High Atlas Foundation Final Internship Reflection

This is a CISLA final internship reflection for my time at the High Atlas Foundation. This internship took place in the Summer of 2025 in Marrakech, Morocco. This report details what I have learned from my internship and how it will apply to my future education and professional career

Pilgrimage on the Appalachian Trail through Christopher Newport University

This paper is about the course I took through Christopher Newport University backpacking two weeks on the Appalachian Trail. With new and experienced hikers, we collaborated as a class, relying on each other to learn about the hiking world

Expeditors International of Washington Inc. - Distribution Operations Agent

A reflection paper on my summer internship with Expeditors International of Washington Inc. I gained practical exposure to the logistics and supply chain side of business operations. This experience gave me a solid foundation in supply chain management while also helping me grow personally and professionally

SSRI Internship Reflection

This is a reflection about the research internship I did through the SSRI program this Summer at Conn with the Autonomous Agents Learning Lab. It describes a few of the challenges and things I learned throughout the internship

Sex Differences in the Effects of Caffeine and Methylphenidate on a Rat Model of ADHD

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a common neurodevelopmental disorder that affects more than 6.5 million children and 15.5 million adults in the US (Danielson, et al., 2024; Staley, et al., 2023). One medication for ADHD is methylphenidate (MPH), a psychostimulant that increases dopamine (DA). Caffeine (CAF) is a more accessible psychostimulant that has unclear effects on ADHD (Perrotte, et al., 2023). To study the effects of CAF and MPH on ADHD, this study utilized a rat model of ADHD called the Spontaneously Hypertensive Rat (SHR). Rats underwent Barnes Maze testing for Working Memory (WM), Long-Term Memory (LTM), and hyperactivity. It was hypothesized that animals exposed to MPH would perform better on all measures of memory and demonstrate reduced hyperactivity than the CAF group, which in turn would perform better than the saline-exposed group (SAL). For WM, during reversal learning, female (F) rats performed consistently better on WM, and the male (M) CAF and M MPH groups performed better than the M SAL group. For LTM, animals treated with CAF performed the worst during learning, but a pattern following the hypothesis (MPH better than CAF, which was better than SAL) was shown in reversal learning. In the probes, the only differences were by sex, where the males performed better than the females, and the M SAL group performed better than both the M CAF and M MPH groups in reversal learning. For hyperactivity, F SAL and F CAF groups were more hyperactive than M SAL and M CAF, but M MPH was more hyperactive than the F MPH group. Overall, this indicates that sex differences are critical when using SHRs as models of ADHD. In addition, MPH increased hyperactivity instead of reducing it like in humans. Future studies should use caution when applying research using SHRs to both females and males if they do not examine sex differences

Philadelphia Insurance Companies Insurance Operations- Data Strategy Intern Reflection

During the summer of 2025, I completed a ten-week internship with Philadelphia Insurance Companies in the Insurance Operations–Data Strategy department, working on the Product Factory team. This experience exposed me to the inner workings of a commercial insurance company and provided both technical and professional growth opportunities. I developed skills in platforms such as Azure DevOps, PATH, Salesforce, and Duck Creek while contributing to tasks including business rule input, workflow optimization, and underwriting support. Beyond technical work, I collaborated with fellow interns on a project presented to the company’s board of directors, where I strengthened my leadership, communication, and organizational abilities. I also learned to adapt during challenges, such as a full cyber outage, which required flexibility and cross-team support. My liberal arts education at Connecticut College prepared me well for this role by fostering time management, collaboration, and critical thinking. Overall, the internship confirmed my interest in data strategy and highlighted the importance of adaptability, networking, and professional growth in a corporate environment

Kennebec Valley Community Action Program Internship

This paper illustrates my experience interning at one of my local non-profits in Waterville, Maine. Kennebec Valley Community Action Program (KVCAP) exposed me to the behind the scenes work that occurs in non-profits when engaging in fundraising. Topics discussed included affordable housing, transportation services in rural communities, and access to affordable supplies for underserved families

Legal Intern at Mayer Brown

This reflection provides an overview of my 4-week legal internship at Mayer Brown\u27s New York office. This experience provided both personal and professional growth. Through networking and preparation, I was able to secure this internship. I gained first-hand experience with the demands and culture of Big Law, and it allowed me to solidify my decision to pursue law school. The internship provided me with experience in engaging with substantive legal work, observing client-driven decision-making, and collaborating with attorneys across various practice groups

Understanding the Impact of Chronic Stress in Cocaine Addiction: How Stress influences the Behavior and Biology of Addiction?

Cocaine addiction is a chronic relapsing disorder influenced by both neurobiological and environmental factors, including stress. This study investigated the impact of stress-induced corticosterone elevation on the expression of key dopaminergic signaling components involved in cocaine reward: dopamine receptors D1 and D2, dopamine transporter (DAT), and protein kinase A (PKA) in a rat model. Using a conditioned place preference (CPP) paradigm, male rats were divided into four groups: non-stressed control, stressed control, non-stressed CPP, and stressed CPP. Stress was induced using 2,5-dihydro-2,4,5-trimethylthiazoline (TMT), a predator odor. Following behavioral testing, nucleus accumbens (NAc) tissue was collected from each side of the brain with one hemisphere analyzed by quantitative PCR and the other reserved for protein-level analysis. PCR results revealed a marked increase in D1 receptor mRNA expression in the stressed groups, with the stressed CPP group exhibiting the highest levels, however, this change was not statistically significant. D2 receptor expression, on the other hand, showed lower expression in the stressed-cocaine group compared to stressed or-unstressed control. DAT and PKA expressions did not follow a consistent pattern. Coomassie staining was performed to assess protein levels but did not show specificity among proteins D1, D2 and DAT. These findings suggest that stress may potentiate the neurobiological response to cocaine by changing the expression of receptors in the dopamine pathway