Dajaha Kenney, a veteran of the U.S. Air Force, became part of the TU community when her husband, who she met in the service, started pursuing his kinesiology degree. With encouragement from him, a curiosity for the world of biology and the desire to be a good role model for their daughter, Kenney took a leap into the unknown and hasn’t looked back.

Finding the support systems

During her time in the military, Kenney was guided by structure and discipline. It taught her the meaning of sacrifice. She continues to implement what she learned as she balances the responsibilities of being a mother and wife while also meeting the demands that come from her research and academic life.

My first lab professor told me ‘I think you’re going places’ and ever since then she has supported me and talked me up in rooms I’m not in.

Dajaha Kenney

Kenney is driven by her desire to be an example for her daughter and her family has been the largest support system throughout her academic journey. She also found the Child Care Access Means Parents in School (CCAMPIS) program through Student Parent Services. Through the program, Kenney receives support to alleviate the financial burden of childcare and food access. She also was able to build relationships with other student parents and have other people to relate to and lean on for support.

TU’s Military and Veterans Center continues to provide support. The community helps students, just like Kenney, feel more connected to their peers and helps them overcome any feelings of self-doubt associated with being a non-traditional student. Navigating life as a student veteran comes with its own set of challenges, but the MVC has the answers students need.

As part of her academic journey, Kenney joined the Hill-Lopes Scholars Program, becoming her community of women in STEM at TU and beyond. She met wonderful mentors who guided and challenged her academically, helping her shape her future as a biologist.

“My first lab professor told me ‘I think you’re going places’ and ever since then she has supported me and talked me up in rooms I’m not in,” said Kenney reflecting on one of her Hill-Lopes mentors.

Passion for biology

Initially interested in marine wildlife and marine biology, the passion for biology focused more specifically on cancer and genetics. Her interests lie in how genes work and how humans operate on a molecular level.

I want to pursue a path that will help others and add to the body of knowledge.

Dajaha Kenney

As a lover of the labs and conducting hands-on research, Kenney has had several opportunities.

She investigated whether cooking sorghum, a plant-based protein that is high in fiber, affected its cancer-preventing properties in colorectal cells. Kenny is conducting further studies to validate the findings that sorghum is more beneficial if served raw. The research was initially presented at the Undergraduate Research and Creative Inquiry Forum at TU.

She also went to a national conference to present research on the gut and microbiome of captive polar bears, hoping to add to a body of knowledge that only has one scientific article related to the gut biome of polar bears. To do her research, Kenney analyzed 24 polar bear droppings to determine the type of bacteria in them. Kenney hopes that this research will benefit wild polar bears as well because they are understudied.

As a Master of Biology student, Kenney gets to continue researching what means the most to her and to rotate labs and get a feel for all the different types of research she can pursue within the cellular and molecular biology fields.