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For a long time, Irelynn Holland felt disconnected from her own purpose. The future seemed enigmatic and distant, too heavy to consider on most days. The Reno, Nevada, native had dropped out of high school for a time and didn’t have intentions of going to college. Scholarships made it possible for her to enroll, but when she arrived at the University of Wyoming, picking a trajectory still felt unnerving.
“I didn’t have much confidence in who I was,” Irelynn says. “I felt the future lurking, at a distance. It was daunting. What was I even good at? I’m not great at sports. I can’t really draw. I didn’t have my niche thing, something to really care about. What was it that I loved?”
Something that did interest Irelynn was what it meant to be an artist and how being an artist transforms your character and relationships. She began studying iconic musicians, working backward through decades of music—starting with Mötley Crüe and then Fleetwood Mac until she arrived at the Beatles. “That was it. I hit the Beatles, and I knew there was no need to go any further. I had found my calling.”
As Irelynn began to discover Beatlemania, Dr. Kent Drummond, who has taught at UW for 36 years, had embarked on a project that explores the cultural magnitude of the English rock band from Liverpool. “There’s no other group that’s had this kind of impact,” Kent says. “They have been broken up for 55 years, but they still speak to us.”
As an undergraduate in the McNair Scholars Program, Irelynn was struggling to settle on a research project. She wanted to study the Beatles but worried the subject didn’t feel “academic enough.” Encouraged by a mutual colleague, she reached out to Kent. When the two connected, he validated her passion. “Here was a professor at UW who shared the same interests as me and said, ‘Yes, this matters. Yes, you can pursue this,’” Irelynn says.
““Every time I’ve doubted myself, he’s been there reminding me I’m strong enough and smart enough. Now, the way Dr. Drummond sees me is the way I see myself.”
That mentorship has transformed Irelynn’s path. Kent guided her through conference presentations across the country, introduced her to professional networks, and traveled with her abroad, including to Liverpool. “When I lived in Reno, I had never left Reno,” Irelynn says. “Dr. Drummond opened up the whole world for me.”
For Kent, seeing her growth has been an inspiration. “She’s already making an impact in this field,” he says. “She’s taught me as much as I’ve taught her.”
Scholarship support has been essential to Irelynn’s journey, making it possible for her to study abroad. “I wouldn’t have seen anything outside of Wyoming, Colorado, and Nevada without scholarships,” she says. “They opened the doors to everything.”
As Irelynn looks toward earning a Ph.D. in Liverpool, she carries forward the lessons of mentorship. “I hope other students know they can reach out, be vulnerable, and build relationships with professors,” she says. “It can change your life. It changed mine.”
For Kent, the connection has been just as transformative. “These deep mentor-protégé relationships are rare. They only come along once every 10 years,” he says. “At the end of my career, to have one like this—it’s really wonderful. To experience her journey, through her eyes, I’m just so proud of her.”
