As a third-grader, Ellis Shelley was not a typical child. A self-described science nerd, he often would rush home from school and into the barn to check on chick eggs in the incubator. The Albany, Kentucky, native could explain exactly what was happening in each phase of the 21-day incubation cycle.

“When I took reproductive physiology during my undergraduate studies, I recalled that experience and realized science was always where I was destined to be,” he said.

After finishing up his bachelor’s degree in the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, Food and Environment in agricultural biotechnology, Shelley will begin his master’s degree in medical sciences. He is the first UKAg student in the program, a collaboration between CAFE and the UK College of Medicine.