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fellow. She received the URI Excellence Award for Undergraduate Research—the only student to receive the award as a sophomore. When it came time to apply to graduate school in 2020, Loberti decided to focus on rhetoric since it felt like an amalgamation of everything she studied. “I am interested in how our words have power to shape the world around us,” she says. “I hoped that focus would help me answer my questions, but it wasn’t until I got cast in All the Light that I realized I could use my research background to reach people around the world.” Her work transcends the screen. In October 2025, Loberti launched her first children’s picture book, I Am Ingrid, through Scholastic Publishing, the largest publisher of children’s books in the world. The same research-based practice she uses to approach acting applies to her writing, too. I Am Ingrid is a heartwarming, funny story that educates kids about service animals. While at URI,

Loberti researched the bond between service animals and their human partners through a communication lens. To prepare for writing I Am Ingrid , she revisited that research. “Writing was always my biggest childhood dream,” says Loberti, “and it is now a major part of my business plan. I have multiple manuscripts in the works that are close to my heart.” Loberti still, however, feels insecure about her unconventional start to her career. She tries to use her unique perspective as a strength. “What helped me change careers so abruptly was being able to understand people,” she says. “Acting and writing are both all about understanding humanity, as a collective and individually. When I tell people my acting and writing career has been built on the back of my research background, they often look surprised. But the truth is that every role I inhabit or book I write owes something to my work as an undergraduate researcher at URI.”

“When I tell people my acting and writing career has been built on the back of my research background, they often look surprised. But the truth is that every role I inhabit or book I write owes something to my work as an undergraduate researcher at URI.”

-Aria Mia Loberti

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