After five years of rewarding, sometimes stressful, sometimes arduous, but never overwhelming study, we have both graduated from the University of North Texas summa cum laude with honors. Ian obtained a Bachelor of Arts in German, music and philosophy, with minors in political science and Spanish, and Lisa one in chemistry and psychology, as well as a Bachelor of Science in biology with a minor in Spanish. As we prepare to make a major transition in our life together, we would like to share with you some of our experiences during our undergraduate career, as well as our plans for the future.
Neither of us began at UNT. Ian started as a classical guitar performance major with a full scholarship at Southeastern University in Hammond, Louisiana; Lisa, as a neuroscience major at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas. After one week of school, however, Ian woke up one morning to find that a major hurricane (that is, Katrina) was fast approaching. He promptly evacuated, and, after a few days of uncertainty about the school's fate, decided to enroll at UNT, only thirty miles away from TCU. We are fortunate to be able to say that Katrina, which was devastating for many, actually ended up bringing us together again. One year later, Lisa elected to exchange prestige for lower tuition and greater opportunities afforded by a large public university, and transferred to UNT.
When Ian injured his hand a couple years later, he reconsidered pursuing a career as a musician and enrolled in a variety of courses in which he had been interested but never thought he had the time to take. He was pleasantly surprised to find that attending classes in philosophy and political science enabled him to discuss the questions about which he had always pondered. He still enjoys music and appreciated getting to study the theoretical and historical aspects of music at UNT, but is pleased with his new career path. While at UNT, Ian worked closely with many professors on subjects ranging from medieval Jewish thought, to modern German philosophy, to the degree to which the mind is involved in activities like walking down stairs or playing basketball. He taught as a guitar instructor at a nearby K-12 private school, and as a German Lab instructor at UNT. Over the past year, Ian has presented a few papers at conferences; published in the UNT Honors journal; translated an essay from German with a professor of his, which will be published in a book next year; and written an undergraduate thesis.
Along with the usual pre-med curriculum, Lisa also took courses in psychology and did research in a neuroscience lab. Though initially encouraged by the prospect of pursuing a career as a researcher/physician, she decided that spending forty hours a week in a laboratory was not for her. Her experience on a medical mission trip in Mexico reconfirmed that what she really wanted to do was help people one-on-one. For the past two years she has had the perfect job as a scribe for emergency room physicians in Fort Worth and Denton. She follows physicians to each patient's room, and records the history of the present illness and physical exam. She is also responsible for updating the doctors with incoming test results. She has even gotten to put her Spanish skills to use, serving as an interpreter for Spanish-speaking patients. One of the greatest, unexpected parts of this job is the benefit to the physicians and the patients. In addition to everything Lisa gets to learn and see, the doctors are able to see more patients without the worries of having a legally-defensible medical record (thus enabling them to earn more money . . .), and the patients don't have to wait as long. More than just taking notes, Lisa is relied upon by the doctors to keep them informed and on task. They even occasionally ask her directly, "What should we do next?"
Together, we have had some wonderful experiences since we were married two years ago, the greatest of which was by far our trip to Europe. Last summer we spent ten weeks there, first in Spain through a UNT study abroad program, second as tourists in Paris, and finally as students at a language institute in Germany. Lisa was at times stressed-out with having to fill out many applications to medical schools, when all she wanted to do was study languages, meet interesting people and see the sites. Fortunately she was able to do both, and it was certainly the trip of a lifetime.
Ian would soon be able to relate as he went through his own application process in the fall. We sometimes worried that we would not be accepted to schools in the same city, but we were patient and trusted that God had a plan for us. We both ended up being accepted to many of the schools to which we applied, and have elected to move to Chicago. Ian will begin work towards a Ph.D. in Philosophy at DePaul University, earning an M.A. along the way. Lisa will attend Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine. We signed the lease for our new apartment last week and will be moving in July!
We are sincerely grateful for all the help we have received over the years. Thank you for your continued love and support.
