BOONE, N.C. — Jess Horton’s path at App State has been one defined by resilience, discovery, and an evolving passion for science. Horton, of Charlotte, will graduate on Friday with a bachelor's degree in physics with a concentration in interdisciplinary science and minors in both chemistry and mathematics.
Horton — who shared that App State was her "dream school" in high school — transferred to App State in the spring of 2021 and discovered her love of physics, officially changing her major the following fall. "I had to completely start over in doing so, but it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made!" she said.
Horton is an undergraduate researcher in Dr. Andy Bellemer's Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience Lab, which has allowed her to apply her interests in multiple STEM fields. "Both my introductory physics and mathematics courses taught me about the wonders of scientific programming, which led me down a rabbit hole of trying to figure out how I can use these skills in Dr. Bellemer’s lab," she remarked. "Both him and Dr. Eric Marland have been incredibly influential in opening my eyes to what possibilities exist regarding the interdisciplinary overlap between computer science, mathematics, physics, biochemistry, and neuroscience, and I cannot thank the two of them enough for all of the time and energy they have poured into me and my academic interests during my time here."
In Bellemer's lab, Horton has learned how to build brain maps of the Drosophila melanogaster, commonly referred to as the fruit fly. She explained, "I built a series of maps which investigated the first order input, output, and reciprocal connections in a class of neurons which possessed a neuropeptide known to be involved in heat-induced pain processing. This neuropeptide is of particular interest to us because it is a known homolog to a neuropeptide that humans possess in our nervous system, hence the studies performed on our model organism have important implications in medicine and other closely related fields."
Horton shared that working on the project in Bellemer's lab and taking Marland's Mathematical Neuroscience course this semester helped her discover her passion for computational and mathematical neuroscience. After graduating from App State, she hopes to apply what she's learned and eventually pursue a doctorate in a field relating to medicine, computational biology, or engineering.
Horton also expressed her gratitude for Dr. Tonya Coffey, Dr. Brooke Hester, Dr. Leah Sherman, and Dr. Roshani Silwal in the Department of Physics and Astronomy and Dr. Jennifer Cecile and Dr. Brooke Christian in the Department of Chemistry and Fermentation Sciences: "All of these impressive, intelligent, and driven academics have taught me so many important lessons during my time in undergrad, and my gratitude towards each and every one of them is truly unending...These women have taught me that if I want, I really can do it all: I can have a prestigous career in a field that I love, I can be a great mom, a loving wife, a good friend, a compassionate instructor, and an all around beautiful human being inside and out...Thank you for your strength, and thank you for consistently living your lives authentically and whole-heartedly!"
During her time at App State, Horton treasured quiet moments spent on the Blue Ridge Parkway, especially at the Thunder Hill and Raven Rocks overlooks. "Whenever I have been overwhelmed by the difficulty of my studies or the hardships of life, the stillness I have found at these overlooks has never failed to return me back to a much more grounded and level-headed version of myself," she shared.
"The sense of peace that these mountains have restored in me will live in me forever, and each of my happiest memories that I hold in my heart from Boone almost certainly lives either somewhere out on the parkway or deep in the woods up on a mountaintop." — Jess Horton, Class of 2025
While reflecting on her time in Boone, Horton shared that she has learned a lot outside of the classroom too, including how to play the piano, paint with watercolors and acrylics, and speak French. She also adopted two cats, Luna and Stella. "I’ve learned so much about myself while living in these mountains, and I look forward to hopefully returning one day when it’s my turn to start giving back to my community," wrote Horton.
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About the College of Arts and Sciences
The College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) at Appalachian State University is home to 17 academic departments, two centers and one residential college. These units span the humanities and the social, mathematical and natural sciences. CAS aims to develop a distinctive identity built upon our university's strengths, traditions and locations. The college’s values lie not only in service to the university and local community, but through inspiring, training, educating and sustaining the development of its students as global citizens. More than 6,800 student majors are enrolled in the college. As the college is also largely responsible for implementing App State’s general education curriculum, it is heavily involved in the education of all students at the university, including those pursuing majors in other colleges. Learn more at cas.appstate.edu.
By Lauren Gibbs
December 9, 2025
BOONE, N.C.
Jess Horton, of Charlotte, will graduate on Friday with a bachelor's degree in physics with a concentration in interdisciplinary science and minors in both chemistry and mathematics.
Jess Horton, of Charlotte, will graduate on Friday with a bachelor's degree in physics with a concentration in interdisciplinary science and minors in both chemistry and mathematics.