NELSONVILLE, Ohio — A woman in southeast Ohio is not just forging a new trail for women in her education, but plans to continue that motion into her professional career.

“Women in the craft brewing industry, there’s not a lot of us,” said Gwyn Armstrong, a student at Hocking College.

The Columbus native spent the first part of her college career studying marine biology and bio-science technology. 

But after a change of heart, she found herself at Hocking College and enamored with the craft brewing industry. 

“Their whole premise of, we want to make craft brew big instead of like the commercial companies really stuck out to me,” she said. “Being around other people who loved craft brewing put that passion of being like, oh, this is what I want to do.”

Armstrong, who earned a brewing scholarship, studies fermentation science at Hocking College, and also works as a bartender at BrewDog in Franklinton. 

Her instructor at Hocking College, Eric Hedin, shares in the excitement and timeless tradition. 

“Everybody made some sort of alcohol in a previous lifetime, and when people get in touch with their roots, there is just an overwhelming good feeling,” said Hedin. 

Armstrong has one year under her belt, one more to go, and could become the program’s first female graduate. 

She also has her own beer, which began as a collaboration for International Women’s Day. 

“Since I’m the first woman in this program here in Hocking, they’re like, ‘let’s do a woman-based brew,’ so I did the Pink Boots IPA back in November,” said Armstrong. “This is definitely just the start to my bigger vision. Eventually, I would like to open my own, woman based, led and run brewery.”

Armstrong said she knows it’s going to take a couple more years of both schooling and real-life experience before setting out on her journey as an entrepreneur. 

She’s hoping to one day be that trailblazer that other women look up to in the craft brewing industry. 

“If I can do it and really have a passion for it, you can too,” she said.