You have probably seen her walking from Roger Bacon to the library with a Starbucks cup in her hand or outside on the quad conducting research. She is ambitious, caring, and always has a smile on her face. Kate Ackert, also known as “Squirrel Girl,” is this week’s campus celebrity.
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Instagram Handle: @kathleenackert
Twitter: @quirky_kate
Major: Biology
Minors: Health services, Franciscan service and advocacy, and chemistry
Favorite Quote: “Invest in experiences, not stuff.”
Hometown: Manhasset, New York
Class Year: 2016
Favorite Show: Bones
Favorite Food: Anything that comes out of my grandma’s kitchen.
Favorite Drink: Coffee
Fun Fact: I take flying trapeze lessons and was in a trapeze show this past summer (check out the link below to see Kate in her trapeze show)!Â
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AP7OhrN2nRI&feature=youtu.be Â
HC: Favorite Siena professor?
Kate: “Dr. Stephanie Vernooy. I have had her for four different classes, Gen Bio labs 1&2, Scientific Writing, and Genetics. She is so passionate about everything that she teaches, which really shines through her lectures. She makes class so interesting… even when it’s at 8 am! You can tell that she really cares about the success of her students inside and outside of the classroom. Plus she has a great sense of humor! I’m convinced she calls her kids the F1 generation. Just go read the science jokes she has posted outside of her office and you’ll understand.”
HC: What are you involved in on campus?
Kate: “I got involved with research the spring semester of my sophomore year. I was looking at the effects different compliances have on the whole-body mechanics of squirrels. Essentially, looking at how the body mechanics of squirrels change in response to different compliances (how bouncy something is). The first year of research, we had squirrels jumping off a mini diving board in my lab. These past few summers I have been filming outside to see if they do the same thing in the field as they do in the lab.”
“I am the secretary of the biochem club, so I am the one who takes care of the emails and reaches out to different organizations. I am also in the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. I had two articles published in the blog this summer, The Substrate. I am also a member of the biology club on campus.”Â
“I have gone to South Africa twice with the Franciscan center, I studied abroad in Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands, and I am a Teaching Assistant for an Organic Chemistry lab.”
HC: What are your goals for senior year?
Kate: “I want to make the most of my last year of college by taking elective classes that I am interested in, such as Spanish and Molecular Biology as well as enjoying every second with my friends. Once I graduate, I am hoping to get into medical school or graduate school. Also, as an avid coffee lover, I plan on making the most of the on campus Starbucks.”
 HC: What was your study abroad experience like?
Kate: “I studied in Quito, Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands in the spring semester of my junior year. It was one of the best experiences of my life. I met so many people, I learned how to speak Spanish (kind of). I also had the opportunity to learn a ton about ecology and marine biology. I could honestly talk about my experience for days, but let’s just end with the fact that my school was across from the beach and I got to go scuba diving with hammerhead sharks.”
HC: What is your best memory at Siena so far?
Kate: ” My two summers that I spent here for summer research because I met so many people, I got to explore Albany more because I didn’t have as much work and I got to play with squirrels all day!”
HC: Who is your celebrity role model?
Kate:  “Jen Arnold, she has skeletal dysplasia, she’s only 3’2 and I think it’s so amazing how her height and cancer hasn’t stopped her from being an amazing mother, doctor, and all-around person.”