Kaya Banka

During her time at Clark,  biochemistry and molecular biology major and environmental science minor Kaya Banka ’26 built a strong foundation in scientific research. Funded by a Plave Family Research Fellowship, Banka worked as an undergraduate research assistant in the Meyer Lab, studying the development of the ventral midline in the annelid Capitella teleta. Through a ClarkCONNECT summer internship at the Andalusian Center for Developmental Biology in Seville, Spain, she investigated zygotic genome activation in zebrafish. She also received the Experiential Learning Award and the Dr. Kenneth A. Senter ’43 Endowed Award for Premed Undergraduates.

Such experiences laid the groundwork for her upcoming Fulbright-funded research at the Ptak Lab at Jagiellonian University in Krakow, Poland, where Banka will research how pregnancy surrogates are affected by the embryo transfer process. She also plans to volunteer at the Jagiellonian University Hospital to expand her fluency in medical terminology and to learn about the culture through dance.