member of charter class becomes one of lakehead orillia's first graduate 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛

by kathy hunt, communications officer, 阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜 orillia

(mar. 29, 2012 - orillia) debbie balika not only has the distinction of being a member of lakehead orillia's charter class, but as a graduate student, she represents the most enduring student at the orillia campus. balika, of barrie, ont. is enrolled in the master of science in biology program, along with sheri o'connor. they represent the first graduate 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 at the campus.

like o'connor, balika came to lakehead with the intention of becoming a school teacher, but along the way, both 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 took advantage of opportunities that led to their current status as grad 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 . as balika says, "i just seem to keep walking through open doors; as lakehead opens them, i walk through them."

before enrolling at lakehead when the orillia campus opened six years ago, balika worked as a pharmacy technician in a retail environment. "i found myself a single parent and needed to change my career," explained balika. with two young children, she found that working in retail was a challenge.

realizing that she needed further education, balika enrolled at georgian college with the goal of becoming an educational assistant. it was during her first co-op placement that the first in a series of "open doors" began to emerge.

"my supervisor at georgian had graduated from lakehead in thunder bay and knew about the opening of the orillia campus. she encouraged me to pursue my degree and become a teacher - i followed her advice!"

following her third year at lakehead, balika applied for and accepted a summer position as a researcher with the department of interdisciplinary studies/biology. she worked as part of a team of eight 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 who worked with professors sree kurissery and nanda kanavillil on a number of projects related to water quality.

kurissery, who is balika's master's supervisor, could see the potential in balika as an academic researcher and teacher right away. "debbie was highly committed and dedicated to her projects and naturally took on a leadership role with the group," kurissery noted. "in her second summer with us, she was outstanding as a mentor to the junior 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 - this mentorship ability is important in an academic setting."

following her research experience, balika knew she wanted to continue her studies in biology. "everything made sense that summer," balika said. "i have always loved the outdoors and now i felt that i could help look after our environment, not only from a recreational point of view, but from a research perspective."

balika expressed her interest to kurissery, thinking that it wouldn't be possible to pursue her master's at lakehead in orillia. "too bad i couldn't do a master's degree here," she said, and kurissery responded with, "oh, but you can!"

another door opened and balika entered. following her graduation from lakehead in 2011 with an honours bachelor of arts & science/bachelor of education, balika embarked on her master of science in biology studies.

lakehead university graduate student, debbie balika, showcases her research on the water quality of lake simcoe.

the topic of balika's master's thesis is related to one of the projects she worked on as a summer researcher, which focused on the ecology of biofilms.

"my study focuses on the monitoring of inland water qualities," balika explains. to conduct her research, balika collects attached microalgae by suspending glass slides and small pieces of rocks into the water at three sampling sites along the shores of northern lake simcoe. she then examines the organisms under a microscope in order to identify the microalgae. her findings will lead to further investigation of the changes in water quality.

balika's research supports what many biologists feel is an important ecological approach to monitoring water quality. "we can't simply depend on chemical analysis of water samples and then design clean-up strategies," says balika. "by examining a number of indicators (such as attached microalgae), we are able to initiate management strategies before major problems occur."

with her research well underway, balika is grateful for the opportunities provided to her at lakehead. "i feel lucky to be here," she says. "i have received so much support here, from day one - from my professors, fellow 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 and staff."

balika admits that as a mature student, going back to school can be intimidating. "it was especially encouraging to discover supportive professors who are so good at guiding and pushing me to be better. most of the professors at lakehead are like this; they help you to be the best student you can be."

she adds, "they say it takes a village to raise a child; it takes a lakehead village to raise a graduate student."

while working hard right now as a grad student, balika's research is likely just the beginning of her contributions to the scientific community, to a more sustainable environment, and to future 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 . with her success to date, there will certainly be many more doors opening to welcome her enthusiasm, knowledge and expertise.

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kathy hunt is the communications officer at lakehead's orillia campus and can be reached at kjhunt3@lakeheadu.ca.