Caleigh earned her Bachelors of Science in Biochemistry from Purdue University in 2019. There, she conducted research on bacteria-mediated genetic transformation of plants in the lab of Dr. Stanton B. Gelvin. Additionally, she was actively involved in Purdue Students for Responsible Science and Engineering. She discovered her passion for synthetic biology when working as an intern and later as a project director for Purdue’s International Genetically Engineered Machine team, and now serves as a mentor to the Rice team. In the summer of 2019, she interned for the Disruptive Technology Laboratory at the Naval Surface Warfare Center – Carderock. Currently, she is engineering more robust and predictable plant growth-promoting bacteria for sustainable agriculture in the lab of Dr. Jeffrey Tabor. She has served as Co-Recruitment Chair for the SSPB Graduate Student Association. Upon completion of her PhD, she is open to continuing her research career in academia, a federal laboratory, or industry.