From left, Olivia Hodgson, a junior Environmental Science major, Dr. Sam Nutile, assistant professor of biology, and Dr. Adam Simpson, assistant teaching professor of biology.
When you see her long list of activities and accomplishments, you may think junior Environmental Science major Olivia Hodgson is one of those rare, gifted students cruising right along on a combination of endless energy, superb organizational skills, picture-perfect memory, and charisma.
Hodgson is vice president of Greener Behrend, a Schreyer Honors scholar, director of communications for the Alternative Spring Break program, vice president of the Behrend Honors Student Association, and a peer tutor in the Learning Resource Center.
The reality, though, is more complex. She has Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, an autoimmune disease.
“It’s a chronic condition that is challenging to live with at times,” Hodgson said. “It affects my sleep, energy, and memory.”
And, yet, in November, Hodgson won first place in the undergraduate student poster presentation at the Regional Science Consortium’s 17th Annual Research Symposium in Erie for her work with Dr. Sam Nutile, assistant professor of biology, evaluating polychlorinated biphenyls (non-biodegradable industrial compounds) in the tissues of Lake Erie fish to estimate possible dietary exposure to humans who consume them.
“It was a long semester, and I was very tired the day that I presented, so winning first place really made me feel that my hard work was acknowledged,” she said. “I work hard and I’m proud of what I have accomplished.”
It’s a labor of love for Hodgson, who is also minoring in Chemistry and Biology. “I chose my major because I have always loved the outdoors, and I picked my minors because they were my favorite subjects in high school,” she said. “Environmental Science is a way to bring it all together.”
Between her classes, studying, and club activities, she is also working on her Schreyer Honors project extracting organic pesticides from the soil and sediment from locations around campus. “I hope to be able to find a relationship between chemicals and the teratogenesis (malformed limbs) we have been seeing in some salamanders in the area,” Hodgson said.
Despite her full slate of commitments, Hodgson makes time to help others. “I’m passionate about kindness, and it’s important to me to serve a cause greater than myself,” she said.
To that end, she offers this advice to fellow students, but especially to first-year students: Take your mental health seriously.
“College is hard and you’re going to be faced with a lot of stress and new challenges, so it’s important to manage that stress and anxiety,” Hodgson said.
“Get enough sleep, eat healthy food as much as possible, make time for some exercise every day, pick up an easy hobby that relaxes you, and take advantage of the college’s Personal Counseling office! It’s free and they want to help you be successful. If you take care of your mental health, your physical health and grades will improve, too.”