Saint Mary’s junior Melanie Winzenburg is balancing biology lab work with choir rehearsal and play practice, proving as Albert Einstein once said, “the greatest scientists are artists as well.”
She’s in her final year on the Winona Campus with the university’s 3+2 Accelerated Physician Assistant (PA) program with Mayo Clinic School of Health Sciences, and she’s just accepted the lead role of Susy in the university musical “Glimpses of the Moon.” In the show, she plays a young woman in the ’20s who gets married for money.
Twice a week, she and other members of the university choir are also preparing for the Christmas service of Lessons and Carols, a longstanding university tradition.
And, she’s president of Sigma Alpha Iota, the national women’s music fraternity. With a goal of promoting music on campus, the fraternity is mostly known for its annual Fireside musical variety show, an evening filled with talented student performances.
“There’s something thrilling about being on stage,” she said. “There’s nothing more special than sharing your gifts and having them be received positively.”
In addition to taking advantage of the co-curricular arts offerings on campus, Winzenburg is an RA (Resident Assistant). “That’s one of my favorite roles,” she said. “It’s allowed me to grow the most and find my family. Res Life is my second family away from home. We bond so well together.”
Winzenburg recommends coming to Saint Mary’s for multiple reasons: “It’s in a wonderful location; we feel like our own community,” she said. “And the faculty and everybody here promotes your well being and success. They know you, and those connections are invaluable.”
