‘Education matters’: UNK students share their success stories at ‘I Love NU’ Day

LINCOLN – Temo Molina and Katie Schultis may come from different backgrounds, but they possess the same strengths.

They’re both leaders within the University of Nebraska System who will use their education and experiences to positively impact the world.

The student regents from the University of Nebraska at Kearney and University of Nebraska Medical Center shared their stories Wednesday during the seventh annual “I Love NU” Day, an event that brings people from across the state together to show their support for the NU System and its four campuses.

Speaking at the State Capitol in Lincoln, Molina told the group about his background as a first-generation college student, the son of Mexican immigrants who came to the United States to give their children a better life.

“One of the biggest lessons that my parents taught me, from a young, young age, was that education matters,” Molina said. “And that it can open doors that you never thought were possible.”

Molina grew up in Stanton and graduated from Lutheran High Northeast. He received a prestigious Honors Program scholarship to attend UNK, arriving on campus as an undecided freshman.

“I knew this would be the right place for me when I saw that you were more than just a number in Kearney,” he said. “The people at the university wanted me to succeed.”

With support from faculty, staff, administration and peers, Molina “found a community” at UNK, where he’s been involved in student government, undergraduate research, the Sigma Lambda Beta fraternity and Intercultural Engagement and Leadership. Now a junior, the current student body president is double majoring in political science and accounting with plans to attend law school.

“UNK has given me the support of so many new friends and mentors,” Molina said. “I know that my family is proud of where I am today, and I owe so much of that to the university and to UNK.”

MAKING THE IMPOSSIBLE POSSIBLE
Like Molina, Schultis grew up in a small, rural community. She graduated from Diller-Odell Public Schools with 11 classmates.

Schultis recognized the challenges many rural Nebraskans face, particularly when it comes to health care access, and “wanted to help fix that.”

She attended UNK as a Board of Regents Scholar and a member of the Kearney Health Opportunities Program, a partnership between UNK and UNMC that recruits and trains students from rural Nebraska who will practice in these communities as health care professionals.

“That really made the impossible possible for me, to have that path in mind and have the resources I needed to achieve that goal,” she said. “I’m very lucky to have my UNK education.”

Schultis also talked about the impact of the tightknit Loper community, which allowed her to develop close relationships on campus and “grow as a person.”

“Honestly, it was just the people, the mentorship and individual conversations I had with faculty, administrators and fellow students,” she said of her time at UNK. “I know that’s cliché. But it was always the people.”

The former student body vice president was part of the UNK Honors Program, Christian Student Fellowship, Undergraduate Research Fellows, Health Science Club and Mortar Board honor society before graduating in spring 2020 with a bachelor’s degree in biology with a health science emphasis.

She currently serves as the student regent and Student Senate president at UNMC, where she’ll earn a Doctor of Medicine in May. Schultis was selected for a five-year residency in urology at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, then she’ll return to Nebraska to practice.

“That has always been the plan and the goal, to come back and serve Nebraska – rural Nebraska especially – and hopefully be an educator for future urologists and future doctors,” Schultis said.

OPPORTUNITY TO SUCCEED
About 40 people – students, staff, faculty and administrators – represented UNK during “I Love NU” Day.

Chris Kabourek, interim president of the NU System, called the event one of his favorite days of the year.

“To have a strong state of Nebraska, you have to have a strong university,” Kabourek said.

“We are so blessed to have elected officials in the Legislature who love the university and want to do the best for the university,” he added.

In addition to sharing their stories, the event gave attendees an opportunity to network with colleagues across the NU System and meet with state lawmakers, including Sen. Danielle Conrad of Lincoln.

Originally from Seward, Conrad earned her bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and law degree from the University of Nebraska College of Law.

“But for the incredible education that I was able to earn at the University of Nebraska, I wouldn’t be standing here today,” she told the crowd.

“I say frequently and authentically that I would put my education that I received at the University of Nebraska – and at Nebraska public schools, kindergarten through law school – up against anyone’s in the world, any day of the week,” Conrad added. “Not only is it an incredible education, it’s an incredible value.”

Conrad encouraged the students in attendance Wednesday to use their knowledge and skills to help build a “bolder, brighter, better Nebraska” by creating a culture of belonging where every person has an opportunity to succeed.

“Because when every Nebraskan has an opportunity to succeed, we all benefit.”