I am a fourth year PhD candidate in the Chemistry & Chemical Biology department at RPI. I graduated from The College of Saint Rose with a Bachelor’s Degree in Chemistry in 2019 and thus, have been a member of the RPI community since fall 2019 (pre-pandemic days). Surviving the pandemic certainly wasn’t easy, but it was possible through the support of my peers and faculty as well as the adaptive nature of all of us here at RPI. Being part of Rensselaer gives me an immense feeling of pride and fulfillment. Our institution is full of bright minds in various avenues of scientific and engineering research—which only helps to broaden my own horizons when pursuing my particular chemistry-related research. RPI’s motto mentions, “why not change the world?” As each day passes, I feel that I come a step closer to achieving that goal through my work here at RPI.