Wild Woman: Morgan Widhalm ’17

Hey Collegiettes!  I’m here with my friend and fellow science student, Morgan Widhalm.

What’s your ND introduction?  Got any fun facts?

Hey guys! My name is Morgan Widhalm and, yes, I was named after Morgan Freeman. My mom loved him as an actor (who doesn’t?) and wanted to give her children names that didn’t define them by gender stereotypes. So here I am, cursed to live up to his voice-over prowess! Really though, I’m just a Midwestern girl from Columbia, MO who managed to make my way to Notre Dame! I have the distinct blessing of living in the newly recognized Hall of the Year, Walsh Hall, and have been buoyed up by the #walshlove ever since Frosh-O weekend. I’m now a sophomore, and couldn’t be loving life more.

What’s your major and why did you choose it?

I started my time at Notre Dame as  a Biochem major, then switched to Biology (#orgoprobs), and now I’ve finally found my niche in the newly designed Neuroscience and Behavior major. My journey towards the study of neuroscience had multiple pathways, but two of the most influential were my high school AP Psych and AP Bio courses. In them, I found a true joy in learning and a desire to go to class every day so that I could continue to expand my horizons.

I am fascinated by the interplay of intricate biological machinery and transcendent behavioral traits such as empathy, passion and spirituality. Neuroscience allows me to make that link between the motivations that drive us and the cellular processes that make them happen. In the future, I hope to apply my knowledge and training to the study of music cognition, as I credit music as one of the most formative factors in my life.

The Wedding Singer was my second show with PEMCo, and once you go PEMCo you never go back! These performances allow me to do what I love with the people I love, and what could be better than that? I’d say my favorite moment is tied between two. The first was performing the song ‘Casualty of Love’ and rocking out the angsty dance moves. SUCH fun.

The second would be hitting the final lift after bows on closing night and just looking around, beaming, at my castmates. It hit me – all the work we’d done up to that point, the relationships we’d cultivated, the character decisions we’d made – all of it had come together during that final show and we had given the audience our all. It was a moment of joy and unity that was just so beautiful, as everyone in the theater was brought together around our show.

What advice do you have for prospies considering Notre Dame?

Pray about your decision. God does some amazing work through the people here at Notre Dame, and it is a community that fosters an amazing amount of growth and dialogue. But you have to be prepared to be challenged – to form and defend opinions, to engage in critical self-analysis, and to be open to life-changing experiences. Most of all, you have to be ready to love endlessly, because you will meet people here who will draw you in and become your best friends.

What has been the hardest part of being an ND student, in your experience?

Probably the constant pressure to optimize your life. Every choice has to be perfect, and it has to provide the maximum reward for effort given. We are over-achievers, plain and simple. I must constantly push myself and remind myself to not life live as if I’m racking up points on an achievement board. Instead, I try to focus on each day as a chance to grow as a compassionate, empathetic person and to meaningfully connect and serve the people around me.

What are three things on your bucket list?

3. To challenge myself every day.

2. To never grow tired of learning.

1. To find love and give it all away 

Lastly, describe your personal style!

Definitely thematic. As anyone close to me knows, I love NOTHING more than a good themed day that calls for wearing an over-the-top costume. I have been known to walk around campus all day on Halloween wearing a homemade Peter Pan costume with a fake sword on my hip. I have also been seen wearing a sugar cone from the dining hall as a unicorn horn and prancing about with a face covered in glitter.

I actually have an entire storage bin dedicated to costume pieces and materials that follows me everywhere I go. All these things serve as an outlet for my creativity and allow me to break the boundaries of traditional ‘fashion’. I love the challenge of finding the most creative, resourceful way to express my joy when options are limited to a single theme.

Thanks, Morgan!  

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Images courtesy of interviewee