Joshua Anson Ripple

PROFILE: Josh Ripple is not a typical high school dropout. Suffering from mental illness and growing up with two parents with serious illness, he did not have a typical childhood. But in its own way, the struggle with mental illness presented a clear future path for Josh. He hopes to one day become a physician scientist and mental health policy advocate, helping those afflicted with mental illness. After difficulties during high school, Josh obtained his GED, and then moved on to community college. He thrived both in the classroom and in extracurricular activities, including volunteer work with mental health organizations in his native Pennsylvania. A born leader with a strong sense of social involvement, Josh has championed many causes over the years, including working for the rights of Pennsylvania’s Lesbian, Gay and Transgendered population. He has also advocated for increased access to higher education by working with others to create a new community college in his hometown. Josh is most at home in the science labs at Bucknell, where he received the university’s Phi Beta Kappa award for his research in circadian physiology. 

INSPIRATION: Josh’s Bucknell research advisor, Kathleen C. Page, Ph.D., allowed him the freedom to explore ideas while reining him in enough to complete a project. “Her patience and flexibility have allowed me to develop as a scientist,” Josh said.

ASPIRATION: Eventually, Josh would like to fulfill his late mother’s goal of becoming a physician. But while working for his master’s degree before medical school, Josh said: “I need to run a lab.”

MAKING A DIFFERENCE: Before he graduated from Bucknell, Josh completed an honors thesis in neuroscience on a project he designed. Although more data is required for publication in a peer-reviewed journal, he is planning to complete the study. 

ACCOLADES: Josh is the recipient of both the 2008 Summer Research Award, the 2008 and 2009 President’s Award, and the 2010 Neuroscience Award, all from Bucknell. He is a member of the Phi Beta Kappa, Mortar Board, Phi Sigma Honor Societies, and in 2009, he received the Thomas Paine Award for Citizen Journalism from the Central Susquehanna Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union.

INTERESTING FACT: Josh is a serious scientist. There is usually no fooling around in the labs when he’s working. But it might be surprising for those who know him that he’ll add levity to the situation after a long day or night of research by occasionally cracking a “nerdy lab joke.”