From Wyoming With Love – Part 1

Meet UW Trustees’ Scholars Award alumni living and working in Wyoming.

 

By Micaela Myers

 

The University of Wyoming Trustees’ Scholars Award is the premier scholarship for Wyoming’s top high school students. Hundreds of students have benefited from the award over the years, and in this issue, UWyo Magazine sat down with 20 former scholars living and working in Wyoming. These alumni are giving back to the state that supported them throughout their education. They represent a small sampling of alumni award winners living around the state and across the country. These scholars leveraged the support Wyoming gave them and turned it into big impacts in their industries, families, states and communities.

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Optometrist Kristanza Bronnenberg
Hometown: Cody 
UW degrees: B.S. in physiology with minors in honors and Spanish, 2016

How did the Trustees’ Scholars Award help you as a student at UW? 
The Trustees’ Scholars Award allowed me to focus solely on studying while I was in school. Because of this, I was able to pursue many opportunities I might not have otherwise, such as studying abroad, serving in organizations, volunteering and spending time shadowing various health-care professions to determine which was the best fit for me.

 

It is so important for Wyoming students to have avenues available to them to receive a high-quality education. The University of Wyoming is an excellent school, and I feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to attend UW and to be honored with a Trustees’ Scholars Award. It is also very beneficial to the state to have students return after graduation to join the workforce and give back to their communities. I believe that scholarships — such as the Trustees’ — that are only available to Wyoming students create a sense of belonging and inspire students to give back to the state that supported them.
 
What were your standout experiences at UW? 
I had an amazing time at UW. Some of my standout experiences included attending sporting events with friends, exploring the surrounding area, and studying abroad with the wonderful UW Education Abroad office and through the Honors Program (now the Honors College).

 

UW was also instrumental in my future career in health care. My education at UW prepared me fully to succeed in optometry school, and my UW professors were very supportive and helpful with selecting the best program for me.
 
What made you want to stay in Wyoming after graduation? 
I have always loved Wyoming and really never considered working or living anywhere else. I love traveling and fully enjoyed my time studying abroad and away at graduate school, but Wyoming is an incredibly special place with wonderful people, and I am blessed to be back. It has also always been important to me to come back to my hometown of Cody to give back to the community that has supported me so much.

The best part about Wyoming is the people. We truly have some of the kindest most inspirational people in Wyoming, and I love getting to serve them every day. I also have always enjoyed the outdoors and everything the Wyoming wilderness has to offer.
 
Tell us about your career:
I currently work as an optometrist at Basin Vision Center in Cody. I get to help people and improve their vision — it is truly a wonderful profession. I love that my career allows me to spend time with my patients and see them year after year. Interacting with the incredible people who live in Cody and getting to be a part of their lives is the best part of my job.  

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Psychiatrist Brian Schlidt
Hometown: Casper 
UW degrees: B.S. in physiology with minors in honors and finance, 2011

Brian Schlidt used his University of Wyoming education — powered by the Trustees’ Scholars Award— to fill a very important need in the state. 

“I started my own practice, and I am a psychiatrist practicing in Casper, but I do telemedicine over the entire state,” Schlidt says. “I love that I am able to impact so many different people across the entire spectrum of Wyoming. Mental health is not something that affects any one population of people, so I get to see and take care of so many people. Also, there is rarely a dull day at work, and I love to see people get better and get back to living their lives.” 

 

He credits the Trustees’ Scholars Award as the reason he was able to go directly from his undergraduate degree to medical school.

 

“The Trustees’ Scholars Award dramatically impacted my ability to pursue my education without having to focus only on the financial burden of my schooling,” Schlidt says. “It gave me time so that I could focus on volunteer activities, laboratory research experience and my training. I think that it is invaluable, as it allows many students to find success and be propelled early by it.”

 

As an undergraduate, Schlidt took part in UW’s Outdoor Program, which offered excitement as well as rewarding diligence and perseverance. He also completed the Honors Program (now the Honors College), which he says instilled a lifelong love of learning. Of course, his major also set him up for success in medical school.

 

“I feel particularly indebted to the College of Health Sciences and the Department of Zoology and Physiology for teaching me material that I would continue to use in medical school and even my practice today,” he says. “UW was a strong foundation for the rest of my training — from medical school, residency and beyond. It wasn’t just the discipline and time management but also how to connect to people, broaden my horizons and learn how to be the person that I am today.”

 

Now, as a practicing professional, Schlidt loves helping people across the state. He also appreciates the recreation and open spaces: “In addition to the people, I love having such easy access to the outdoors here in Wyoming.”  

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Nursing Manager Sarah Trembly
Hometown: Lander
UW degree: B.M.E. in music education, 2015

Earning the Trustees’ Scholars Award allowed Sarah Trembly to pursue her education without having to work full-time, providing her with the foundation for a well-rounded career path that was built upon her experiences at UW. 

“Investing in the educational endeavors of the young people of Wyoming demonstrates the commitment Wyoming has to its growth in a variety of areas,” she says. “It helps keep young people in the Wyoming workforce, motivates high school students to achieve academic success and reinforces the values of the Wyoming people.”

As a music student, Trembly immersed herself fully. She fondly recalls traveling with the UW Pep Band to the Mountain West Conference basketball tournament to cheer on the Cowboys in Las Vegas and taking a trip to Reno to showcase the Wind Symphony. 

“I had the privilege of performing some of the most beautiful music ever written with the Symphony Orchestra and the Collegiate Chorale,” she says. “I loved the access to information and the myriad of opportunities available for arts education.”

Trembly now serves as the nurse manager of the emergency department at SageWest Health Care in her hometown of Lander. While nursing may seem a far cry from music, she says her time at UW gave her the skills she needed to succeed. 

“Music education majors spend hours in classes, ensembles and private practice rooms,” Trembly says. “I had to quickly learn how to prioritize and manage my time. Skills like conducting multiple instrumental parts provided the foundation for higher-level critical thinking and problem solving. On a deeper level, a degree in the arts taught me how to relate to people in my current field of nursing. My experiences in music gave me the tools to view a patient as a complex unique person with spiritual, emotional and physical needs. One of the most rewarding aspects of nursing is providing empathetic connection and emotional support to patients, and the art of music emphasizes emotional connection between the audience and performers.”

In addition to nursing, Trembly uses her music education to run a small studio of private music students. She always hoped to stay in Wyoming, where she enjoys hiking, hunting and skiing. 

“The grandeur of the Wyoming landscape is powerful, and spending time in God’s creation is necessary for me to maintain my focus and peace in a stressful vocation,” Trembly says. 

She loves the versatility of her nursing career, where she has worked on an ambulance, in emergency rooms and ICUs, on the nurse advice phone line and as an elementary school nurse. 

“As an ER manager, I love the pace and challenge of the emergency department,” Trembly says. “I view myself as an advocate for patients and nurses, and am grateful for the amazing team I work alongside every day. I have the opportunity to serve my community and to provide care to multiple generations of family and friends. The Wyoming people are kind and resilient with strong values, and it is a joy to work alongside them and for them.”