Rachel Borgen

Much like Northfield, I grew up in the small town of Red Wing, Minnesota. Coming from a conservative area, I have continuously seen and experienced the stigmatization and shame associated with mental illness and mental well-being. As an individual who has struggled with my own mental health, I was driven to pursue a career in psychology to help facilitate positive and honest conversations about this topic. In addition to a major in psychology, I have been a psychology supplemental instructor for two years. And through that work and facilitating discussion with students, I have seen and felt like many of my students, the struggle of being a marginalized student in a STEM field. Many of these students feel as though their struggles and concerns are not heard. As part of the Natural Science and Mathematics Student Action Team, I hope to elevate the voices and concerns of inequity in the department. Issues of mental health, inequity, exclusion, and marginalization need to be recognized in the classroom, but also in the external academic support provided to students. I look forward to working and conversing with faculty, students, and the natural science and math department to foster diversity and inclusion in St. Olaf Academia.