Double-COE Alum Continues to Pursue Her Passions for Hockey and Science In Post-Grad Program at Ohio State University

In May, Clair DeGeorge ’17 graduated from Bemidji State University with a nursing degree after a successful Beaver Hockey career where she was named a WCHA Scholar Athlete and selected for the WCHA All-Academic Team. This fall, she will continue to pursue the two passions she first explored in-depth at Shattuck-St. Mary’s School, attending Ohio State University to finish her final year of hockey eligibility and earn a Masters of Bioethics degree.

At SSM, Clair was a well-accomplished student-athlete from Anchorage, Alaska, participating in not one, but two of our Center of Excellence (COE) programs: BioScience and Hockey. She was a part of the Cum Laude Society and participated in lacrosse during her four years at SSM. In her senior year she was awarded the Agerter Science Award, Charles B. “Bud” Wilkinson Award, and the Kramer Cup. All these accomplishments demonstrate her commitment to her education, athletics, community, and school.

Clair said her interest in bioethics came from her time spent with Dr. Maren LaLiberty and the BioScience program at SSM. She recalled all the interesting debates they had about the ethical dilemmas that have risen in healthcare as a result of major medical advancements. And, ever since then, she has taken a liking to learning about how to properly investigate these controversies.

Clair’s hope to one day work for Mayo Clinic was inspired by field trips she took to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota as a student at SSM.

“The research being conducted there blew my mind. They truly pave the way for future medical technology, and I would love nothing more than to be able to help in that process,” she said about Mayo. Further into the future, she aspires to become either a Neonatal Nurse Practitioner or Nurse Anesthetist, both of which require a lot of organization and critical thinking—two things she prides herself in.

The additional obstacles Clair faced during her final two years of college were newsworthy in and of themselves, as she adjusted and demonstrated flexibility due to the pandemic. She faced these challenges head-on, becoming one of the 130 BSU nursing students who became COVID-19 Case Investigators to support the Minnesota Department of Health in contact tracing. The program, featured in the BSU Magazine, helped fulfill an important public health need and helped nursing students’ meet clinical experience requirements when student access at clinics was limited.

To read more about Clair’s journey, check out Bemidji State University’s Students to Watch!