By Brittany Schleeter
November 30, 2023

Throughout my time in both undergraduate and graduate school, I have made it a point to take advantage of as many opportunities as possible. After all, our time in school is really our time to grow, as both people and professionals. Trying new things is how I actually discovered the PathA profession!

When I learned about the opportunity to become involved in the Graduate Student Association my first year at Drexel, I was so excited! I was even more excited to learn that there was a possible opportunity for the PathA class to utilize some of the GSA funds to host an event. I began to brainstorm ideas about what sort of event may interest our little cohort and, eventually, I decided that the Mütter Museum would be the perfect venue. If you don’t know much about the Mütter Museum, it is most simply described as a medical oddities museum — they house portions of Einstein’s brain, a toxic megacolon and the tallest human skeleton on exhibit in North America. It truly is the perfect place for PathA students to celebrate Halloween. Unfortunately, I was a little too busy my first year at Drexel to be actively involved in and navigate event planning through the GSA, and the event remained merely an idea.

This year, I “fell” into the position of treasurer for the Interdisciplinary and Career-Oriented branch of the GSA. This reignited my idea of hosting an event for the PathA class at the Mütter Museum. This time, with enthusiasm and support from both the 2024 and 2025 PathA classes, I was able to make the event a reality (with a lot of help from Erin Vogelsong, Sam Heinlein and Krista Mingione). Overall, the process was lengthy and took about four months of planning, but the event was an overwhelming success!

The event was held on the second floor of the Mütter Museum on October 22, 2023, from 6-8 p.m. Twenty out of the 23 students enrolled in the PathA program attended, with everyone dressed in semi-formal attire (everyone was so excited to dress up!). Passed hors d’oeuvres and a stationary food display with a variety of menu options were set up for everyone to enjoy at their leisure. Additionally, everyone was allowed two drinks from the beer/wine bar (with the bar itself actually being a vintage dissection table!). Finally, before ending the night touring the Mütter Museum, we raffled off multiple prizes, including a Keurig iced coffee maker. And of course, before leaving, all of our attendees were sure to pick up their gift bags, which included an LED skull lamp, skull candle, snack mix, candy, stickers and cookies from Philly’s Famous 4th Street Cookie Company!

Overall, I am so happy that I took the opportunity and time to plan Mischief at the Mütter. I gained a lot of experience, and it was extremely rewarding to see the event come to life and everyone enjoying themselves. For a few hours, everyone was able to take a break from school and our clinical rotations to mingle and reconnect with one another while also honoring our passion for pathology.

My main takeaway from this event is to continue to try new things. Trying new things and taking on large tasks can be daunting and, admittedly, doesn’t always work out. That being said, you never know unless you try! So, what will you try and where will it take you?

I want to say a special thank you to Drexel, the ICO GSA, and everyone who helped me through the event planning and attended the event!