Heck, whose concentration is in pre-veterinary medicine, came to Purdue in 2024 wanting to get involved in research early.
“I had some older friends and cousins who participated in research in college, and it sounded really interesting to me,” Heck said. “But, I wasn't exactly sure what that looked like.”
Heck said her connection with Neave began during a freshman course, when she met her at a mock career fair. After that introduction, she reached out to Neave to learn more about her research program. As a first-semester freshman, she began volunteering in the lab to help with a dairy cattle brush preference trial, assisting with moving cows to the brushes to study their behavior.
The following semester, Heck enrolled in ANSC 295 with Neave to earn course credit for research, joining a cow-calf contact project.
“A lot of the work involved going out after a calf was born to help with calf care,” Heck said. “Over the next few days, we helped with feeding and cleaning the pen, and at the end of the 48-hour period, we ran tests where we separated the cow and calf, then reunited them to observe their behavior and vocalizations.”
As Heck became more involved in the lab, Neave encouraged her to apply for a CATE grant. Heck received the award in fall 2025.
CATE grants provide $500 in funding for undergraduate research projects. Students submit an abstract and a brief description of their project and how the funds will be used. If selected, the award is distributed to the faculty member to help support the student’s research experience and offset project costs.
Heck said receiving the award made her feel like she was taking a step forward as a researcher.
“I was really excited because I feel like it signifies the transition from just getting my feet wet in research to now being part of a project I’m contributing to and receiving a grant for,” Heck said.
Source : purdue.edu