CEHS graduate Kiernan Callister committed to research

Kiernan Callister is set to graduate from Utah State University this spring, and her passion for psychology will continue to advance her education.  

“I am graduating with a bachelor of science in psychology and a minor in criminal justice,” Callister said. “What I plan to do is eventually become a professor and do research. I also just committed to a Ph.D. program here as well.” 

Callister grew up in West Jordan, and her decision to attend USU ran in the family. 

“I had a bunch of family that had gone up here before,” Callister said. “I always saw my cool older cousins going to Utah State and thought it would be fun.”  

Like many college students, Callister found starting school meant not completely knowing what to study.  

“I wanted to go into nursing, and this was when the nursing program just barely got up and started so I kind of wanted to get in on it getting off the ground,” Callister said. 

Callister eventually found her calling in psychology and is excited to explore the field further. 

“I honestly remember taking classes leading up to the nursing ones, and I took a psych class and really liked it,” Callister said. “Then I took behavior analysis, it was right after that one, and I fell in love with the behavior analysis stuff, so then I switched.” 

Since 2022, Callister has been working in a lab, and she has worked closely on rat lab experiments and studies. 

“I started in Dr. Amy Odum’s behavior analysis lab in January of 2022 and started a project,” Callister said. “My lab has developed a brand new study on vaping in rats. So I have been on that project for the past two years and had kind of helped run those projects. Through my involvement with that project, I was able to get a second one and evaluated the inclusion of female subjects in our behavior research.” 

Amy Odum has been at USU for 20 years, and along with her research work, she teaches undergraduate and graduate courses. 

“We have been developing a model where rats can vape completely voluntarily, with their nose,” Odum said. “We are getting the data that rats will use this, and they have nicotine in their blood. The part that makes humans and rats vulnerable to vaping is similar. Our goal is to help the Food and Drug Administration regulate e-cigarettes.”  

Odum is thrilled to have Callister back and had high praise for her. 

“Kiernan has been working here for two years, and she is really essential to our grant,” Odum said. “She’s an amazing collaborator, with a lot of energy and vision — very critical to this project and getting this one off the ground. Grateful to have her working with us, always enthusiastic, willing to work. So happy she chose to stay here.”

To Callister and her team, the work they do now is more important than ever for future science.

“The rate of e-cigarettes use has skyrocketed recently and it’s scary because it’s in the youth, like middle school and high schoolers,” Callister said. “That negatively impacts brain development, and a bunch of other health-related aspects of the body.” 

The Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found 2.5 million U.S. middle and high school students reported e-cigarette use in 2022.  

When she isn’t studying or working with rodents, Callister loves the outdoors and living in Logan. 

“We’re big boaters so we went water skiing and went surfing,” Callister said. “I really love going up the canyon and doing hikes — Crimson Trail is my favorite. I love going up to Tony Grove and hiking White Pine or Naomi’s Peak or going and swimming in the lakes or reservoirs around here.” 

As a four-year resident of Cache Valley, Callister has had the full USU experience and credits the student culture for bringing a welcoming environment. 

“I feel like the students here are super kind,” Callister said. “I’ll just run into random people and we’ll sit there and have a random conversation, anywhere on campus. Walking by people, and everybody smiling and happy. I’ve been involved with the criminal justice club and they are also super positive and do cool things; overall, USU has a really good vibe.” 

While she has had a successful four years at USU, Callister also leaves behind some advice for future students to enjoy their time in college. 

“I was just so stressed and anxious about wanting to finish on time, and that is a piece of advice — everyone is on their own timeline,” Callister said. “I was so nervous, trying to get things done that I didn’t take any super fun electives. Not everyone knows what they’re doing — we are all figuring it out and learning as we go.”