John Abernethy is originally from Hickory, NC. He attended the NC School of Science and Mathematics in Durham, NC and graduated with a B.S. in Biology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2007. After graduating, he worked as a laboratory technician in Lillie Searles' molecular biology lab for four years, and is credited with authorship on one paper (studying Drosophila melanogaster), with another expected to be published in 2012. John first observed genetic counseling through shadowing prenatal and adult genetic counselors at UNC-CH hospitals, and also worked for two summers as a camp counselor for children ages 8-18. This summer, John completed a pediatric rotation at Duke University, and had the chance to observe and counsel in a variety of different clinics including 22q11 Deletion, Down syndrome, Metabolic and Connective Tissue Disorder clinics. He also had the opportunity to attend a two-day internship with Myriad Genetic Laboratory in Salt Lake City, UT. John's rotations during his senior year include cancer genetics in Greenville, SC, pediatric genetics at the Greenwood Genetic Center in Columbia, prenatal genetics in Charleston, and a final rotation in Asheville, NC. His thesis examines differences in client-counselor rapport between male and female genetic counselors and clients.

Darcy Berry grew up in Dunedin, Florida, a small town near Tampa. She graduated with University Honors from Miami of Ohio University in 2011 with a B.S. in Zoology and a minor in Neuroscience. During college she was able to study abroad in Luxembourg for a semester and participate in genetic research projects on campus where she learned to amplify and analyze DNA. She also worked at Cincinnati Children's Hospital in the Division of Human Genetics where she had to opportunity to observe multiple genetic counseling clinics. As well, she volunteered with the Butler County Rape Crisis program and taught Sunday school at her local church. Since she began graduate school, Darcy has volunteered with several organizations that help special needs communities. Over the past summer, she completed a six-week rotation performing cancer genetic counseling at the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, FL. This year, she will complete four more rotations at Greenwood’s Genetic Center in Greenville, USC’s Specialty Clinics in Columbia, Carolina’s Medical Center in Charlotte, and the Medical College of Georgia. She will also complete her thesis which studies how genetic counselors prioritize cultural competence in clinic.

Ginger Edwardsen is originally from Charlotte, NC and graduated from North Carolina State University with a B.S. in Microbiology and a minor in Genetics in 2009, as well as, a Master of Genetics in 2011.  During her time at NCSU, Ginger was involved in residence life for three years, was an ambassador for the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, and conducted research in a microbiology lab.  As a graduate student at NC State, she worked as a teaching assistant for the introductory genetics course while earning a Certificate of Accomplishment in Teaching.  In order to gain experience, Ginger completed an eight month genetic counseling internship at Duke University Medical Center's Department of Pediatrics in Durham, NC. Ginger is currently working on her thesis which explores the use of social media as a support network in families that have a child with Down syndrome, trisomy 13, and trisomy 18. She completed her summer clinical rotation in prenatal genetics at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, NC. Her upcoming rotations include a pediatric rotation at Carolinas Medical Center, a prenatal rotation at the Medical University of South Carolina, a cancer rotation at Carolinas Medical Center, and a rotation at the University of South Carolina Specialty Clinics.

Kim Hamann grew up in Florence, Kentucky and graduated from Thomas More College with a B.A. in Biology and an A.A. in Sociology. Kim's first advocacy experience was volunteering for Planned Parenthood at the Clermont Center and the Mary M. Yeiser Center in Cincinnati. She then shadowed pediatric genetic counselors at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center both in clinic and laboratory. After graduating, Kim spent a year in Gainesville, Florida. There she gained experience as a laboratory technician in University of Florida's Pharmacology lab and volunteered for genetic counselors at Shand's Cancer Center.  This summer Kim completed a pediatric rotation at Greenwood Genetic Center in Columbia.  She looks forward to her upcoming rotations, which include cancer at Carolinas Medical Center, pediatrics at Greenville Hospital Systems, and prenatal at USC.  She is currently engaged in a thesis project that explores the decision-making process of pregnant women who were offered non-invasive prenatal testing during genetic counseling.

Cassandra Hollinger grew up in Acworth, GA, and graduated with a B.S. in Biology with certificates in Social/Personality Psychology and Biomolecular Technology from Georgia Institute of Technology in May 2010. While Cassandra was at Georgia Tech she was a member of Beta Beta Beta, the Biological Honor Society, and Gamma Beta Phi, an honor and service organization. She also marched as part of the Georgia Tech Colorguard for two years and helped freshman adjust to life at college by being a Team Leader in the introductory GT1000 freshman course. Cassandra also volunteered at the Cobb Pregnancy Resource Center in Kennesaw, GA, and had an internship with the Emory Department of Human Genetics in Atlanta, GA. During her internship she shadowed counselors that were a part of Emory's Lysosomal Storage Disease Center and helped to facilitate counselor research.  She is currently working on her thesis which is looking at the unique perspectives of parents that are raising children with and without PKU.  Her summer rotation in pediatrics was completed in Morgantown, WV at West Virginia University School of Medicine.  Her rotations during the year will include prenatal at University of South Carolina Specialty Clinics, cancer at Charlotte Medical Center, pediatrics at Medical College of Georgia, and a final rotation at Greenwood Genetic Center in Greenville, SC.

Stephen White graduated from Iowa State University in 2010 with a B.S. in Biology. Afterwards, he moved to Columbia, SC to further develop skills that would be needed after acceptance into a genetic counseling program. He received training as an advocate for Sexual Trauma Services of the Midlands to accompany survivors of sexual assault at the hospital while providing support and information. Stephen and his wife, Rachel, have been involved with respite cooperative through Family Connection since the summer of 2010 and both actively participate at Riverbend Community Church. Stephen completed his summer rotation at the Genetics Center at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin and found a great appreciation for pediatric genetics. He is excited for his genetic counseling opportunities during his second year in the USC Genetic Counseling Program and enjoys learning “on the job”. Stephen has a keen interest in the counseling of adult-onset neurodegenerative disorders and is writing his Master’s thesis about the shared themes amongst the genetic counselors that see patients at risk for these conditions.

Kristen Everton is originally from Fort Lauderdale, Florida.  She attended Wingate University in North Carolina and received her B.S. in Biology in 2009.  Kristen also received a Masters in Molecular Biosciences from Washington State University in 2011.  While attending Wingate University, Kristen was a member of the Honor Society, the Biology and Chemistry club.  Along with tutoring students in Genetics and Organic Chemistry, for several semesters she participated in lab work studying population genetics (microsatellites) of the invasive, red imported fire ant (Solenopsis invicta).  Additionally, in the summer of 2007, she spent ten weeks in Washington, DC, on an internship sponsored by the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities.  During this internship, she worked with a microbiologist at the Food and Drug Administration studying the food born bacteria Cronobacter sakazakii.  As a graduate student, she completed research looking at the amount of genetic damage caused by cryopreservation in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) sperm and was a TA for Biology, Genetics, and Microbiology.   After completing her graduate studies, in an effort to help her on her path to becoming a Genetic Counselor, Kristen volunteered with Planned Parenthood and Odyssey Youth center, an LGBT organization located in Spokane, Washington.  

Andrew Gunter is from the small town of Graniteville, SC, and graduated from Clemson University in 2011 with a B.S. in Genetics and a B.A. in Biological Sciences with a minor in French.  As a student at Clemson, Andrew was involved in several organizations, including the national biological honor society Beta Beta Beta, the French Club, la Table Française, the Clemson Collegiate Sertoma Club, and the Biochemistry and Genetics Club.  His interest in French also pushed him towards an opportunity to spend a summer abroad in Paris, France, to study firsthand the language and culture; he spent another summer working with a church plant in Myrtle Beach, SC.  Throughout his undergraduate career, Andrew gained clinical experience in a variety of settings:  as a medical research assistant at the Medical College of Georgia, as a volunteer with a private practice clinic and with a clinic for the underprivileged, and as a volunteer for Mental Health America of Greenville County.  After graduating from Clemson, Andrew was blessed to serve as an intern at Crosspoint Church in Clemson, SC, working in the college ministry and overseeing member assimilation.  While at Crosspoint, Andrew was also able to volunteer at and observe the genetic counselors and physicians of Greenwood Genetic Center’s clinic in Greenville, SC.  Andrew is thrilled to be in Columbia now and considers it a true joy to begin his career as a genetic counselor through his studies at USC!

Kate Harfe grew up on the seacoast of New Hampshire and southern Maine and graduated from Dartmouth College with an A.B. in Biology in 1992.  She later moved to Atlanta, GA to attend Emory University's graduate program in Genetics and Molecular Biology. Since earning a Ph.D. at Emory in 2000, Kate has worked in several basic and clinical genetic research settings, including work on reconstructing transcriptional pathways using Affymetrix GeneChip technology; Neurofibromatosis mutational analysis; and analysis of a familial skeletal dysplasia due to translocational disruption of SOX9 gene regulation (Am J Hum Genet. 2005 Apr; 76(4):663-71).  She most recently spent several years as a Clinical Studies Coordinator at the University of Florida, working with individuals and families with Pompe Disease, a recessive lysosomal glycogen storage disease, and other Muscular Dystrophies, reinforcing her long-held desire to become a Genetic Counselor.  In her non-academic life, Kate is a NASM-certified personal trainer, a nationally-qualified NPC Figure athlete, Mom to 5-year-old twin boys and an occasional backup singer for her Dad.

Julianna Hudnall is originally from Fairfield, Texas. She graduated from Texas A&M University with a B.S. in Genetics and a minor in Anthropology (with an emphasis on Biological Anthropology). During her time at A&M, she began working in Dr. David Peterson’s biochemistry lab. To her delight, she was granted a research position there, and completed a project on RPB9, which encodes a small nonessential subunit of yeast RNA polymerase. She became trained in crisis counseling, and volunteered to counsel mothers of premature babies. In addition, she has some experience with high school level special education classes, and now enjoys volunteering with Family Connections. Julianna was also able to shadow genetic counselors in Houston, TX. She feels very fortunate to be a part of this program here in South Carolina!

Sarah King is from the small town of Wolcottville, IN.  She graduated from Indiana University with a Bachelors of Arts Degree in both Biology and Psychology as well as a minor in Business Marketing.  While at Indiana, Sarah volunteered at Volunteers in Medicine, a free medical clinic for those 200% or below the poverty line.   While volunteering, she gained experience with patients, medical records, and various health professionals.  She also volunteered as an afterschool tutor for children who had experienced domestic abuse.  She continued to tutor for students through Psi Chi, which is an International Psychology Honor Society.  Sarah served as a research assistant in Linda Smith’s Cognitive Development Laboratory working with children who have Autism and then in an Ecology Laboratory as well.  To familiarize herself with the profession, she contacted many Genetic Counselors and met with three to discuss their careers.  Sarah was an active member in Kappa Delta Sorority and on the Indiana University Equestrian Team (Hunt Seat).    

Brittanie Morris is from Houston, Texas.  She graduated with honors from Howard University in 2012 with a B.S. in Biology and a minor in Chemistry.  During her undergraduate years, Brittanie was a member of the Thomas B. Smith Biological Society and the National Society of Collegiate Scholars, and is a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society.  While living in Washington, DC, Brittanie served as a volunteer youth mentor and tutor at Bell-Lincoln Multicultural School and at MentoringWorks2, an afterschool outreach program.  She also volunteered for awareness events such as the DC AIDS Walk.   Whenever she visits her hometown, Brittanie is a lifelong member of the choir and dance team at Gloryland Missionary Baptist Church.  To gain experience, Brittanie interned at the Genetic Counseling department of the Florida Hospital Cancer Institute in Orlando, FL, where she was exposed to cancer genetic counseling and the logistics of developing a genetic counseling clinic.  While in Orlando, she also volunteered in the Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory at Florida Hospital.

Hannah Warren is originally from Lexington, SC and graduated from Clemson University in 2012 with a B.A. in Biological Sciences and a minor in Psychology.  During college she worked as an undergraduate lab technician in a molecular genetics lab studying the melanocortin 4 receptor gene and its possible correlation to obesity in humans.  She received an HHMI/SC Life international research grant that allowed her spend a summer abroad to continue her work in Vancouver, British Columbia.  Hannah became involved with volunteering for the Special Olympics in high school and shadowed prenatal counselors in Greenville, SC during her time at Clemson in order to gain genetic counseling experience.