When Courtney Donovan realized she could combine her passions for art and science into a viable career path, she said she became a “train set in motion.”
Art was a significant interest for Donovan from a young age, but it grew into a true passion when she started taking Advanced Placement art classes in high school. At the same time, she had an interest in science and began to wonder if she could somehow study both. Once she arrived at Kent State University and started talking to her advisors and professors about her interests, everything fell into place.
“Aside from just my interest in the arts, I did have a strong inclination for the sciences,” she said. “I was very interested in biology, very interested in chemistry, and finding out that there was a pathway that would allow me to do both, to not just choose one or the other.”
But at Kent State, I really had the opportunity to design my own education,” Donovan said. “And with the dual majors, I was able to really pick and choose which particular courses I would need to set me up to be able to chase both of those passions.
Donovan pursued dual majors — a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art and a Bachelor of Integrative Studies — graduating with honors in 2020. Thanks to the skill sets she developed while merging her passions in fine art and science, today Donovan is a maxillofacial prosthodontic laboratory technologist at Burning River Dental in Beachwood, Ohio. She hand-sculpts and hand-paints prosthetic eyes, ears, noses and intraoral devices for patients recovering from cancer, trauma and genetic conditions.
Donovan said her professors at Kent State not only challenged her but also helped open doors once she articulated her vision to them.
“The professors at Kent State really challenged me in the arts, not just to make art, but also to think critically about the things that you’re making,” Donovan said. “My Bachelor of Fine Arts was such a collaborative experience. The staff was so hands-on. It had such a small campus feel. We were all so close-knit that they were able to really help me think critically and be able to observe my own artwork and learn on my own, be able to identify where I could get stronger.”
Donovan also credits her science professors for helping her see how she could apply her artistic training in a scientific setting. One professor even brought Donovan on to do scientific illustrations for a paper she was working on in the neuroscience program.
I think once I had a grasp on what the dream was, when I let professors in on what exactly it was that I wanted to do, then they were more than willing to help me find the doorways to knock on next.
