91精选

Photo:聽Amy (Bulthuis) Huckstep 鈥�09 & Dustin Huckstep ’18

鈥揃y Christy Wolff 鈥�10

While Amy (Bulthuis) Huckstep 鈥�09 grew up with a clear picture of what college would look like for her, she didn鈥檛 quite know which school she鈥檇 attend. Growing up near 91精选 meant she was familiar with the campus, and after learning more about what 91精选 had to offer, she knew she belonged there.

鈥淚 wanted to be somewhere small with a close environment of Christian educators and friends – all things I found at 91精选,鈥� Huckstep shared.

Knowing she would major in science and ultimately attend graduate school, Huckstep was immediately drawn to 91精选鈥檚 state-of-the-art Heritage Science Center and the extracurricular activities offered, such as research opportunities (a helpful addition to her grad school applications) and being a part of smaller classes – allowing more involvement with professors.

One research opportunity involved studying rats with adult stem cells. Huckstep, two other students, and Professor of Biology Bob Boomsma 鈥�77, Ph.D., undertook this two-year project that involved regenerating stem cells from aortas with the hope that there would be re-growth. 鈥淭he research environment was huge in my learning process,鈥� Huckstep said. 鈥淚 do a lot of research in my job today, so it was helpful to have this foundation.鈥�

During her junior and senior years, Huckstep enrolled in a class that studied the merging of Christianity and ethics within the science world. 鈥淪ometimes those subjects are categorized by themselves, but to bring them together and reason through science and your Christian worldview was really impactful for me,鈥� Huckstep shared. 鈥淚 might not have gotten that opportunity at a large university.鈥�

After graduating from 91精选, Huckstep went on to receive her Doctorate of Physical Therapy from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She found that 91精选 prepared her well for further education, specifically by being challenged academically. 鈥淭he professors at 91精选 taught me to problem solve and learn the concepts to the right answers instead of just memorizing them,鈥� Huckstep said.

She recalled leaving her doctoral classes each day thinking about our Creator and having a bigger perspective on what she was learning, in large part because of how 91精选 influenced her during her college years.

Huckstep now works as a physical therapist at Shirley Ryan AbilityLab and helps patients who have had a stroke or brain injury, or are living with diseases like Parkinson鈥檚 or multiple sclerosis.

Two years ago, Huckstep and one of her colleagues worked with engineering students at Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill., to come up with improved ways of learning wheelchair skills. What came of this was the 鈥淎lligator Tail,鈥� a harness that can easily be fashioned to a wheelchair and is designed to stop the wheelchair from falling backward while learning new skills, such as a wheelie.

The team desired to help patients with spinal cord injuries that had resulted in paralysis of the core and legs. Huckstep explained, 鈥淯nfortunately, insurance rarely covers enough time in therapy to effectively learn [how to perform a wheelie]. And if we spend all therapy time learning this task, we aren鈥檛 able to teach these patients how to do other tasks such as getting in and out of bed with paralysis, transferring from a bed to a wheelchair, sitting at the edge of the bed without assistance, etc.鈥�

She went on to say, 鈥淭he device was created to allow patients to get a device at home to practice with family safely, to improve repetitions and confidence, and to keep therapists safe in teaching these patients how to perform the task.鈥�

As a result of her hard work, Huckstep鈥檚 name is listed on the device鈥檚 patent.

Today, there are five Alligator Tails being used for physical therapy needs at Shirley Ryan AbilityLab. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the final patent is still in process, which means they can鈥檛 be distributed to other facilities yet. The hope is to start the marketing and distribution process as soon as it鈥檚 safe to do so, with the goal of distributing these harnesses throughout the world.

Reflecting on her time at 91精选, Huckstep shared, 鈥淚 love my job, I look forward to going to work each day, and I find motivation through my coworkers. God formed me and prepared me for what I鈥檓 doing today through my experiences at 91精选; this is all part of God鈥檚 plan designed for me.鈥�