Biology major turns early college struggles into research success

PHOTO: Isaac Peterson - back row, second from left - conducted field research in the Amazon Rainforest during the summer of 2025 with faculty from Alvernia University and Georgetown University. 

For Isaac Peterson '27, Alvernia University became the turning point that reshaped both his academic and personal identity. A biology major with a chemistry minor, Peterson arrived at Alvernia after an unsteady start to college, where athletics once defined his sense of purpose.

Though he entered higher education with a baseball commitment and ambitions shaped more by circumstance than passion, injuries and academic struggles forced him to confront a loss of direction early on. What followed was an unexpected rediscovery of purpose through science, mentorship and hands-on research opportunities.

“Growing up, baseball was my identity,” Peterson said. “When that was taken away, I really did not know who I was or what I wanted to do. Coming to Alvernia gave me the space to figure that out.”

At Alvernia, Peterson found inspiration in the classroom through faculty who modeled genuine care for both their disciplines and their students. Courses in genetics and organic chemistry helped him build confidence academically and form meaningful connections beyond athletics. Professors who emphasized curiosity, engagement, and real-world applications played a key role in shifting how he viewed learning and his own potential.

“Professors like Dr. Serapiglia in genetics and Dr. Kremer in organic chemistry set a great example of what it looks like to honestly care about what you teach, and that changed something in me,” said Peterson. “I made my first real friends outside of sports in those classrooms, and I found a path I actually believed in.”

That foundation led Peterson to Jamie Becker, Ph.D.’s microbiology course, where he learned about an international research opportunity to survey microbiota in mineral licks and their potential role as vectors for zoonotic pathogens. The experience ultimately took him to the Amazon Rainforest in the summer of 2025, where he conducted field research alongside faculty from Alvernia and Georgetown University, while working closely with indigenous communities.  

“Hiking through the Amazon, working alongside people I deeply admired, and engaging with the indigenous communities we worked alongside, it remains the proudest thing I have ever done,” Peterson said.

Now a junior preparing to apply to medical school, he is serving as the first author on a methods paper with Becker and Georgetown Professor Brian Griffiths, which is approaching publication. This spring, he also presented his research at the Mengel Natural History Society’s Local Science Students Symposium. In addition to his research, he tutors biology and chemistry, supporting students who may be navigating the same uncertainty he once faced.

“I very much enjoyed working with the Mengel Natural History; it's always a pleasant experience to meet a group of people with so much passion for learning about the world around them,” said Peterson.

He is studying for the MCAT this summer and plans to apply next cycle. He hopes to work as a pulmonary intensivist in an ICU and is interested in contributing to research in the future, recognizing that there are still many unknowns in that field.

“Alvernia did not just give me a second chance,” Peterson said. “It gave me a reason to be in the room in the first place.”