Get To Know Me! by Samantha Ferraro

Hi! My name is Sam Ferraro and I recently graduated from Roxborough High School. While at Roxborough, I did all the stereotypical nerd activities. I was a tutor, student ambassador, captain of the debate team among other equally nerdy activities. When I wasn’t doing academic extracurriculars, I spent my time working or on the field. For over a year and a half, throughout the entirety of the pandemic, I worked at a grocery store as a cashier and eventually I worked my way up to running the front end. I absolutely despise working in customer service but I learned a lot about leadership and time management while I was there. After essentially bossing around cashiers by telling them what register to work on, I would go home and practice. During high school, I was a 4-season athlete playing soccer, basketball, softball, and lacrosse.  While I was never MVP or even remotely stellar, I had fun competing and loved being a part of a team. At first, I didn’t even like softball, I just played because I wanted to hang out with my friends and they needed more girls. It definitely wasn’t my brightest move adding another sport in addition to my already heavy workload but it all worked out in the end. ​

During my time at Roxborough, I participated in the biotechnology pathway. Biotechnology is the science of using living organisms and technology for the betterment of human life and development. Over the course of three years, I was introduced to a variety of topics that piqued my interest and sparked a curiosity in me. One of those topics was disease transmission and zoonotic diseases, which is fitting given the current predicament we are all in. Despite my (relatively) recent interest in diseases, I have always had an interest in a variety of different sub disciplines in science, even before I knew what exactly it was I was so enamored with. As a child, I always loved science - for Christmas all I wanted was kiddie lab kits and junior microscopes. I would test how much water it took to turn dirt to mud and beg my mom to let me do a volcano experiment I saw on T.V. in her kitchen. The answer was always no and in order to placate me she would let me sit on the porch far past my bedtime to watch the stars. 
I am so excited to be back in the lab after a year and a half of being at home. Like all of my fellow TRIP-mates I’m itching to start this program and (hopefully) begin my research career. The day after our symposium I will be flying to Los Angeles to study Environmental Science and Health at the University of Southern California.