Kari D. Michaelian

Why did you choose Dalton State? It is close to home, so I still get to be with my family. Also, Dalton State’s vigorous education challenges you to study and greatly increases your knowledge as a student.

What does it mean to you to be part of the Roadrunner Nation? I definitely enjoy walking through campus and knowing that all of the students are on the same college journey I am. We may be going in different directions, but we each share the status of being a Dalton State student. Faces become familiar, and it’s always nice to get to know people that you may never have a class with but pass each other almost every day. However, the connection to the school does not end when I leave campus each day. I enjoy driving down the road and seeing someone with a Dalton State sticker on the back of their car. Although I may not know the person inside, I feel connected to them because we go to the same college.

What do you plan to do after graduation? After graduation, I would like to get a job doing something I enjoy, and then in the Fall of 2020 enter into the medical laboratory technician program at Dalton State. My end goal is to be a medical laboratory technician in a hospital. Who knows though; God may give me a job I enjoy so much that I decide I do not want to go back to school and do the MLT program. I just want His will for my life, and wherever that takes me after graduation, or before, I am okay with.

Who is/was your favorite professor and why? Dr. James Adams taught my Anatomy and Physiology I and II classes, and I loved them! He teaches the material efficiently and provides an enthusiastic environment. I recommend him to anyone. Dr. Adams certainly thrives as a teacher, and he does whatever he can to ensure his students understand the material. 

What activities are you involved in on campus? To be honest, I am not very involved in anything. I would like to be but have never taken the initiative. I did, however, go to my first meeting of the Chemistry Society last week.

What are some of your biggest achievements or accomplishments at Dalton State? I enjoy being on the Dean’s list quite often. It’s a nice “pat on the back” at the end of a hard semester.

What are some of your favorite activities in and around Dalton? I do not do much in Dalton besides attend Dalton State, but I love its proximity to Chattanooga. The area near the Hunter Museum is absolutely beautiful, especially through the garden by the river.

Where is your favorite study spot? Peeples Hall on the 3^rd floor. It is quiet (compared to the first floor) and close to my professors should I need help with homework.

What is your best memory so far as part of the Roadrunner Nation? Getting to know the students and making new friends.

Favorite comfort food? Cereal

What do you feel most proud of? Having a relationship with Jesus

If you could only keep five possessions, what would they be? My Bible, yoga pants (and a shirt, obviously), my kitty cat, and French vanilla cappuccino mix (I like the Folger’s brand).

If you won the lottery, what would you do? Tithe 10 percent to my church, keep enough to where I would be financially secure, set some aside for my kids (who do not exist yet), and give the rest to orphanages and missionary organizations.

What is a skill you’d like to learn and why? I would love to learn how to play the grand piano. I believe the piano is a beautiful and graceful instrument, and I would love to be able to sit down and know how to play one.

What cheers you up? Reading my Bible and listening to music.

Who is your hero? Jesus Christ. Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrated His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”  (NASB translation)

What is your favorite childhood memory? My favorite childhood memory still occurs today. I love spending time with my family while sitting around the dinner table, not just at meals either. The dinner table provides the perfect environment to talk to one another. There’s no television getting in the way. You’re able to face one another and spend quality time communicating with each other.

What is your favorite app? The Blue Letter Bible app. If you ever come across a word you don’t know, you can click on it to see the definition of the word in the context of how it was meant in the original Hebrew or Greek language. It also contains commentaries for a deeper understanding. There is an easy to use search tool. You can highlight, underline, and make notes.

Where is your favorite place to eat? Longhorn. I love the bread and the wild west shrimp. I put some tabasco sauce on the shrimp, then dip them in a little bit of ranch. It’s so yummy!

What did you want to be when you were a kid? A police officer. The movie The Santa Clause, had me under the impression that cops just ate doughnuts all day. It sounded like a very good career choice to my 5-year-old mind! 

As a Roadrunner, what does it mean to Run Boldly? To face whatever challenges that may come. To run means to endure, to not cower at anything. Hebrews 12:1-2 (NASB translation) says, “Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” With God on my side, I don’t have to run boldly alone.

To run boldly, particularly in college, is much more than studying to get an A in a class. College is meant to increase your education, but it goes beyond an increase in your IQ level. It provides an opportunity to grow in character, to practice social skills, and to make you well-versed in several different areas of life: whether in history, literature, art, or science. The good thing about learning these things in college rather than at a job is you cannot get fired from a class because you did something wrong. College is meant to be a time of learning. However, you can’t learn if you’re too busy turning away to other things because they’re easier. College is not meant to be easy. Thus, you must run boldly and face whatever challenges come.