After a diagnosis in high school of Type 1 Diabetes, Kurtis initially struggled to manage his chronic health condition with daily insulin injections and finger pricks. He eventually obtained an insulin pump and glucose sensor which greatly improved his standard of life. Kurtis’s personal experience motivated him to learn the fundamentals of producing medical technology which led to him to major in Bioengineering at UC Merced.
During his time at UC Merced, Kurtis was involved in research in the labs of Professor Anand Subramaniam and Professor Changqing Li. In the summer of 2019 he participated in the Frontiers of Bioimaging REU at the University of Illinois.
This fall he will join the UC Berkeley – UC San Francisco Joint Bioengineering PhD Program and explore various opportunities related to developing biotechnological advancements in cases of chronic conditions such as Type 1 Diabetes.