Engineering a comeback: Macy Gregory turned a medical crisis into a calling

Macy Gregory’s engineering career path started with a crisis.

In November of her sophomore year at the Henry M. Rowan College of Engineering, the Cape May County resident received an alarming phone call from an ophthalmologist at Wills Eye Hospital in Philadelphia. An MRI of her brain revealed the reason her eyes were suddenly crossed.

“She said, ‘Macy, you need to see a neurosurgeon right away,’” Gregory recalled. “‘You have a condition called Chiari malformation of the brain.’”

A sudden turn

The life‑saving diagnosis sent Gregory through a year of surgeries and hospital stays. It disrupted her education and led her to switch majors, but it also reset her course toward a career in the medical device industry.

Now preparing to graduate with a bachelor’s degree in electrical and computer engineering and a minor in neuroscience, Gregory already has an engineering job lined up. She will join Impulse Dynamics, a medical technology manufacturer in Marlton, where she has worked part time since completing a summer internship last year.

“I love it,” Gregory said. “As a brain surgery survivor working in the engineering field, it’s cool because I can understand patients’ perspective, but also the engineering perspective. I want to be able to help people.”

Chiari malformation causes the lower part of the brain to push down into the spinal canal, creating pressure on the brainstem. Likely born with the incurable condition, which progressed as she grew, Gregory required eye and brain surgeries to preserve her eyesight and save her life.

In the weeks following her diagnosis in late 2021, Gregory wore an eye patch while finishing coursework and final exams. She commuted to class and endured Calculus III while experiencing worsening headaches, neck pain, dizziness and crossed eyes.

“Everyone has their own struggles and this just happened to be mine,” Gregory said.

The only child of parents who retired from careers in social services and information technology, Gregory leaned on her family for support. She also found encouragement through classmates, professors and friends.

From hospital stays to career inspiration

While riding in the back of an ambulance after experiencing a life‑threatening surgical complication, Gregory found comfort in speaking with an emergency medical technician who shared a connection to Rowan’s engineering program. During her hospital stays, she asked questions about the devices doctors and nurses used, fascinated by the technology behind her care.

Her curiosity soon turned to clarity.

That summer, while working as a machine mechanic at an arcade in Sea Isle City, Gregory realized that developing life‑saving medical devices might be her true passion. Her experiences led her to abandon her progress toward a degree in civil and environmental engineering and instead pursue a path focused on helping patients like herself.

Starting over

Switching degree programs and returning to Rowan after a semester on medical leave meant essentially restarting the engineering curriculum, said Robi Polikar, associate dean for academic affairs and a professor and department head in Rowan’s electrical and computer engineering program.

In the semesters that followed, Polikar frequently heard Gregory’s name as she volunteered for college events and student activities. She served on the department’s student advisory council, joined the executive board of Rowan’s Robotics and Automation Society, and won a 24‑hour hackathon through Rowan’s Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.

“She’s one of the most thoughtful, considerate, dedicated, hard-working students that I know,” Polikar said. “She’s here most of the time. She’s here in the building more often than most students.”

A community that showed up

Soon after returning to classes, Gregory confided in her mother that she felt unsure of her direction. 

“Just ask for help,” her mom advised.

One day, while sitting alone in a lab, Gregory spoke up. “Can somebody help me?” she called out. Several students came over—and three of them are now among her closest friends.

“They were just so willing to help,” Gregory said. “They don’t even remember it, but everybody’s so wonderful. They are so accommodating. The entire program is just really awesome all around.”

Polikar remains one of Gregory’s strongest supporters.

“I cannot think of anyone else in our program who has been through so much,” Polikar said, “who has shown so much grit and perseverance, and came out the other end with an unmatched and renewed sense of purpose in life, all while constantly looking for ways to help others.”

Polikar said he became emotional after learning that a company he had recommended her to for a summer internship offered her a job in the industry she hoped to pursue.

“What a great conclusion to this amazing story,” he said.