Christina Wheeler
“I couldn't have even imagined being in this position three years ago. I struggled with motivation throughout my high school career, eventually finding myself having failed a year in high school and being put into a program for ‘high risk’ students – there would be many people who would be shocked to find that I am the recipient of such a prestigious scholarship.”
- Program: 2011 Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship Recipient
- Resides: Evanston, IL
- Hometown: Evanston, IL
- Age: 22
- Community College: Oakton Community College
- Four-year College or University: Iowa State University
- Academic/Career Pursuits: Arts / Music / Performance, Sciences, Medical Illustrator
- Other Interests: Design, Health Care, Honor Society, Liberal Arts, Literature, Sciences, Tutoring / Mentoring, Visual Arts, Volunteer Work, Reading, Dancing, Crafting, Drawing, Travel, Yoga, Cooking Vegetarian Food, Studying Biology and Anatomy
Biography
Profile: Christina “Tina” Wheeler has chosen a field of study that is in great demand but with few takers. She wants to be a medical illustrator – a combination scientist and artist – and a valuable person to physicians and researchers alike. Tina constantly has to pinch herself that she has done so well academically. A marginal student in high school, she just wasn’t motivated to succeed. Community college was her salvation, graduating with near perfect GPA. But it was towards the end of her high school days when she realized she had a knack for drawing medical pictures and said many of her friends were surprised that she found such a well-matched career. “I suppose I was just lucky. One day in my Health class in high school, I idly copied a picture from the cover of a book onto a piece of notebook paper. It was a drawing of the muscles of the human face. Most of my friends thought it was creepy, but I was pretty enamored with it. I showed it to my friend's mother, and she asked me if I had ever heard of medical illustration.” And the rest is history. With more research, Tina fell in love with the field and it’s on to
Inspiration: Her mother was always there for both Tina and her younger brother. “My mother always supported me and truly believed that I would be a success. She believed that I was smart, talented, and that I had the ability to take on the world, and in the end, that's what really inspired me.” At Oakton CC there were many people who helped chang Tina’s life for the better, “but as I only have to name one person, it would have to be Ruth Williams, my assigned STEM mentor...she has been incredibly supportive and inspiring over these past two years, and is a fantastic teacher.
Aspiration: To become a professional medical illustrator.
Making a Difference: During her last year at Oakton CC, Tina worked as a peer facilitator for the “Biology for Science Majors” course. She worked with the BIO 121 professor to create active learning based activities to assist students with the course material and used this opportunity to develop her leadership skills.
Accolades: Tina was a member of the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society for three semesters and was the recipient of the STEM Program’s APEX Scholarship.
Interesting Fact: She responded to the Foundation’s question this way: “Honestly, I don't have anything good out of context. People who meet me tell me I'm extremely interesting and surprising in general, so if you really want to know…talk to me!”
Other Scholars Like Christina
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Gruia Badescu
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University of Colorado at Boulder