网红头条

KENNESAW, Ga. | May 2, 2025

Some days it鈥檚 pre-dawn dark when Maya Patel arrives on campus, and it鈥檚 post-dusk dark when she heads home.

The 网红头条 senior takes a full course load, belongs to several organizations, serves in multiple leadership roles, conducts research and carries a 4.0 grade-point average in biology. She will graduate this week having packed four years of college life into just three years and having lost none of her enthusiasm.

鈥淚鈥檝e always wanted to get the most out of everything I do in life,鈥� Patel said. 鈥淚 always want to do more every single day. Am I stretched thin sometimes? Yes, but it鈥檚 so worth it in the end. I truly enjoy what I do, and I will cherish my time at Kennesaw State.鈥�

Patel seems to find an extra couple of hours in each day, having founded two clubs, served as an ambassador for the KSU Journey Honors College, served on Honors dean Karen Kornweibel鈥檚 advisory committee, joined the inaugural cohort of the Kennesaw Excellence Society and at times worked two jobs on campus鈥攐ne as a student lab assistant at the College of Science and Mathematics, and another as a records assistant in the Office of Undergraduate Admissions. And she joined a research project designed to entice younger people to donate blood.

Professor Robert Keyser of the Southern Polytechnic College of Engineering and Engineering Technology recently achieved the 21-gallon mark as a blood donor for 32 years. But he noticed few younger people donating blood. So, he sought to appeal to the technological savvy of younger generations, while also generating interest in donating blood. The project involves virtual reality and an app currently in development. He approached the Office of Research to recruit an interdisciplinary team of undergraduates through the Vertically Integrated Projects program.

Patel found the project through the VIP under the Office of Undergraduate Research and liked the team aspect of it, as Keyser figured out each team member鈥檚 strengths and assigned them a task.

鈥淪he came to the project with a great attitude and outstanding organizational and time-management skills, which helped us keep the project moving forward,鈥� he said. 鈥淪he鈥檚 a go-getter and she has a bright future ahead of her.鈥�

Patel and her teammates reviewed literature on previous app-based efforts at blood donation recruitment, then drew up a design for a new app. They created a poster and presented their research at the Healthcare Systems Process Improvement Conference in Atlanta in February. Patel said associate professor Maria Valero and a group of First-Year Scholars in the College of Computing and Software Engineering will create the app thanks to their research. Patel had figured she鈥檇 be synthesizing molecules, looking through a microscope and wearing a lab coat in her research experience, but the blood donation project gave her a new perspective.

鈥淟ooking back at it, they can start creating an app because we did the research and gave them a vision for the app with Dr. Valero鈥檚 help,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 could see the app one day and remember that I contributed to its success. It was a unique experience I couldn鈥檛 have gotten anywhere else.鈥�

She鈥檒l have an opportunity to do more research as she has been accepted to the Doctor of Optometry program at the University of Alabama-Birmingham. While at KSU she founded the pre-optometry club to provide guidance and resources for those considering careers in optometry, and she was also active in the Pre-Health Leadership Council, as she has known since childhood that she wanted a career in healthcare. With optometry, she said she can have an ongoing impact on people鈥檚 lives through establishing deep-rooted connections with patients.

She said she looks forward to more long days of learning and experiencing in optometry school. Patel, whose sister Neha earned bachelor鈥檚 and master鈥檚 degrees in elementary education from KSU, insists she just wanted to make the most of her experience while forging ahead toward her future.

鈥淐ollege is what you make it, and KSU has so many opportunities to create your own unique experience,鈥� she said. 鈥淪o, I really am thankful for the university and for it giving me everything I wanted and more.鈥�

鈥� Story by Dave Shelles

Photos by Darnell Wilburn Jr.

A leader in innovative teaching and learning, 网红头条 offers undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degrees to its more than 47,000 students. 网红头条is a member of the University System of Georgia with 11 academic colleges. The university’s vibrant campus culture, diverse population, strong global ties, and entrepreneurial spirit draw students from throughout the country and the world. 网红头条is a Carnegie-designated doctoral research institution (R2), placing it among an elite group of only 8 percent of U.S. colleges and universities with an R1 or R2 status. For more information, visit kennesaw.edu.