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Teen of the Week: Adalynn Allen wants to study to become a pathologist

By Sophie Wheeler 4 min read

Adalynn Allen, 17, of Frontier High School, is working toward her associate’s degree in science as a full-time student at Washington State of Ohio College which she expects to complete in May.

After graduating, she plans to attend Kent State University to pursue a bachelor's degree in biology in the pre-med route, then attend medical school to become a pathologist.

"I've always wanted to be in the medical field, and I've always been interested in being in the lab," she said.

Allen learned about pathology during her summer internship at Marietta Memorial Hospital in 2025. She said pathologists are the doctors who analyze all the samples taken in the hospital and are often referred to as "the doctor's doctor." She was fascinated with the study of diseases and analyzing different cells and tissue under a microscope and distinguishing differences from normal to abnormal. She said she hopes to help find cures or expand research on diseases.

With the amount of school work she has, Allen said she keeps a strict schedule. She is always planning ahead and studying a few times a day before tests, and has kept the routine since her sophomore year when she started the College Credit Plus program.

In addition to her studies, Allen participates in Upward Bound and National Honor Society, where she focuses on community outreach.

This year Allen attended the Upward Bound end-of -summer educational trip to Niagara Falls. She said the trip was a reward for completing the Upward Bound summer program, a five-week program where students would stay at Marietta College from Sunday night to Thursday. She said every Tuesday they visited other colleges and toured the Marietta College campus, and every Thursday had a fun, educational activity.

Allen said she joined the program during the summer before her freshman year to gain college life experience and meet new people. She said Upward Bound stands out to her because of the opportunities to meet new people and tour college campuses while being a fun experience.

Allen attended the Youth to Youth Leadership conference two years ago where her and three other students founded the BEE Kind Project in an effort to give back to the community in kind ways and "help spread kindness to other people in the community," she said. The group is still active in the community and in July, they organized a "kindness wall" at the Youth to Youth Summer Leadership conference as a place where people could leave kind words for others. The group also organized a community 5K last October, reminds students to be kind with handouts at local schools and has more events coming.

The members have put in a proposal to Washington State College of Ohio for a mental health room as a space for students to relax between classes, fit with a TV, comfortable seating and calming activities and stress relief toys. Allen said she wrote the proposal and handed it off to others, and said the room being approved would show her ability to bring a vision to life and "make a place for students to find a relaxing space that is stress-free in college."

For her National Honor Society project, she created take-home baskets for kittens and cats with the Humane Society of the Ohio Valley in Marietta. She said she chose this project because of her love for animals. To ensure some of the animals’ needs were met when they go to their forever home, the baskets included a scratching post, toys, treats, and food.

Allen said in her free time she enjoys relaxing by reading books and doing puzzles and spending time with her two cats, Captain and Lily.

Sophie Wheeler can be reached at swheeler@newsandsentinel.com.

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