Maize & Blue Scholar Bader found purpose in extracurricular activities at UM-Flint

Studying education may not have been Kaitlyn Bader's first choice, but in the end, it was the best choice.

"I started studying athletic training at another college and had a really rough first semester," the Swartz Creek native and fall 2025 Maize and Blue Distinguished Scholar said. "The COVID-19 pandemic was still raging, and I had a lot of family issues come up. Everything kind of crumbled, so I moved back home. I took a semester off and developed a game plan. I always loved education and had amazing teachers in my life, so it was in the back of my mind that I might pursue (education)."

Bader resumed her academic journey at community college before transferring to the University of Michigan-Flint. At that point, she had earned enough credits to work as a substitute teacher in local K-12 schools.

"One of the teachers in my life suggested that I sign up to be a substitute because that would allow me to see what it was like, and to see what age group I enjoyed working with the most," Bader said. "So I subbed across all grade levels during the early part of my education program at UM-Flint, and ultimately found that teaching kids in grades 3-6 was my sweet spot. It's when they start to be more independent, but they're still really eager to learn and connect. I really liked bringing new ways of learning things that I found hard when I was a kid, like math. Once, I was helping in a third grade class and one of the kids, who wasn't even in the class, happened to be there for the math lesson and, at the end, he came up and thanked me because I helped him understand it in a new way, and that was the moment that it hit for me, that I loved this (major)."

Bader graduated from high school at the beginning of the pandemic, so she was unable to celebrate that accomplishment with all of her friends and family in person. For her, being named a Maize and Blue Distinguished Scholar is about more than just hard work and getting good grades; it's about the family she built at UM-Flint.

"Because of COVID and other issues in my family, it felt like a lot of my achievements were overshadowed by other things, and so this award really makes up for that in many ways," she said. "It's not only a testament to all of the hard work, blood, sweat and tears that I put myself through here — often overfilling my plate — it also recognizes the deep relationships I've built in my sorority, Phi Sigma, and as a co-founder of Club Tennis."

Initially unsure about joining a sorority, Bader learned about it from another student in her education program and decided to explore her options at UM-Flint.

"Phi Sigma brought a larger sense of family and connection into my life when I needed it the most. I had always had such a poor concept of what a sorority was — all the movies make them seem like they're so bad — but I will be forever thankful for those girls. They were always so welcoming to me, from the very first meeting, and they've saved me from some pretty terrible situations," Bader said. "When I was younger, I didn't have a tight group of friends; I was always this kind of 'floater,' and that all changed with Phi Sig. We did so many things together, including volunteer events such as Erin's Dinner, which raises money for a scholarship. We also joined other student organizations to host Bowling for Ariel, another scholarship fundraising event named in honor of a sister who passed away unexpectedly. It was inspiring to raise money for good causes while still having a lot of fun."

A lifelong tennis player, Bader co-founded UM-Flint's Club Tennis Team with Phi Sigma sister Zoe Doss, a senior health care administration major from Holland.

"Zoe and I bonded over the fact that we played tennis growing up, and one day, she said to me, 'I miss playing tennis; what if we start a club tennis team here at UM-Flint?' I thought, well, that's absolutely ridiculous, so I'm in," said Bader. "It was a ton of work to get it going, and I credit Zoe with a lot of that, but we also received a lot of support from other club sports as well as the sorority. Once it got going, though, we realized we needed certain things to compete — for the first semester, we didn't have access to indoor courts, which is rough in the winter months in Flint."

The team ultimately connected with the Genesys Health Club, which was excited that the team was bringing tennis to a broader community. "They cut us a big deal on court rentals so we could expand the team, and we hosted two home matches there — one against Central Michigan University and the other against Oakland University," she said. "One of my favorite experiences was our first tournament; we traveled to Cleveland and all five of us played for nearly 10 hours straight. We also went to Wisconsin to compete in the USTA league we were in. My tennis teammates have also become like family, and we've grown a lot together."

One of the areas that Bader initially found challenging in her academic program was learning how to teach mathematics. "I didn't think of myself as good at math, and I certainly never understood it at the level that I do now. It felt like it was mostly just about memorization, but my professors have helped me understand these concepts at such a fundamental level; they were so welcoming and encouraged lots of questions," she said. "It's something that I've taken with me into my field work, and I've had so many students start to love math, and to transform from this mindset of 'I'm bad at math,' to 'It's okay that I'm not good at this yet, I'm still learning.'"

Jeramy Donovan, assistant professor of education, is one of the instructors who helped Bader see math in a new way.

"Kaitlyn began her college journey during the isolation of the pandemic, carrying personal loss and uncertainty, yet she steadily transformed those challenges into purpose. In my courses, she approached every assignment with an intellectual tenacity that set her apart, never stopping at the right answer, but digging into the deeper structure of mathematics and how children make sense of it," Donovan said. "Watching her grow into a confident, reflective educator has been one of the most inspiring parts of my work. Kaitlyn has earned every bit of this recognition, and she will carry her resilience and compassion into every classroom she enters. She brings integrity, empathy, and a quiet determination to every space she occupies. Kaitlyn is the kind of educator who will change lives not only through what she teaches, but through who she is."

Building new relationships, developing her leadership skills, and preparing for her career in teaching have taught Bader an important lesson. "Now that I look back on it, I see how much I had to learn for me even to enjoy the experiences and opportunities that I was having. My classes taught me what I'll need to know to be a successful teacher, and my extracurriculars taught me about leadership, professionalism, how to hold myself — and others — accountable, and how to be open and ready for new opportunities," she said.

"And mindset is key: If you think that something is 'bad' or you're feeling negative about it, you'll rarely get anything positive out of it. So, going in with an open mind and knowing that, ultimately, you are good enough is essential. You could be a role model or a game changer for someone and never even know it. So just show up and be you."