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West Virginia University is sharing updated COVID-19 health and safety guidance as campuses across the WVU System prepare for the start of the 2022-23 academic year and the first day of fall semester classes Aug. 17.

When I was in high school, I took medical assistant classes and loved them. When I came to school, I wanted to be a doctor. I shadowed a doctor and wanted to study biology, but I did not enjoy it. I realized nurses have patient interaction and I really wanted that. There are so many options within nursing — I knew that I could make this choice and enjoy it for the rest of my life.

My grandfather went blind a couple years ago. He's been a farmer for his entire life and never let others help him, but he would let me do things for him. I would sit with him, feed him, and talk to him. Being in the nursing home, I realized I could take care of people and it would make me happy to do that.

Adventure Recreation Management Alumni Spotlight: Melanie Seiler

Melanie Seiler was raised in Fayetteville, West Virginia – the heart of what is now the New River Gorge National Park and Reserve. Growing up around abundant outdoor recreation opportunities, Seiler worked for her family business, Songer Whitewater. She worked as a river manager and began river guiding in 1997 when she was 18, among other duties. When Songer merged with Adventures on the Gorge in 2011, she continued to work in the industry and still guides part-time. When the opportunity came to join Active Southern West Virginia (Active SWV), she combined her love of the outdoors, industry experience and degree in Adventure Recreation Management from WVU Tech to increase the quality of life for local residents through physical activity.

In a joint effort with researchers and the United States military, the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities and Development Command (DEVCOM) and the Civil-Military Innovation Institute (CMI2) awarded the West Virginia University Institute of Technology (WVU Tech) a seed project within the Pathfinder Program. As an initial use-case, WVU Tech will conduct knowledge and discovery tasks critical to building a queryable skillset application concentrating primarily on the novel skills, education, experience, and certifications necessary to complete cybersecurity missions given to the West Virginia Army National Guard (WVARNG). 

Designed to help the Army integrate innovative solutions to real problems into the total force, the Pathfinder program executed by DEVCOM aims to harness the creativity and technical skills of academic and government researchers. WVU Tech is the second West Virginia-based academic institution to receive a subcontract as a part of the Pathfinder program.