Erin Schommer is twenty feet up a rock face overlooking Lake Superior, a soft lake breeze tempering the summer heat. She pauses to secure her footing and then reaches for a handhold high above her head. The movement reveals a tattoo on her arm displaying the chemical structure of adrenaline, a mark of her passion for both science and outdoor adventure.

“As I was searching for colleges, it was really important for me to find somewhere with a really good chemistry program, as well as a sign language and rock climbing program,” Schommer said. “UMD encapsulated all those things.”

Schommer, a chemistry student at the University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD), is participating in the Swenson-funded Summer Undergraduate Research Program, a 10-week, paid research opportunity for undergraduate chemistry and biochemistry students. Under the direction of Kathryn Schreiner, PhD, Schommer is focusing on organic matter  preserved in sediment at the bottom of the Great Lakes and what it might reveal about historical plant life and climate change.

She conducts her experiments at UMD’s Large Lakes Observatory. Much like rock climbing, the work is an act of problem-solving and precision. “I do a lot of high dexterity hand work where I'm working with very small amounts of material with micro pipettes,” Schommer said. “A lot of things can go wrong, and instruments don't always work the way you want them to.” Nonetheless, Schommer moves throughout the lab with confidence.

When she first arrived on campus, Schommer hoped to gain research experience, though she wasn’t sure how achievable it would be. That changed during her freshman year, when Schreiner, a professor of chemistry and biochemistry at UMD, visited her general chemistry class to talk about environmental chemistry. “That brings together my love for the outdoors and my love for chemistry into one,” Schommer said. Inspired, she approached Schreiner after class and asked to join her lab. That summer, she assisted graduate students with their research. “But this summer, I get to have my own project, and that’s really, really exciting,” she said.

Schommer also works as a rock climbing instructor and guide with UMD’s Recreational Sports Outdoor Program, where she leads rock climbing trips for fellow students and community members. Geared with newfound knowledge in environmental chemistry, she’s able to teach her peers about why certain rocks are good to climb on and why the water in Lake Superior appears lighter or darker in color in different areas. Those extra environmental lessons are something her peers appreciate. “Especially kids,” she said. “It’s cool to be able to talk to them about that.”

Back on the rockface, Schommer reaches for the chalk bag hanging from her climbing harness at the hip. She grabs just enough to dry her hands before continuing her ascent. Twenty-five feet, thirty feet, forty … She navigates the north shore landscape with purpose.

“Not every hold you reach for is going to be the best. You just have to keep trying different things until you find something that will allow you to continue forward,” Schommer said. “It made me really happy that I saw something that I thought was super cool and wanted to do, and I went after it.”