Marlei DeVore expected to attend the Rogers Explorers program this summer to learn more about physics.
She came out of the experience with a newfound interest in nursing.
“I thought that physics would have been my favorite, but it turned out to be my least favorite,” DeVore said. “I didn’t expect to like nursing at all, but it was my favorite class.”
DeVore, who is heading into her freshman year at Russell County High School, attended the program at Union College from June 27-29. When representatives from Rogers Explorers came and spoke at Russell County Middle School, DeVore was immediately interested for the “math and science of it” and the fact that it was STEM-based (STEM is an acronym for the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics).
She put Union in the top three choices she hoped to attend, in particular because physics was among the four classes offered there, along with nursing, criminal science investigation, and painting my hometown.
The fact that nursing was her favorite class came as a bit of a surprise, to say the least.
“Rogers Explorers was a lot of fun,” DeVore said. “Nursing was my favorite because we got to practice putting in NG tubes on dummies and giving injections.
“In the nursing room, they had a ‘sim’ man and ‘sim’ mom. The sim man could do all kinds of things: it could scream like it was hurt and change heartbeat patterns. The mom could [simulate] giving birth, although we didn’t get to see that.”
While nursing was her favorite subject during the three-day program, her most memorable experience at Rogers Explorers was playing the “Mafia” card game. The game is focused on assigning the various players secret roles and deception, with the goal of avoiding elimination while taking out the opposition.
“At the end of the day, we would all come downstairs and play Mafia,” DeVore said. “You get a card and that determines your role, and I made a lot of new friends doing that.”
While she made “a lot” of friends overall, she became really close to two fellow Rogers Explorers, one of which was from Nancy.
She said she also enjoyed the experience of getting a small sampling of what college life might be like and hopes to apply for the Rogers Scholars program during her sophomore year.
“There were 15-20 girls and only five showers, so it was really chaotic at times,” said DeVore, who also noted this was her first experience like this. “I really liked my roommate, though, so that made it easier.
“It was a fun experience overall.”
Marlei is the daughter of Jeric and Davene DeVore.
The Rogers Explorers program is an intensive three-day, two-night program focused on cultivating skills in leadership, technology, math, science, and community service. It is developed, coordinated, and supervised by The Center for Rural Development in partnership with University of the Cumberlands, Lindsey Wilson College, Eastern Kentucky University, Morehead State University, Asbury University, University of Pikeville, and Union College.
Stories for all four Russell County students who attended Rogers Explorers — DeVore, Ella Pierce, Laila Hammond, and Asa Woodcock — will be featured on The County Line in the coming days.
