Roman run with IU Kokomo chancellor leads Conley to study computer science at UCSD

Two early morning runs in Italy led Braxton Conley ‘25 to graduate school at University of California San Diego (UCSD).

Conley ran through the streets of Rome and Florence while on a Kokomo Experience and You (KEY) trip with Indiana University Kokomo in 2024. Safety requirements meant he needed someone to run with him, and Minda Douglas, the faculty member leading the trip, suggested Chancellor Mark Canada as the perfect candidate.

Chancellor Mark Canada, left, and Braxton Conley, from Culver, during one of their runs in Italy.
As they ran, Conley told Canada of his plans to attend graduate school in computer science, his challenges finding an internship, and his uncertainty about where he wanted to go. Canada connected him alumnus Alex Martakis, who earned a master’s degree at USCD after completing his computer science degree at IU Kokomo in 2021.

“Alex was super helpful,” said Conley. “He gave me tons of resources. He talked about his own journey, what his path was, and how he made the decision to go to graduate school. He also sent me spreadsheets about the schools he applied to. When I found out I got into UCSD he was super excited.”

He added that Martakis told him his speed of acceptance likely meant he was in the first round of acceptances — and that UCSD accepts fewer than 10 percent of applicants to its computer science program, which is one of the top 10 in the nation.

“It’s still kind of hard to believe I got into one of the best schools in the country,” Conley said. “Coming from a high school where I graduated in a class of 20, and then a small campus, it just feels rewarding after all the hard work I’ve put in here.”

Conley, from Culver, plans to specialize in computer engineering and data science, with the goal of using technology to directly improve people’s lives. After graduating May 13, he’s taking the first steps toward that goal with an internship at Braun Ability in Winamac. The company modifies vehicles to make them accessible for wheelchair users and manufactures mobility accessories and equipment. He will work with software and electrical engineers to program the vehicles to work with the equipment.

The internship combines what he’s learned during the last four years, earning a computer science degree during the school year and working as a diesel mechanic during the summer – a job that helped him pay for school and graduate debt free.

“In computer science, it’s hard to say you’re directly helping people’s lives like a nurse could say what they do is directly helping people live better. I want to do something more toward that,” he said.

Conley is also participating in one more KEY trip: attending IU Kokomo’s signature Innovation Symposium this summer. The program takes students to the United Kingdom, where they meet innovators, practice innovative thinking, learn about global and local issues, and develop individual projects to address global issues.

He appreciates the opportunity to travel with IU Kokomo once more, inspired by the impact of his previous Italy trip. As a teenager, he had worked in an Italian restaurant and had long dreamed of visiting the country.

“I’ve just always been obsessed with that country’s food and culture,” he said. “What I experienced was way above what I expected.”

Conley ate dinner in the restaurant that invented alfredo, set and achieved a goal of climbing the tallest tower in every city they visited, and had a once-in-a-lifetime visit to a family-owned workshop in Florence that has handcrafted violins for generations.

That happened by accident, he said. One of his friends asked their tour guide where they could find a violin shop, and when they knocked on the door, they found the family at work.

“It wasn’t supposed to be open to the public, but they showed us their workshop, and their partially made violins,” he said, adding that the cheapest violin this family sold was $15,000.

“Their shop dates back a long time, and it’s a family business,” he said. “That was one of the coolest things I’ve ever experienced. We weren’t expecting it, but it was better than what we were looking for. It was a super cool experience.”

Education is KEY at Indiana University Kokomo.