UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Rachel Blansfield will represent the College of the Liberal Arts as its student marshal for Penn State’s fall commencement on Dec. 17 at the Bryce Jordan Center at Penn State University Park.
The Danville, Pennsylvania native will graduate with a bachelor of science degree in psychology.
During her first year at Penn State, Blansfield received the President's Freshman Award, which ignited her passion for more and encouraged her to take advantage of all opportunities presented to her throughout her three and a half years as an undergraduate.
“I didn't know that there was recognition like this on such a large scale. It motivated me to continue to try hard,” Blansfield said. “I have an intrinsic desire to do well, but there is something about such a large university being able to recognize the students doing really well.”
Penn State’s emphasis on interdisciplinary research was one of the reasons Blansfield decided to attend the University. Getting involved in research was so important to Blansfield, she said, that she interviewed for research labs on her first day on campus.
“I’m thankful that Penn State is so focused on undergraduate research,” she said. “These opportunities have not only been the highlights of my academic career but also things that I am extremely proud of and grateful for.”
Blansfield chose the neuroscience option within the psychology degree after completing research in a clinical lab that allowed her to get hands-on experience in this area.
“I was going in knowing that I wanted to do medicine, but I wanted to focus on the chemical aspects of our brain and understanding how our brain works,” Blansfield said.
Blansfield was admitted to the Schreyer Honors College during her second year, which meant she needed to begin thinking about her thesis sooner rather than later. For her thesis, Blansfield conducted a meta-analysis researching the association between adult attachment style and a therapeutic alliance in a clinical framework.
“For my study, we looked at the relation between adult attachment style, which is based on infant attachment with their primary caregiver and how that manifests itself in future adult relationships, and the therapeutic alliance — a measure of how well the therapist and the client agree on the goals of therapy, the steps they need to take to reach those goals and the bond that they feel towards each other in psychotherapy,” Blansfield said.
Financial support through the Erickson Discovery Grant made focusing on research easier and more accessible. Blansfield presented her findings at Penn State’s Undergraduate Exhibition as well as an international conference in Denver. Her travel expenses to Denver were covered by the College of the Liberal Arts.
“It was a crazy experience because I was meeting and listening to people I had cited in my paper,” Blansfield said. “I wouldn’t have been able to do that without support from the College of the Liberal Arts.”
Blansfield is also grateful for the support she’s received from faculty in the College of the Liberal Arts.
“Working alongside faculty was a unique experience that gave me a huge appreciation for academic research and the academic community,” she said. “Working with Dr. Ken Levy and graduate students Haruka Notsu and Dan Spina on my thesis and with Dr. Alicia Drais-Parrillo has taught me how to conduct research but also how to grow past college, how to work with a team of incredibly intelligent people and how to apply what I've learned in the classroom these past three and a half years.
“This semester, working with Dr. Drais-Parrillo, I feel like I've been able to learn more about managing a team and a project with more agency than I've had previously since this project was conceptualized and designed by myself and three other undergrads.”