By: Athletic Communications Graduate Assistant Hailey Owens '21
Baldwin Wallace University All-Ohio Athletic Conference and Academic All-Ohio Athletic Conference women’s cross country and track and field distance runner Alyssa Laughner (Howard, Pa./Central Mountain) not only takes passion on the course but in her studies.
During the summer of 2021, Laughner, who is double majoring in biology and neuroscience, served as an undergraduate group intern counselor with the Cleveland Clinic in its summer treatment program for children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
As a part of the summer program, Laughner interacted with children by using daily behavioral intervention such as social skills, physical activities, and creative projects. The children also learned about core activities of reading, writing, and math as if it were a typical school day. Each day started around nine o’clock in the morning and ended at five o’clock in the evening.
“I enjoyed the multitasking part of the program, it was definitely really hard,” said Laughner.
“You are working with a group of 9-10 year old’s, and they can say some of funniest and craziest things, but you are expected not to react and help them stick to the treatment plan. The plan including teaching social skills while also doing behavioral treatment plans. The program featured a token system in which a child could earn or lose tokens by their behavior that was beneficial or detrimental to the child’s treatment plan.
Laughner was able to find this internship through her former Yellow Jacket cross country teammate who also participated in the same internship years prior.
“Earlier in my academic career, I was mostly interested in biology and was not so much interested in psychology.” Laughner mentioned. “Once I started getting interested in the psychology side of things, I started to ask my former teammate, Bella Pendola '19 more about the internship and she was able to help me apply.”
Due to COVID-19, Laughner was unable to get any prior work experience in the field. She applied for the same program in 2020 but it was canceled. However, the waiting paid off as she was able to gain the clinical experience, she needed to start applying to graduate schools.
“I was designing clinical programs for my two primary kids aside from the basic behavioral treatment plans,” stated Laughner. “I collected data and conducted research from the findings of the clinicals programs which provided me the ability gain research and clinical experience at the same time.”
After the summer program, Laughner discovered she had other interests within her field that lead her to the disorder part of psychology. It wasn’t until after her senior thesis and working in the biology department doing research that she learned that she was interested in biology but more the psychology side.
“My goal is to do clinical psychology and work in therapy and assessment for my career,” Laughner commented. “I found my passion for this area as I developed a relationship with the kids as I was designing their clinical programs and behavioral treatment plans.”
Laughner is not only passionate about her future but about her athletic career for the Yellow Jackets. She has excelled on the cross country course and the track. During her career, Laugher is a six-time All-Ohio Athletic Conference runner (two for cross country and four for track and field), five-time All-Great Lakes Region Selection (two for cross country and three for track and field), four-time Academic All-Ohio Athletic Conference performer (two for cross country and two for track and field), three-time Ohio Athletic Conference Cross Country Runner of the Week (two for cross country and one for track and field), and 2021 Ohio Athletic Conference Outdoor Track and Field Distance Athlete of the Year.
She credits her success both in the classroom and in running to her teammates.
As she nears the end of her time year at BW, Laughner perceives graduate school and her goal of earning a Doctor of Philosophy or a master’s degree in social work, although unsure of what discipline yet. One thing she is certain of is that she wants to experience the rewarding feeling of helping others.