Mia Y. Kawaida is a second-year doctoral student from Japan. Her passion for animals led her to pursue higher education and a career in animal science. She holds a B.S. degree in animal science with equine management emphasis from Murray State University. After graduating, she completed a year-long apprenticeship at the University of Vermont Morgan Horse Farm. In 2019, she started her Ph.D. in the Animal Science Department at the University of Connecticut under Dr. Sarah A. Reed. Her dissertation research focuses on the effects of antioxidant supplementation on exercise-induced oxidative stress in polo ponies. She is also investigating the effect of poor maternal nutrition during gestation on the growth and development of offspring muscle in sheep. This spring, she received Graduate Student Mentorship Excellence Award.