Sophia is a second year master’s student from Chicago, IL. She is studying the changes in the cell wall composition of cool-season pasture forages and their rumen fermentation properties over the growing season, under the supervision of Dr. Rachel Schendel. In the summer of 2019, she completed an undergraduate research internship in Dr. Schendel’s lab. This research focused on releasing and quantifying feruloylated arabinoxylan oligosaccharides from bourbon spent grains. It was during this time that Sophia realized she had a passion for research. Sophia completes her master’s degree on May 2023 and she is an industrial chemist @ Mérieux NutriSciences.

Interesting fact: Sophia likes concerts, broadway musicals, reading, traveling, and the ocean.