Adrian College 2021 graduate joins OSU team seeking cure for cancer
Posted Thursday, September 30, 2021
Author: Mickey Alvarado
Sitting at his mom and dad’s kitchen table studying remotely wasn’t even close to what Max Birmingham expected his college life to be like, but that’s just one of the many unplanned obstacles he had to overcome before graduating Suma Cum Laude from Adrian College this year with two degrees. Now, he’s working full-time as a research assistant at the Ohio State University (OSU) Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute, seeking a cure for multiple myeloma, a blood cancer that affects plasma cells.
Birmingham successfully navigated his way through the COVID-19 pandemic and earned a Bachelor of Science in Biology and a Bachelor of Arts in Chemistry.
One of the main reasons Birmingham chose to attend Adrian College was because it was affordable. Adrian College recently ranked 12th in the nation for Best Value in Midwest Regional Colleges by U.S. News and World Report in its 2022 edition of America’s Best Colleges.
“Probably the number one thing my dad [Josh] has hammered home for me my entire life is about budgeting and being smart with your money, understanding the financial risk with each situation,” Birmingham said. “So, we had a very long conversation before I came to Adrian College about what my target goal for student debt was going to be.”
Birmingham graduated in the top 10 of Adrian College’s Class of 2021 and maintained a 3.94 GPA through seven semesters.
“My sophomore, junior and senior years were very academically challenging,” Birmingham said of his time at Adrian. “I definitely had to work hard for everything. But, junior year, that spring when everything got shut down, that was truly one of the most interesting times for me. I never thought I would be studying immunology, thermodynamics and biochemistry from the kitchen table in my parent’s house.
“I was personally amazed by the resilience of all the professors working so hard trying to offer both an online and in-person ‘hybrid style’ of instruction,” Birmingham said. “It was hard work and I could see it was very hard work for them as well. But, it kept kids engaged even if they were quarantined at home or in their dorms.”
He and many other students were very thankful that Adrian College President Jeffrey Docking provided as normal of a college experience as possible during the pandemic.
“Once we cleared that first wave, I think a lot of us were just thankful to be back at Adrian and see each other in classrooms, even with masks on,” he said. “And, I know, by the end there, we were all very happy to have an in-person graduation ceremony. That meant so much to me and a lot of my classmates.”
Birmingham decided to take a “gap-year” off before seeking a graduate degree and didn’t waste any time in seeking a job that might help him in the future when applying to schools including OSU and the University of Michigan.
Originally from Lambertville, Mich., Birmingham is now living it up in the big city of Columbus, Ohio, next to the OSU Comprehensive Cancer Center.
“I’m in the heart of everything. It’s very different,” Birmingham said. “It is really amazing going from the one-square-mile campus at Adrian where everything is, to now, where I don’t think I’ll ever see everything in this city the year or two I’ll be here. But, I’ll be honest, Adrian’s landscaping is really hard to beat!”
He had considered attending OSU before selecting Adrian College, so he’s very happy and comfortable being on campus. He’s thinking about applying to OSU or the University of Michigan for graduate school next year.
Birmingham initially signed up with Adrian College to play basketball, but after a few months into his freshman year he felt compelled to concentrate solely on his academic success and left the team. He said meeting biology professor Janet Salzwedel, PhD., and adjunct professor Marcia Boynton helped with the decision. In just a few short months, Birmingham believed he would be able to form close relationships and connections with his professors and that would help him find success in academics.
“Here [OSU], within one department, even at the graduate schools, there are 95 professors. It’s crazy, the sheer volume and difference. It is a top research facility in the world, but at Adrian, the personal connections and the way you’re actually able to be with the same professors over the course of four years is such a unique experience.”
He’s considering applying to grad schools in the fall in hopes of studying cancer biology to get his PhD.
“I feel like I’m definitely prepared for what graduate school is going to be,” he said. “Adrian’s chemistry department and biology department prepared me for what I should expect, and what I need to do.”
Birmingham said he is confident where he’s working now because of the hands-on lab experience he received at Adrian.
“Nothing has caught me off guard yet. I’m really pleased about that. It’s a stress relief,” he said.
Cancer has affected his extended family in the past, but his decision to try to eliminate the disease comes from within.
“It has always just been something I’ve been fascinated and kind of terrified by,” he said. “It’s one of those things for me personally, if I don’t understand something, I want to learn as much about it as I possibly can to make sense to me. Cancer is so incredibly complex and there are so many nuances between the different types that it really intrigues me a great deal.”
Birmingham would like to earn a PhD so he can someday work as a professor in an academic setting and lead his own lab to teach and continue to do additional breakthrough research.
“There are a lot of things you can do with a PhD, and I don’t necessarily know where it will take me… Hopefully, by the back end of my career, I would love to be at a liberal arts institution and try to give a little bit of what I’ve received at Adrian, for sure.”
