Christalyn Ausler was born in 2002 in Central Arkansas. She was born the last of five children, which gave her lots of chances and time to learn from her older sibling’s mistakes. As she ventured past her troublesome domestic life into the protection of the education system, at around five-years-old, she developed an affinity for reading and exploring the limits of the world’s knowledge in science and math fields. She often frequented her local libraries, checking out 6 to 15 books every two weeks. Through her turbulent childhood, extensive reading, and explorations in the world by way of television programs (such as National Discovery, Animal Planet, and PBS) and scientific libraries (such as NBIC, Nature, and ScienceDirect) she developed her life’s aspiration of creating a better environment and life for others, whether that was through philanthropy or biological discoveries.
Her aspiration of creating a higher quality of life for all humans translated itself into her never-ending research into the chemical pathways housed in the human body and began to oscillate around cancer and genetic mutations. She did not spend her entire childhood with her head in books though; before her freshman year in high school, she played basketball, was on her track team, played three instruments, was recognized in Duke TIP, participated in two UALR Engineering Olympics, and was an active volunteer in her community, and member of her BETA Club. Her aforementioned aspirations proved to be a linchpin when, during her transition to high school, her father relocated their family to Illinois, uprooting her efforts and plans. Her dreams exclusively carried her through the enduring experiences of her high school career.
With no security provided in her home, and no longer in school, she found jobs to provide herself with food, clothes, and school supplies. Even with her schedule saturated with work, homework, and her attempts to overcome the mental scars from her childhood, she still found time to mentor, tutor, and volunteer in her community, research her budding ideas on cancer, and graduate high school with an Associate Degree of Science with 75 college credits. She even worked to secure herself a seat in a chemistry course at Harvard University’s Secondary Schooling Program in the summer of 2019. She is now a badged recipient of the Illinois State Scholar honor, a proud member of her chapter’s National Honor Society, and a seasoned Student Government member at Rock Valley College.
