Meet Rachel Pauley ’13!

 

Rachel Pauley ’13 has been an active member of the St. Olaf community since her first year. She was the first altos’ section leader for the Manitou Choir, a freshman cabaret soloist and had vocal training. During her sophomore year, she was a floor representative for Hall Council, worked at the Pause, got involved in Sophomore Leadership Institute (SLI), worked at the institutional research and evaluation center, initiated trauma simulations through the Mayo Clinic and worked with a doctor at the Mayo Clinic over Interim. Additionally, during her junior year Rachel was an RA, and, as a senior now, she is the vice president of Rand Hall, treasurer of St. Olaf Cancer Connections (SCC) and a team captain for Relay For Life. She has continued her research at the Mayo Clinic for the past two summers, primarily focusing on cancer and genetics. On top of all of that, she has also participated in inter-mural sports, including broomball, soccer and volleyball. All of her experiences with and involvement in the St. Olaf campus community have left her with fond memories and have prepared her well for when she begins medical school next semester.

 

Although Rachel has gained valuable skills and relationships in each of these clubs and organizations, she will always be most grateful for the SCC. “All my grandparents have had cancer, two of whom passed away from it,” Rachel says. “The St. Olaf Cancer Connections created an incredibly supportive community at a critical time for me. My grandfather passed away two weeks after he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer my sophomore year, which was the first year I was involved in the organization and Relay For Life. RFL and SCC took on a whole new meaning for me after his passing, and it also allowed me to connect with him on a deeper level in his final moments. He knew of RFL and the funds we were generating in his name because I had formed a team in honor of him. Every year it allows me to take time out of my schedule to remember him and the time we spent together.”

 

Being an RA her junior year also formed into the meaningful experience Rachel was hoping for. “I wanted to be a big sister for girls on campus, knowing that I had various connections with faculty and administration. I was very informed about how the campus works,” she says. “I also have had a lot of training with conflict mediation.” Unfortunately, in the beginning, Rachel had to deal with only one aspect of the job, one she wasn’t particularly interested in: “I had to deal with a lot of alcohol violations. I knew this was a part of the job, but it prevented growth in relationships and I didn’t feel like the job encompassed everything I wanted it to be. However, once the girls knew that I wanted to be there to make things better for them, then I was able to become the ‘big sister’ role that I intentionally sought out.”

 

Rachel will also miss doing trauma simulations when she graduates (which simulate mass casualty events caused by warfare, national emergencies, or weather). The trauma simulations stem from a program that she participated in while working with a doctor at the Mayo Clinic. Eventually, she was able to provide a connection between the Mayo Clinic and St. Olaf through the simulations. “I brought a few students down to Mayo to see the simulations when I started them sophomore year, and I was also able to bring physicians to campus to perform them as well,” she says.

 

Rachel will always have a soft spot in her heart for St. Olaf, but the fast approaching reality of graduation is bitter sweet: “I am excited to move on and continue my pursuit of my final career, but at the same time I can’t see myself leaving. I feel so comfortable here and I’ve made so many wonderful friendships, especially in inter-mural soccer. It is a conglomeration of international students that I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to meet had I not done soccer,” she says. “It will be hard to compete with my experience at St. Olaf. People get so caught up in working on school and finalizing plans for graduation that it is easy to ignore the little things that make this campus so wonderful. There’s always that one person that sings on their way to class, which is obnoxious, but I know I will miss it. There’s seeing people rush to buy Friday flowers. Seeing alumni on campus.” Most of all? “I will never forget waking up to the smell of malt-o-meal.”