Helping Underrepresented Students Move Up the Socioeconomic Ladder : Dr. Robert Fernandez

In this episode, I chatted with Dr. Robert Fernandez, the Executive Director of Cientifico Latino, and a United States Obama Leaders for the Obama Foundation Leaders USA Program. He is a former PD Soros Fellow and a former undocumented immigrant who once had a dream of becoming a scientist. His dreams have become a reality, and he is now helping historically marginalized students access higher education in the sciences! Transcription Transcribed by Julissa Larios (she/her)

Empowering the next generation of Hispanic/Latinx Scientists: Dr. Tina Termini

When Doris (formerly UNC PREP Postbac Scholar, Currently University of Michigan PhD student) was applying to graduate school, JP connected her with Dr. Christina Termini, the creator of the List of 100 Inspiring Hispanic/Latinx Scientists. In this conversation, we mentioned expanding that list, and thus the #LatinxAtlas was born! Check out the original list of 100 Inspiring Hispanic/Latinx Scientists ⁠here⁠, and check out the #LatinxAtlas, housed by the Fred Hutch Cancer Center ⁠here⁠!

Getting Everyone to their Destination: Dr. Lyric Jorgenson

In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Lyric Jorgenson, the Associate Director of Science Policy and the Director of the Office of Science Policy at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Per the ⁠NIH Office of Science Policy website⁠, she provides senior leadership in the development and oversight of cross-cutting biomedical research policies and programs considered to be of high-priority to NIH and the United States Government. Prior to this role, she served in numerous roles across the agency, including Deputy Director of the Office of Science Policy, and has led the development of numerous high impact science and policy initiatives such as the Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative and the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS).

Giving People Power to Change : Dr. Beronda Montgomery

In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Beronda Montgomery, an amazing mentor, leader, and author of “Lessons from Plants”. Per her website, she is a writer, researcher, and scholar who pursues a common theme of understanding how individuals perceive, respond to, and are impacted by the environments in which they exist. Her primary laboratory-based research is focused on the responses of photosynthetic organisms (i.e., plants and cyanobacteria) to external light cues. Additionally, she pursues this theme in the context of effective mentoring and leadership of individuals, and the role of innovative leaders in supporting success.

Hearing it from the Top: Dr. Neali Lucas

In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Neali Lucas. She has been at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for 14 years, where she is currently the Senior Science Advisor in the Office of the Commissioner, Office of the Chief Scientist. She was the first African-American scientist to graduate from her graduate program at the University of Michigan in 2007, and we had a rich discussion about equity and inclusion in STEM and the importance of hearing about how important these topics are from the top.