On her way to living her dream

Trine student captures prestigious chemistry award

ANGOLA, Ind. — Her career aspirations started in an unlikely place — in front of the television.

Trine University student Ashley Gossard hopes to someday work in a crime lab — like the one she saw on “CSI.” With her resume, internship experiences and honors, her professors believe that she’ll get there and excel more than she ever thought possible.

Gossard, who will be a senior this fall, was awarded the Outstanding Chemistry/Chemical Engineering Student Scholarship by the Northeastern Indiana section of the American Chemical Society (ACS) this month. The award, which consists of an $800 scholarship, is given annually to a chemistry or chemical engineering junior from schools in the region, including Trine, Manchester College, Huntington University, the University of St. Francis and Indiana University-Purdue University, Fort Wayne.

“Ashley is an excellent student who is very focused on her studies. She has served as a lab assistant and been very active in ACS — she’s really put a lot of life into it,” said Trine professor Ann Benson, Ph.D, who nominated Gossard for the award.

In addition to maintaining a 4.0 grade-point average while majoring in chemistry and forensic science, Gossard has served as president for ACS twice. She has volunteered at various events, including showing children how to chemically carve pumpkins and assisting at the regional science fair.

Gossard currently is interning in a pharmacology and toxicology research lab at the Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis.

“I’m still learning,” Gossard said. “I’m going to be conducting experiments on neurons and seeing what sensitizes them and how to counteract this.”

Her contributions to research could help doctors learn how to control the pain and numbness many cancer patients experience after receiving chemotherapy.

Gossard is a graduate of Franklin Central High School in Indianapolis.