coverage. You can only see a single slice so you need to increase the volume and that\u2019s what I\u2019ve been working on.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>This isn\u2019t a topic that comes up between frames on the bowling lanes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe\u2019s the best undergraduate student I\u2019ve ever worked with,\u201d William A. (Will) Grissom, Quah\u2019s academic mentor and an associate professor of biomedical engineering,\u201dsaid bluntly. \u201cShe has the unusual ability to work on open-ended problems and come up with her own solution to technical problems. Most students need solutions spelled out for them, a lot more guidance. Her research is the same thing \u2013 she will try things, trusting her own ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cWhen I first got to school I thought I was going to bowl when I got out; that\u2019s what I wanted to do. But the more I got into school, the more I liked it. Last year, when I started research, I loved it and it\u2019s changed my perspective on how I think of myself, my identity.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Quah will head to Stanford University to perform PhD research on full scholarship next year, perhaps being able to focus solely on academics for the first time after a prolific student-athlete career.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI definitely think I had two lives on this campus,\u201d Quah said. \u201cI joked about it sometimes. A professor would ask me if I could do something and I\u2019d say, \u2018Hold on, I need to check into the other half of my life.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen I first got to school I thought I was going to bowl when I got out; that\u2019s what I wanted to do. But the more I got into school, the more I liked it. Last year, when I started research, I loved it and it\u2019s changed my perspective on how I think of myself, my identity. Now I think they are both fun.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The three-time All-American says each discipline made her better. Academics taught Quah how to logically think through a process, a way to think outside the box. She now understands there is probably a solution out there, and if one way doesn\u2019t work, try another.<\/p>\n<p>Athletics taught Quah life skills such as time management, goal setting and, especially, communication.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen I was younger I really couldn\u2019t communicate,\u201d Quah said. \u201cI didn\u2019t talk a lot. Through bowling and having to work with coaches and teammates it\u2019s made me better. By no means am I great at it \u2014 in fact, I will say communication is one of my weaknesses. But my skills have definitely improved.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It is tempting to assume all the success comes easily to Kristin, and that\u2019s not entirely true. The Singapore native follows the old-school philosophy of early to bed, early to rise and manages to stay well organized.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI usually am up by 6:30 a.m. and get some breakfast,\u201d she said, \u201cand then I do some work until my first class or meeting, which typically is about 8 or 9. I go to bed early, usually asleep by 10. I don\u2019t compromise my sleep.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She tries to keep some room on her agenda for relaxation.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOne of the reasons I like getting up early is so I can have my work done by 8:30 p.m. and have an hour or so at night to do things that relax me. Maybe that\u2019s watching some TV or working on jigsaw puzzles. We have four or five of us that really like puzzles, especially in the fall when we were around more.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Life was almost going too well for Kristin as last fall\u2019s bowling schedule came to a close for the holidays. The Commodores were winning, she had made three all-tournament teams and was leading the Southland Bowling League in 17 of the possible 24 individual categories. That would have put her into the national player of the year conversation and a first-team All-America selection at the very least.<\/p>\n<p>But Quah\u2019s wrist began acting up, and her fingers would go numb if she threw too many practice balls. She made several visits to one of the nation\u2019s leading hand-injury physicians at Vanderbilt Medical Center. The diagnosis was a rare condition that boiled down to this: she could continue bowling because she could not worsen her condition, but it also would not fade quickly into the Nashville night.<\/p>\n<p>Quah worked to cut her practice time in half, although that caused her to lose her timing. Every once in a while, rolling a bowling ball would send a shock through her entire arm, which created a subconscious fear of when the next jolt would occur. She went from a mainstay in the Vanderbilt bowling lineup to a less frequent substitute.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe most frustrating thing was the timing of the matter,\u201d Quah said. \u201cIf this were earlier in my career or a different time of year, I could recover and come back.\u201d But this was my last couple of months before I graduated \u2026 If I rested, I was done.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Quah has received many honors during her Vanderbilt career. She won the Undergraduate Design Award for an early version of her research at the 2018 Biomedical Engineering Society meeting in Atlanta (\u201cI\u2019ve never had a student win this award,\u201d Professor Grissom said). She is also a member of elite academic honor societies Tau Beta Pi and IEEE-Eta Kappa Nu. She also was a Vanderbilt Undergraduate Littlejohn Summer Research Scholar.<\/p>\n<p>In April, Quah became just the third student-athlete in Vanderbilt history to garner the Boyd. H. McWhorter Award, which is presented annually to the outstanding female student-athlete in the Southeastern Conference. She also repeated as the NCAA Elite 90 Award winner at the NCAA Bowling Championship, which is given to the student-athlete at each championship who boasts the highest grade-point average. A double-major in biomedical and electrical engineering, Quah earned a 3.97 GPA.<\/p>\n<p>On the lanes, Quah was named to nine all-tournament teams in her career, including four as tournament MVP. She was voted the program\u2019s Harry Stoddard Award recipient for her leadership and team contributions, was the 2016 national Rookie of the Year and named All-America three times. Quah helped Vanderbilt win the 2019 NCAA Bowling Championship and finish as NCAA runner-up earlier this spring.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think I most appreciate winning the <em>NCAA Elite 90 Award<\/em>,\u201d Quah said. \u201cThe way the team reacted when they announced my name, that it was an award I\u2019d always heard was next to impossible for a Vanderbilt student to win \u2026That was special.\u00a0 And, of course, last year\u2019s national championship. I\u2019ll never forget that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Quah\u2019s days as a Vanderbilt student-athlete have come to an end, but her legacy as an extraordinary woman of accomplishment on West End will long be remembered.<\/p>\n<h3>Evan Suzman: Men\u2019s Cross Country\/Peabody<\/h3>\n<p>By Zac Ellis<\/p>\n<p>Evan Suzman smiles when asked to reflect on his growth as a student-athlete at Vanderbilt.\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m definitely a lot faster,\u201d Suzman laughs. \u201cI can thank my coaches for that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Suzman, a <a href=\"https:\/\/vucommodores.com\/index.aspx?path=mcross\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">cross country<\/a> runner for the Commodores and a member of the Class of 2019, likes to clear his mind with long, winding runs across campus. Off the course, the native New Yorker is a double major in <a href=\"https:\/\/as.vanderbilt.edu\/history\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">history<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/peabody.vanderbilt.edu\/departments\/psych\/undergraduate_programs\/child_development.php\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">child development<\/a>, with a focus on the history of science.<\/p>\n<p>For Suzman, Vanderbilt\u2019s athletics and academics have offered the perfect combination for his college career.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI really like having something to do, but I also like competing,\u201d he says. \u201cOur team is a really great group of like-minded guys who like to compete and like to win. But we\u2019re all serious about our academics, which is why Vanderbilt is unique. I have friends at other schools who play their sport, and that\u2019s it. Our team here is very passionate about running, but we\u2019re passionate about things outside of school, too.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cOur team is a really great group of like-minded guys who like to compete and like to win. But we\u2019re all serious about our academics, which is why Vanderbilt is unique.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>In addition to his time on the cross country team, Suzman has spent the past two years as a research assistant in the lab of <a href=\"https:\/\/vkc.mc.vanderbilt.edu\/people\/woynaroski-tiffany\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Assistant Professor of Hearing and Speech Sciences Tiffany Woynaroski<\/a> at the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center for Research on Human Development. Suzman has teamed with Woynaroski\u2019s lab to study biobehavioral approaches in neurodevelopmental disorders, specifically focusing on sensory and multisensory processing in individuals with autism.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur research tries to understand how early sensory differences are linked with later communication and language outcomes,\u201d he explains.<\/p>\n<p>As part of his history major, Suzman has studied the intersection of history and technology. His work through an independent study with <a href=\"https:\/\/as.vanderbilt.edu\/history\/bio\/ole-molvig\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ole Molvig<\/a>, assistant professor of history, involved the language of modernity today and its parallels to the Industrial Revolution.<\/p>\n<p>While Suzman has enjoyed his academic work, competing as a Commodore student-athlete added another element to his time in college. He will graduate as a four-time member of the Southeastern Conference Academic Honor Roll, and last fall he clocked a personal-best time of 24:44.1 in the 8K race at the SEC Cross Country Championships in Auburn, Alabama.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI love running,\u201d Suzman says. \u201cIf nothing else, it\u2019s an excuse to spend an hour or two outside every day. You feel uniquely connected to nature that way. A lot of people view cross country very individualistically, but I\u2019ve come to appreciate the team nature of the sport more since being at Vanderbilt.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While graduation will mark the end to Suzman\u2019s athletic career, his time at Vanderbilt remains unfinished. Next fall he begins a master\u2019s program in <a href=\"https:\/\/gradschool.vanderbilt.edu\/postbac\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">biomedical sciences<\/a>, an opportunity to continue his lab work and take another step toward medical school or a Ph.D. program.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAt Vanderbilt, I\u2019ve grown a lot more comfortable in my own skin and grown more interested in subjects I am passionate about,\u201d Suzman says. \u201cPlus, cross country has provided me with a deep sense of camaraderie. It\u2019s a unique kind of friendship that takes place on a team.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>[ad_2]<br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"http:\/\/feedproxy.google.com\/~r\/vanderbilt-video\/~3\/Rgb77GuuOxU\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[ad_1] Video by Zack Eagles For this installment of the student-athlete series, we take a look at three graduating seniors. Fernanda Contreras: Women\u2019s Tennis\/Engineering By Zac Ellis Fernanda Contreras grew up as a kid knee-deep in a pile of LEGOs in her living room. Now, as the Vanderbilt tennis senior prepares to graduate with a …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":134033,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[20735,97967,92254,97968,97969,92257,33496,814,92980,49091,92250,92258,97970,5705,92251,92252],"class_list":["post-134032","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tie-world","tag-engineering","tag-evan-suzman","tag-featured-media","tag-fernanda-contreras","tag-kristin-quah","tag-myvu-highlights","tag-nashville","tag-news","tag-peabody-college","tag-research","tag-social-stories","tag-student-athlete-campaign","tag-student-athletes","tag-university","tag-vanderbilt","tag-vanderbilt-university"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134032","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=134032"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134032\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/134033"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=134032"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=134032"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=134032"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
<\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3>Fernanda Contreras: Women\u2019s Tennis\/Engineering<\/h3>\n<p>By Zac Ellis<\/p>\n<p>Fernanda Contreras grew up as a kid knee-deep in a pile of LEGOs in her living room.<\/p>\n<p>Now, as the Vanderbilt <a href=\"https:\/\/vucommodores.com\/index.aspx?path=wten\">tennis<\/a> senior prepares to graduate with a degree in mechanical engineering, Contreras feels her path has come full-circle.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHonestly, after these four years, I feel like I can build anything,\u201d Contreras said.<\/p>\n<p>Contreras, an Austin, Texas native, has also built a remarkable college career during her time on West End. She is a three-time All-American, a top-five singles player in the country and will finish as the vaunted tennis program\u2019s all-time leader in career singles wins. Contreras has helped the Commodores win four SEC championships during her career \u2013 earning MVP honors at 2018 SECs \u2013 and reach the Final Four three times, finishing as NCAA runner-up in 2019.<\/p>\n<p>Off the court, Contreras has thrived as a mechanical engineering major. She has helped design and build robotic circuits as part of a mechatronics class, the kind of experience that helped her decide to attend Vanderbilt in the first place.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn the recruiting process, I would tell coaches I was interested in engineering,\u201d Contreras said. \u201cCoaches would say, \u2018No, you can\u2019t do that. If you want to play tennis, you\u2019ll have to pick something else.\u2019 But when I told Coach [Geoff] Macdonald I wanted to do engineering, he was very excited for me. I knew Vanderbilt was going to work out right then.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cI wanted to put myself in a position that I would have no regrets at the end of my four years at Vanderbilt. I took my chances and opportunities, and I\u2019m happy.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Since then, Contreras has made it a point to get the most out of her Vanderbilt experience. She spent time as a member of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vanderbilt.edu\/studentathletedevelopment\/student-athlete-advisory-committee-beta\/\">Vanderbilt\u2019s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee<\/a>, serving as president as a junior. Contreras has taken part in Vanderbilt Student Government and embarked on service trips abroad, most recently to Morocco last August. She was named \u201cMiss Commodore\u201d for her all-around involvement at Vanderbilt athletics\u2019 annual Golden Dores ball last month.<\/p>\n<p>Macdonald said Contreras has grown immensely during her four years at Vanderbilt.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe has come a long way,\u201d Macdonald said. \u201cThere were a lot of schools who didn\u2019t recruit Fernanda because they thought she was a little too slight and could get overpowered. But she\u2019s proven to be a brilliant tactician and had a great career. She\u2019s quite a remarkable young woman \u2026 You look at what these young people do, it\u2019s amazing. I\u2019m lucky to be here, because you get to offer SEC tennis and a world-class education.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Contreras realized early on the importance of the full student-athlete experience. At Vanderbilt, she told herself, I can have it all. Now, as she prepares for her next chapter as a professional tennis prospect with an elite engineering degree, Contreras said she is thankful for her all-encompassing time at Vanderbilt.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think if you don\u2019t do that, you\u2019re letting yourself down,\u201d Contreras said. \u201cI just explored everything that Vanderbilt had to offer. I took classes I never expected, like theater and other random classes. I joined VSG for a year. Vanderbilt just has so much to offer, it\u2019s insane. I wanted to put myself in a position that I would have no regrets at the end of my four years at Vanderbilt. I took my chances and opportunities, and I\u2019m happy.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3>Kristin Quah: Women\u2019s Bowling\/Engineering<\/h3>\n<p>By Rod Williamson<\/p>\n<p>Vanderbilt graduate and highly decorated Commodore bowler Kristin Quah, who regularly displayed her talents on the lanes, recently represented Vanderbilt among another group of elite talent.<\/p>\n<p>She traveled to Montreal May 15 to present an academic abstract on focused ultrasound (non-invasive surgery) at the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine\u2019s 27<sup>th<\/sup> Annual Meeting and Exhibition \u2013 the world\u2019s largest and most influential meeting of MRI professionals.<\/p>\n<p>While the vast majority of collegiate athletes have had their hands full working toward graduation and giving their all for their sport of choice, Quah worked overtime as a dominating force on Vanderbilt\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/vucommodores.com\/index.aspx?path=wbowl\">nationally prominent bowling team<\/a>, and performed research at Vanderbilt\u2019s renowned medical center.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNon-invasive surgery \u2013 focused ultrasound \u2013 is up and coming,\u201d Quah said, \u201cIt is the ability to apply heat to a very focused part of one\u2019s body without having to make a surgical incision. Surgeons need some kind of visualization and the MRI comes into play because you can get temperature maps from MRIs but the current methods don\u2019t give enough volume coverage. You can only see a single slice so you need to increase the volume and that\u2019s what I\u2019ve been working on.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>This isn\u2019t a topic that comes up between frames on the bowling lanes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe\u2019s the best undergraduate student I\u2019ve ever worked with,\u201d William A. (Will) Grissom, Quah\u2019s academic mentor and an associate professor of biomedical engineering,\u201dsaid bluntly. \u201cShe has the unusual ability to work on open-ended problems and come up with her own solution to technical problems. Most students need solutions spelled out for them, a lot more guidance. Her research is the same thing \u2013 she will try things, trusting her own ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cWhen I first got to school I thought I was going to bowl when I got out; that\u2019s what I wanted to do. But the more I got into school, the more I liked it. Last year, when I started research, I loved it and it\u2019s changed my perspective on how I think of myself, my identity.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Quah will head to Stanford University to perform PhD research on full scholarship next year, perhaps being able to focus solely on academics for the first time after a prolific student-athlete career.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI definitely think I had two lives on this campus,\u201d Quah said. \u201cI joked about it sometimes. A professor would ask me if I could do something and I\u2019d say, \u2018Hold on, I need to check into the other half of my life.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen I first got to school I thought I was going to bowl when I got out; that\u2019s what I wanted to do. But the more I got into school, the more I liked it. Last year, when I started research, I loved it and it\u2019s changed my perspective on how I think of myself, my identity. Now I think they are both fun.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The three-time All-American says each discipline made her better. Academics taught Quah how to logically think through a process, a way to think outside the box. She now understands there is probably a solution out there, and if one way doesn\u2019t work, try another.<\/p>\n<p>Athletics taught Quah life skills such as time management, goal setting and, especially, communication.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen I was younger I really couldn\u2019t communicate,\u201d Quah said. \u201cI didn\u2019t talk a lot. Through bowling and having to work with coaches and teammates it\u2019s made me better. By no means am I great at it \u2014 in fact, I will say communication is one of my weaknesses. But my skills have definitely improved.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It is tempting to assume all the success comes easily to Kristin, and that\u2019s not entirely true. The Singapore native follows the old-school philosophy of early to bed, early to rise and manages to stay well organized.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI usually am up by 6:30 a.m. and get some breakfast,\u201d she said, \u201cand then I do some work until my first class or meeting, which typically is about 8 or 9. I go to bed early, usually asleep by 10. I don\u2019t compromise my sleep.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She tries to keep some room on her agenda for relaxation.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOne of the reasons I like getting up early is so I can have my work done by 8:30 p.m. and have an hour or so at night to do things that relax me. Maybe that\u2019s watching some TV or working on jigsaw puzzles. We have four or five of us that really like puzzles, especially in the fall when we were around more.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Life was almost going too well for Kristin as last fall\u2019s bowling schedule came to a close for the holidays. The Commodores were winning, she had made three all-tournament teams and was leading the Southland Bowling League in 17 of the possible 24 individual categories. That would have put her into the national player of the year conversation and a first-team All-America selection at the very least.<\/p>\n<p>But Quah\u2019s wrist began acting up, and her fingers would go numb if she threw too many practice balls. She made several visits to one of the nation\u2019s leading hand-injury physicians at Vanderbilt Medical Center. The diagnosis was a rare condition that boiled down to this: she could continue bowling because she could not worsen her condition, but it also would not fade quickly into the Nashville night.<\/p>\n<p>Quah worked to cut her practice time in half, although that caused her to lose her timing. Every once in a while, rolling a bowling ball would send a shock through her entire arm, which created a subconscious fear of when the next jolt would occur. She went from a mainstay in the Vanderbilt bowling lineup to a less frequent substitute.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe most frustrating thing was the timing of the matter,\u201d Quah said. \u201cIf this were earlier in my career or a different time of year, I could recover and come back.\u201d But this was my last couple of months before I graduated \u2026 If I rested, I was done.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Quah has received many honors during her Vanderbilt career. She won the Undergraduate Design Award for an early version of her research at the 2018 Biomedical Engineering Society meeting in Atlanta (\u201cI\u2019ve never had a student win this award,\u201d Professor Grissom said). She is also a member of elite academic honor societies Tau Beta Pi and IEEE-Eta Kappa Nu. She also was a Vanderbilt Undergraduate Littlejohn Summer Research Scholar.<\/p>\n<p>In April, Quah became just the third student-athlete in Vanderbilt history to garner the Boyd. H. McWhorter Award, which is presented annually to the outstanding female student-athlete in the Southeastern Conference. She also repeated as the NCAA Elite 90 Award winner at the NCAA Bowling Championship, which is given to the student-athlete at each championship who boasts the highest grade-point average. A double-major in biomedical and electrical engineering, Quah earned a 3.97 GPA.<\/p>\n<p>On the lanes, Quah was named to nine all-tournament teams in her career, including four as tournament MVP. She was voted the program\u2019s Harry Stoddard Award recipient for her leadership and team contributions, was the 2016 national Rookie of the Year and named All-America three times. Quah helped Vanderbilt win the 2019 NCAA Bowling Championship and finish as NCAA runner-up earlier this spring.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think I most appreciate winning the <em>NCAA Elite 90 Award<\/em>,\u201d Quah said. \u201cThe way the team reacted when they announced my name, that it was an award I\u2019d always heard was next to impossible for a Vanderbilt student to win \u2026That was special.\u00a0 And, of course, last year\u2019s national championship. I\u2019ll never forget that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Quah\u2019s days as a Vanderbilt student-athlete have come to an end, but her legacy as an extraordinary woman of accomplishment on West End will long be remembered.<\/p>\n<h3>Evan Suzman: Men\u2019s Cross Country\/Peabody<\/h3>\n<p>By Zac Ellis<\/p>\n<p>Evan Suzman smiles when asked to reflect on his growth as a student-athlete at Vanderbilt.\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m definitely a lot faster,\u201d Suzman laughs. \u201cI can thank my coaches for that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Suzman, a <a href=\"https:\/\/vucommodores.com\/index.aspx?path=mcross\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">cross country<\/a> runner for the Commodores and a member of the Class of 2019, likes to clear his mind with long, winding runs across campus. Off the course, the native New Yorker is a double major in <a href=\"https:\/\/as.vanderbilt.edu\/history\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">history<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/peabody.vanderbilt.edu\/departments\/psych\/undergraduate_programs\/child_development.php\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">child development<\/a>, with a focus on the history of science.<\/p>\n<p>For Suzman, Vanderbilt\u2019s athletics and academics have offered the perfect combination for his college career.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI really like having something to do, but I also like competing,\u201d he says. \u201cOur team is a really great group of like-minded guys who like to compete and like to win. But we\u2019re all serious about our academics, which is why Vanderbilt is unique. I have friends at other schools who play their sport, and that\u2019s it. Our team here is very passionate about running, but we\u2019re passionate about things outside of school, too.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cOur team is a really great group of like-minded guys who like to compete and like to win. But we\u2019re all serious about our academics, which is why Vanderbilt is unique.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>In addition to his time on the cross country team, Suzman has spent the past two years as a research assistant in the lab of <a href=\"https:\/\/vkc.mc.vanderbilt.edu\/people\/woynaroski-tiffany\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Assistant Professor of Hearing and Speech Sciences Tiffany Woynaroski<\/a> at the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center for Research on Human Development. Suzman has teamed with Woynaroski\u2019s lab to study biobehavioral approaches in neurodevelopmental disorders, specifically focusing on sensory and multisensory processing in individuals with autism.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur research tries to understand how early sensory differences are linked with later communication and language outcomes,\u201d he explains.<\/p>\n<p>As part of his history major, Suzman has studied the intersection of history and technology. His work through an independent study with <a href=\"https:\/\/as.vanderbilt.edu\/history\/bio\/ole-molvig\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ole Molvig<\/a>, assistant professor of history, involved the language of modernity today and its parallels to the Industrial Revolution.<\/p>\n<p>While Suzman has enjoyed his academic work, competing as a Commodore student-athlete added another element to his time in college. He will graduate as a four-time member of the Southeastern Conference Academic Honor Roll, and last fall he clocked a personal-best time of 24:44.1 in the 8K race at the SEC Cross Country Championships in Auburn, Alabama.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI love running,\u201d Suzman says. \u201cIf nothing else, it\u2019s an excuse to spend an hour or two outside every day. You feel uniquely connected to nature that way. A lot of people view cross country very individualistically, but I\u2019ve come to appreciate the team nature of the sport more since being at Vanderbilt.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While graduation will mark the end to Suzman\u2019s athletic career, his time at Vanderbilt remains unfinished. Next fall he begins a master\u2019s program in <a href=\"https:\/\/gradschool.vanderbilt.edu\/postbac\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">biomedical sciences<\/a>, an opportunity to continue his lab work and take another step toward medical school or a Ph.D. program.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAt Vanderbilt, I\u2019ve grown a lot more comfortable in my own skin and grown more interested in subjects I am passionate about,\u201d Suzman says. \u201cPlus, cross country has provided me with a deep sense of camaraderie. It\u2019s a unique kind of friendship that takes place on a team.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>[ad_2]<br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"http:\/\/feedproxy.google.com\/~r\/vanderbilt-video\/~3\/Rgb77GuuOxU\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[ad_1] Video by Zack Eagles For this installment of the student-athlete series, we take a look at three graduating seniors. Fernanda Contreras: Women\u2019s Tennis\/Engineering By Zac Ellis Fernanda Contreras grew up as a kid knee-deep in a pile of LEGOs in her living room. Now, as the Vanderbilt tennis senior prepares to graduate with a …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":134033,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[20735,97967,92254,97968,97969,92257,33496,814,92980,49091,92250,92258,97970,5705,92251,92252],"class_list":["post-134032","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tie-world","tag-engineering","tag-evan-suzman","tag-featured-media","tag-fernanda-contreras","tag-kristin-quah","tag-myvu-highlights","tag-nashville","tag-news","tag-peabody-college","tag-research","tag-social-stories","tag-student-athlete-campaign","tag-student-athletes","tag-university","tag-vanderbilt","tag-vanderbilt-university"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134032","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=134032"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134032\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/134033"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=134032"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=134032"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hameed.nwar.uk\/sa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=134032"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}