Christian Shannon is not your ordinary camp counselor nor, for that matter, your ordinary
college student. When most college
students are spending their summers
on vacation or returning home to be with
their parents, Shannon is spending his
summers at a camp, helping young kids
with life-threatening conditions.
He is among a prestigious group of
students accepted into the STEM Path
to the MBA program at The University
of Alabama and Culverhouse College of
Commerce. The STEM Path is a unique
program that provides students majoring
in science, technology, engineering
and math the opportunity to earn their
undergraduate degrees in four years
and an MBA with one additional year of
study. Only the best and brightest have
been accepted into the program since its
inception in 2011.
Shannon is majoring in chemical
engineering major. His passion lies in
pediatric medicine and fighting cancer.
“If you go back and actually look at
entries in journals from when I was in
kindergarten, I told people I wanted to
be in Harvard medical school, and that’s
when I was 5 years old. So it's been
a passion for a while,” Shannon says
with a smile.
Shannon was on one of three UA STEM
Path to the MBA teams to compete in the
Avon Breast Cancer Startup Challenge in
2014. All three teams from UA were the
only undergraduates competing in the
event. Teams from universities across
the globe were presented the opportunity
to start new companies by developing a
10-page strategic business plan for one
of 10 selected diagnostic or treatment
technologies projects and then turn
their invention into a commercially
marketed product.
Shannon spent his last two summers
volunteering at Camp John Marc, a camp
for kids 6 to 18 years of age, in a remote
area of Texas. Not just anyone can
become a counselor at this camp. There
is a rigorous screening process, and
Shannon was selected from a large pool
of applicants to be an activity director.
He later received a scholarship for his
outstanding performance at camp.
“It was fairly late in our hiring
season when Christian contacted us.
But we interviewed him and we were
impressed with his accomplishments at
The University of Alabama that showed
his good character and work ethic. His
answers regarding his sister who has
special needs showed his empathy factor.
These, along with shades of a sense of
humor, are what led me to think Christian
would fit well into our program and be
a team player,” says Vance Gilmore,
camp director.
Camp John Marc is for children and
teens who, because of their medical
diagnosis, would not be able to go to
camp anywhere else. Many of them have
been diagnosed with a life-threatening
illness or have had a traumatic,
life-changing injury.
“You just give them the best time
they can possibly have because for a lot
of them, we’re told they will not be back
next year because of their afflictions,”
Shannon says.
FIRE IN MY
BELLY
STEM PATH TO THE MBA STUDENT FINDS HIS PASSION AT SUMMER CAMP
BY EDITH PARTEN
