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Passionate about medicine, Waterford grad to pursue physician assistant career

By Kristen Hainkel 3 min read

WATERFORD -- Waterford High School graduate Shelby Wagner is passionate about medicine and helping others.

"During my lifetime, my goal is to one day provide quality medical care for the Mid-Ohio Valley because I have received support from my local community for years and want to return the favor through my love of medicine," she said.

Wagner, 18, graduated this spring as valedictorian of her class and said she maintained a 4.0 GPA throughout high school.

She also took college credits through Washington State Community College, including medical terminology, American government, macroeconomics, college algebra, psychology, trigonometry, composition I and II, statistics, calculus, quantitative reasoning and Spanish.

"The main reason I took these classes is for the challenge college courses provide and to earn college credits in high school," she said.

Wagner said her favorite subjects were world and American history, algebra, and biology.

Along with her rigorous academic schedule, Wagner participated in multiple extracurricular activities such as vice president of Student Council, Key Club, Spanish Club and Phi Theta Kappa honor society.

She also was a member of the basketball team for three years and was the team statistician for her senior year, a four-year captain of the volleyball team and member of the softball team.

She volunteers with the Oncology unit at Belpre Medical Center through Memorial Health System.

"Our goal is to provide comfort to a wide variety of cancer patients through kindness and support," Wagner said.

Wagner said she enjoys volunteering.

"I love to volunteer because of the impact I can make on my small community. Through small jobs to year-long projects, volunteer work improves schools, parks, hospitals, and much more to support a flourishing community," she said.

Wagner will attend Marietta College in the fall and study health science with a minor in leadership studies through the McDonough Leadership Program. She will participate in the Direct Admissions Physician Assistant Program as well.

"I will be majoring in Health Science because of my love for science and medicine. It's also a great major for any student interested in becoming a physician assistant," she said.

When not in school or volunteering, she likes to read from her huge stack of books at home in order to learn about new cultures. Long term, she said she hopes to gain more knowledge by traveling to different places.

"I also have an ambition for traveling the globe and exploring the world's unique cultures," she said.

Kristen Hainkel can be contacted at khainkel@newsandsentinel.com.

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