Trippe Discovers Passion for Helping Others as Grad Student, RISE Mentor

Cassandra Thomas

Karis Trippe

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Growing up, Karis Trippe's father always told her she was going to become a teacher, a prediction that she has steadfastly denied — at least, until she began attending graduate school at the U of A.

After serving as a mentor for incoming graduate students at the U of A, the doctoral electrical engineering student has discovered a passion for helping others that has redirected her career path.

"I love the whole process of helping somebody learn something, combined with being in a space that I'm really comfortable in and trying to make it become comfortable for other people," she said. "It's made me consider the possibility of becoming a professor."

Trippe is a mentor in the Razorgrad Institute for Success and Engagement (RISE) Program offered through the Graduate School and International Education, which seeks to ease the transition to graduate school for students, particularly those who are first-generation graduate students. Trippe meets one-on-one with students in the program, in addition to helping facilitate events for the RISE community.

"The one-on-one mentoring is really just answering all the normal questions people may have starting graduate school, but they may not know who to go to," Trippe said. "I'm just the first person a student can sit down with and say, 'This is where I'm at with my grades; what's a good path forward?' I may not have all the answers, but I can try to point them in the right direction."

But other times, it's simply being a sounding board for graduate students. Trippe recalled her meetings with an international graduate student who was trying to get visas for his family to come to the U.S.

"Obviously, I can't do anything to help with a visa process, but the student would tell me that it's just really nice to have someone to talk to — not to solve a problem necessarily, but just have someone built in who can be a listening ear."

As an undergraduate at John Brown University, Trippe benefited from a strong undergraduate culture. She saw mentoring at the U of A as an opportunity to help a population that is sometimes misunderstood and in need of a community of fellow students.

"I think sometimes graduate students fall through the cracks a little bit," she said. "There's an assumption that graduate students know what they're doing more than undergraduates. People assume graduate students will find things on their own, but I find there's a lot of graduate students looking for community and trying to find those naturally."

"The culture in my research lab is great," she continued. "We spend a lot of time together and hang out outside of work. I wanted to help create that same culture at a graduate school level."

More information on the RISE Program be found on the GSIE website.