About Us

Dr. Robert W. Fernandez is the Executive Director of Cientifico Latino, Inc. He was born in Lima, Peru and grew up in NJ where he attended community college at Union County College where he majored in Business Administration. He received his Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Biotechnology at York College, City University of New York. As a former undocumented immigrant for twenty years, mentors played a vital role in navigating his undergraduate and doctoral studies and he believes in pushing it forward. He received his PhD in Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry at Yale where he mapped neurotransmitter GPCRs in the C. elegans egg-laying circuit. He previously was a Junior Simons Fellow at Columbia University. He is the co-founder of Científico Latino, Inc. a science organization that works to improve the pipeline of minoritized students in higher education in the sciences. Dr. Fernandez received awards for his work such as the PD Soros Fellowship, selected as one of the 100 inspiring Hispanic/Latinx scientists in America, and Public Voices Fellow of the Op-Ed Project.

Olivia is a Schmidt Science Postdoctoral Fellow in the SENse Lab at HHMI / University of California, Berkeley. She co-founded Científico Latino in 2016 after realizing how obscure the path to succeeding in STEM graduate school applications is without information and mentorship. She has previous served as a co-founder and co-director of GSMI, and Digital Experience Director. She is passionate about making science accessible to anyone who is curious.

She completed her PhD at The Rockefeller University, advised by Dr. Leslie Vosshall, on chemosensation in mosquitoes, the deadliest animal to humans. Previously, she received her Bachelor of Arts in Neuroscience & Behavior at Barnard College of Columbia University, and then worked as a research technician in the lab of Nobel prize winner Dr. Eric Kandel. She was a fellow of the Women and Science Initiative in 2017, the recipient of the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship in 2019 and was named a Kavli Neural Systems Institute Graduate Fellow in 2021.

Cathy is currently a Patent Agent at Goodwin. She received her PhD from the Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry Department at Yale University in 2021. She received her Bachelor's in Chemistry from Amherst College in 2014, where she discovered her interest in the intersection between chemistry and biology. After college, she worked as a lab technician at MIT for two years before gaining the confidence to apply to Ph.D. programs. Being a first-generation student who grew up in a Salvadoran family in Miami, FL, Cathy is passionate about mentoring future generations of underrepresented scientists and hopeful that we can work together to address the problem of lack of representation of underrepresented minority scholars in higher education.

Melissa is currently a PhD student in the joint Emory University and Georgia Institute of Technology Biomedical Engineering program. She is Colombian-American, born and raised in Queens, NY. Melissa completed her B.S.E. in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Michigan (Go Blue!). Melissa's research focuses on creating a more sophisticated model of neurodevelopment by integrating cortical brain organoids and 3D bioprinting. She is supported by the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship. Melissa is very involved in diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, educational outreach, and mentorship for underrepresented and marginalized students. With CL, she hopes to continue being involved in these efforts and making STEM inclusive and accessible to all.

Daisy was born and raised in Brooklyn, NYC. She recently graduated with her PhD in Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry from Yale University. Daisy is excited to be continuing her 5th year working for Científico Latino. She started off as a Webinar Director, and is now serving her first year as Digital Education Director for GSMI. She is excited to continue working for and working with students from all backgrounds.

Dr. Nandan G. Pandit is a Junior Board member of Cientifico Latino and runs the Consulting Preparation Program. Dr. Pandit graduated from the University of Connecticut in 2014 with B.S. in Molecular and Cellular Biology with Honors. There he won the Life Science thesis award for his undergraduate research thesis in the Birge Lab focused on designing a protein based retinal implant to treat age related macular degeneration. Afterwards, Dr. Pandit joined Yale University where he joined the De La Cruz Laboratory. Dr. Pandit proposed and initiated a new branch of research in the De La Cruz Laboratory where he discovered that mechanical forces can accelerate biochemical reactions associated with the actin cytoskeleton. His graduate work was published in top tier journals and he was invited to speak at the top conference in his field. Upon graduation, he joined LEK a global management consulting firm known for Life Sciences. Dr. Pandit was quickly promoted to project leader where he specialized in Life Science tools, diagnostics, and bioprocessing where he led projects generating >$3M in revenue. Aiming to further specialize and drive impact in the industry, Dr. Pandit joined the Strategy team at Thermo Fisher Scientific where he supports strategic decisions made at the C-suite level. Dr. Pandit plans to continue leveraging his technical insights in Life Science tools and business experience to enable innovation through his career in the precision medicine industry.

Heber is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Washington in the department of Immunology. His thesis explores how the small intestine responds to a parasitic helminth infection with a focus on cell differentiation and effector functions. He was born in northern Mexico, but raised in Arizona where he earned his B.S. in Biochemistry.

In his time with CL, he has acted as a mentor through the GSMI program and more recently as a part of the graphic design team. There he has designed newsletter graphics, social media posts and T shirts. Heber is committed to making science- its reasoning, learnings and tools- more accessible and creating a training environment that sustains and supports trainees from under represented backgrounds.

Carlos graduated from Hamilton College in 2010 where he majored in chemical physics. For graduate studies, he joined the laboratory of Dr. Thomas Sakmar at the Rockefeller University as part of the tri-institutional training program in chemical biology. Carlos was awarded the NSF graduate research fellowship in 2012 to support his research efforts. He received his Ph.D. in 2017 where he employed single-molecule methods to interrogate receptor-ligand binding interactions. He then joined the bio-imaging resource center at the Rockefeller University where he taught other scientists how to operate various light microscopes. He obtained his M.D. degree from Weill Cornell Medicine in 2024 and is currently a resident in psychiatry at the Johns Hopkins Hospital.

The García-Bayona lab at Stanford studies the role of mobile genes in the community interactions of the human intestinal microbiota. Leonor grew up in Bogota, Colombia and completed her Chemical Engineering and Microbiology undergraduate studies at the University of the Andes. During her doctoral work in the lab of Michael Laub at MIT, she acquired a strong background in bacterial genetics, physiology, genomics and interbacterial antagonism. She the became a postdoctoral fellow in the lab of Laurie Comstock, first at Brigham and Women's Hospital/Harvard Medical School and later at the University of Chicago. In the Comstock lab, Leonor trained in intestinal anaerobe microbiology, advanced microscopy and bioinformatics. Leonor is deeply committed to promoting equitable access for all to STEM.

Sergio is a neuroscience and chemical biology PhD candidate at the Scripps Research Institute working on Alzheimer's disease cerebral organoid models and treatments. Prior to beginning his doctoral studies in 2018, he earned a B.S.E. in Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering and a Master of Biotechnology at the University of Pennsylvania. As a naturalized immigrant, born and raised in Mexico, Sergio is committed to his community support efforts; leading numerous Latinx pre-professional organizations and mentorship programs at Penn, co-founding his current institution's Scientific Diversity Association, and co-developing the GSEC program at Científico Latino. Sergio strives to continue these, and future efforts synergizing mentorship, community outreach, and advocacy to assist and empower present and future generations of underrepresented minorities in STEM.

I am currently a postdoctoral researcher at Yale School of Medicine. I am a developmental biologist who investigates how chromatin modifiers and another category of underexplored proteins, called micropeptides, shape the gene networks that specify and specialize vertebrate cells, with implications for the evolution of cell states and developmental disorders. I look forward to establishing my independent research lab as a tenure-track faculty member within the next year. Please visit valerietornini.com for more information!

Aníbal is a 5th year PhD candidate in the biological chemistry program at the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor. His multiple and diverse research experiences led him into the versatile community that uses fruit flies as a model organism, in his case, to identify the modulatory effects of social experiences. He was born in La Habana, Cuba, and then migrated to Puerto Rico. While pursuing his bachelor's at the University of Puerto Rico - Río Piedras, he volunteered for a science museum. He enjoyed answering questions from students and elders in his community, but he often found himself at the limits of his knowledge. This led him to look for answers alongside the scientists who generated them while doing research. His passion for making science for all is aligned with the Científico Latino mission, as we are driven to streamline the PhD pathway for diverse future generations of scientists.

Daniel is a native Pacific Islander of Guam and a Cancer Biology PhD graduate from UMich. They studied the role of specialized cells in the progression of Pancreatic Cancer, soon to be the second most deadly cancer as of 2025. Daniel is a PREP Alum and 1st generation College/PhD Student. Overall, they are interested in becoming a PI and having a lab where students from Guam can come and work during the summer for experience. To acheive this Daniel will be doing a postdoc in Pancreatic Cancer. Daniel works to improve Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion through a number of initiatives at UMich, their undergrad alma mater as well as national programs. With CL, they hope to provide underrepresented minorities the resources and opportunities needed to succeed in their chosen fields.

Dr. Giovanna Guerrero-Medina is Director of the Yale Ciencia Initiative in Yale School of Medicine’s Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) and Director for DEI of Yale’s Wu Tsai Institute. She leads programs that broaden participation and increase inclusion and retention in STEM training and careers. She is PI of the Yale Ciencia Academy, an NIH-funded professional development program that has provided >260 biomedical and health science PhD students across the U.S. with training, mentoring, and peer support. Until recently, Dr. Guerrero-Medina was Executive Director of Ciencia Puerto Rico. Under her leadership, CienciaPR grew to a network of >17,000, a staff of 18, and the organization was recognized for their work promoting justice, equity, and inclusion in by the Union of Concerned Scientists, the AAAS-Caribbean Division, and the White House. Originally from Puerto Rico, with heritage from Ecuador and Argentina, she has a bachelor’s in biology from the University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras and a PhD in Molecular and Cell Biology from the University of California, Berkeley, followed by science policy work with the National Academies and the NIH.

Gizela Thomas, a native of Boston, MA, embarked on her academic journey with a dual major in History and Political Science, driven by her passion for storytelling and fascination with diverse political systems. As a consultant on state and federal projects, she has effectively utilized her perspective and skills to enhance project outcomes. Gizela's early exposure to data as a decision-making tool, particularly in healthcare, ignited her interest in data visualization, which she has further honed through online courses and diverse projects. Her commitment to improving organizational data capacity is set to deepen as she pursues a Master's in Big Data at IE University in Spain starting this fall. With a vision for fostering a more equitable and inclusive world, Gizela aims to leverage her skills to drive positive societal change.

I am proud to be first-gen, mexican-american neuroscientist. I received my B.A. in neuroscience from Skidmore College in 2018. I then worked as a research assistant at the Medical University of South Carolina. I've recently finished my first year as a neuroscience PhD student at UC Irvine and I am broadly interested in learning and memory. I am deeply passionate about STEM outreach, increasing diversity in science, and empowering future scientists.

I'm a fourth year Latiné Ph.D student at the University of Utah studying the evolution of cell-substrate adhesions. Outside of research, I'm passionate about EDI related initiatives and science education. When not in lab or at EDI related events, you can find me at concerts, out running on the trials, camping in the mountains or cooking something new.

Helen Salinas is entering her 4th year of her PhD at the University of Southern California in the Zavaleta Lab, where she is studying the use of nanoparticles in cancer diagnostics. She has received immense mentorship during her academic journey and is passionate about paying it forward, with a strong desire to increase the retention of diverse scientists. Helen has completed three internships in biotech and is committed to increasing the representation of diverse scientists who share her background as a first generation citizen and college student. She has been awarded a GEM Full Fellowship for her research.

Hecmarie is an advisor at Eli Lilly & Company. She obtained her BS in Integrative Biology from the University of Puerto Rico at Río Piedras, and then went on to complete various research experiences including a summer internship at The Ohio State University under Randy J. Nelson, PhD, (who would later become her graduate advisor), and a postbaccalaureate research year at Baylor College of Medicine. She earned her PhD in Neuroscience, studying how exposure to artificial light at night impairs vascular endothelial function, metabolism and sleep, in a sex-dependent fashion.
Throughout her career, Hecmarie has experienced the value of mentors and advisors throughout her career, so her goal in volunteering with CL is to pay it forward. She is passionate about mentoring and contributing to the formation of future scientists, focused on the inclusion, education, and retention of underrepresented minorities and Latinx populations in science - whatever form that science takes (academic research, non-academic research, clinical trials, industry, sci comm, sci art, etc).

I am a cognitive scientist and PhD student at the University of Toronto studying computational models of social learning, supervised by Dr. Daphna Buchsbaum and Dr. Wil Cunningham. Previously, I completed my Bachelor of Arts in Cognitive Science at Swarthmore College in 2017. Throughout my academic career, I have been fortunate to mentor several undergraduate students navigating their way through the hidden curriculum of graduate school applications and foster their passion for learning. After learning about the mission of Científico Latino to foster a more equitable and diverse culture in academia in the sciences, I was motivated to get involved and first participated as a mentor for GSMI in 2021. Now, as a member of GSEC’s Data Team, I hope to use my quantitative skills to contribute to the mission of providing mentorship and resources to current and future scientists from underrepresented and marginalized backgrounds.

Dennisha is a second year PhD student in the Neuroscience graduate program at the University of Rochester. She was previously, a neuroscience post-baccalaureate scholar at Oregon Health & Science University. She was born and raised in Brooklyn, NY. Dennisha is proud to be a first-generation West Indian American college and graduate student. She received her Bachelor of Science degree in Neuroscience and Public Health from Agnes Scott College in Atlanta, GA. While at Agnes Scott, Dennisha became involved in multiple student organizations focusing on mentorship and fostering support networks for underrepresented minority student interested in pursuing STEM careers. She hopes to continue to work to increase visibility for URMs in STEM through STEM community outreach initiatives as well as mentorship opportunities as a part of the Cientifico Latino team.

Roberto is a fourth year PhD student at The Rockefeller University. A member of Dr. Mary Beth Hatten's laboratory, he is interested in identifying novel mechanisms underlying neuronal development in the cerebellar cortex. Prior to graduate school, Roberto completed a Bachelor of Science in Biology at the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez. He was also a summer intern at The Jackson Laboratory in Bar Harbor, Maine and an NIH Postbaccalaureate Research Education Program Fellow at the University of Washington in Seattle. Roberto’s experiences as a Puerto Rican in STEM motivate him to lead initiatives aimed towards the recruitment and retention of underrepresented minorities in STEM. CL’s GSMI program has a special place in his heart as it helped him navigate the complexity of the graduate school applications process. He could not be more excited to give back to this initiative in his role as Webinar Coordinator.

Alexander is a proud first-generation college graduate of immigrant parents from Central America (El Salvador & Honduras). Currently, he is a PhD Candidate at Florida International University. His research interests lie STEM and Biology education. More specifically, he is interested in the transition from high school into college. Prior to his time at FIU, he was a high school biology teacher in Massachusetts. Teaching reinforced his passion for making a difference, and further cemented his desire to pursue a PhD. When not busy learning, he enjoys traveling, watching movies, and simply going out to have fun. Lastly, he is a strong believer in the power of positivity and good vibes, and always makes it his mission to spread smiles. A question he may ask you to ponder is, "what is something good that has happened to you recently?"

Alex is a Chemistry PhD candidate and NSF Graduate Research Fellow at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. He was born and raised on Long Island, New York, and earned his B.S. in Chemistry at UCLA. As a queer Salvadoran-American scientist, he is committed to contributing to the diversification of the sciences, particularly through inclusive mentorship, DEI training, and equitable policymaking. He joined Científico Latino in 2020 as a GSMI mentor and has held the position of fellowship reviewer for the past year. He is also actively involved in his department's DEI committee, through which he has organized several DEI seminar series and co-founded a DEI self-study program. He has mentored STEM students through mentorship programs at the college, local, and national levels, and is excited to continue working with students to craft their unique stories and communicate their scientific ideas in preparation for their fellowship applications.

Amanda is a rising third year PhD student in Astronomy at Northwestern University. She currently works with Dr. Jason Wang and his Big planets: OrBits and Atmospheres (BOBA) Group focused generally on the direct imaging of exoplanets. Amanda is interested in the formation and dynamics of giant exoplanets and contributing to the instruments used to detect and characterize them. Her current research focuses on developing astrometric calibration methods for the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope Coronagraph Instrument Data Reduction Pipeline. Amanda is also a former GSMI Scholar from the 2021 cohort. She enjoys boxing and reading on the beach in her free time.

Bolívar is an ecologist and evolutionary biologist focused on using metagenomics and whole-genome sequencing to explore the interaction endophytes in tropical trees and alpine yellow monkeyflowers. He combines field experiments and surveys with data science to answer how leaf functional traits in tropical trees and alpine yellow monkeyflowers influence the endophyte communities able to colonize them. He started his academic journey as a Political Science major at the University of Puerto Rico-Río Piedras, but his interests in ecology led him to pursue a Master's in Conservation Ecology at the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, where he studied ants in coffee agroecosystems in Mexico. His collaborations with scientists in the Global South have underscored the crucial role of cross-cultural dialogue in enhancing diversity of people and knowledge in scientific pursuits. Throughout his academic journey he aims to teach ecology and R programming to others while increasing equity and diversity in said spaces.

Hello! I am a postdoctoral research fellow in the Voytek Lab at UC San Diego and co-founder of Colors of the Brain, a summer undergraduate research program at UC San Diego.
My current research aims to bridge human cortical organoid physiology with human behavior and EEG in neurodevelopmental disorder patient populations. My long-term goal is to start a lab that researches cortical circuits for social decision-making and their disruption in neurodevelopmental disorders.

Cristina is a fifth year Neuroscience PhD candidate at Michigan State University. She was born and raised in Puerto Rico, where she received her BS in biology from the University of Puerto Rico at Cayey. Cristina’s research focuses on investigating the role of various neuropeptides in morphine behaviors by using mouse models to gain a better understanding of opioid use disorder. She has received the NSF GRFP and the HHMI Gilliam Fellowship to assist with her research. In addition to her lab work, Cristina has volunteered in multiple outreach committees and programs, and was the graduate student council president in 2023. She worked previously with GSMI as a personal statement reviewer. She hopes to promote DEI initiatives at her institution and assist with demystifying the graduate school experience. In her spare time, Cristina enjoys spending time with her dog, playing tennis, and going to the movies.

Eldridge is a PhD student at the University of Texas Medical Branch in the Department of Pathology, joining in the Fall of 2021. Eldridge is a Costa Rican-American from southwest Virginia raised in the Appalachian mountains and completed his undergraduate training at Virginia Tech majoring in Microbiology. His PhD thesis is focused on understanding how viruses that typically spread through arthropods might spread through nonconventional paths, like sexual transmission. Eldridge aims to continue researching zoonotic viral diseases and is passionate about scientific outreach and mentorship to help achieve equal representation at all levels of STEM research. Eldridge also spends time raising an uncooperative husky shepherd dog, reading fiction, and hiking.

Elif is a Ph.D. student at Boston University in the Neurobiology program. She is investigating how key lysosomal-dependent signaling pathways are remodeled across neurons. Originally from Turkey, Elif attended Rutgers University in New Jersey and earned a B.A. in Cell Biology and Neuroscience. To support her graduate studies, Elif has received the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship in 2024. She is passionate about mentorship and has previously served as a GSMI mentor in 2023. Elif is excited to continue with the GSMI team and supporting underrepresented applicants in STEM with crafting their personal statements.

Emma Robertson (she/her) is a PhD candidate in Physical Oceanography at the Alfred Wegener Institute and Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich where she studies causes of salinity changes in the Southern Ocean using seawater isotopes to trace the impact of melting ice masses on the ocean’s salinity. She has an MS in Geography from Pennsylvania State University where she was an NSF Graduate Research Fellow and Gem Consortium Fellow. She also earned a BS in Environmental Science and BA in Geography from UMass Amherst. Previous research projects include using water isotopes from ice core records to study atmospheric rivers and ice sheet-climate interactions in West Antarctica. Emma’s upbringing in Los Angeles, CA and Melbourne, Australia fostered her interest in global climate change impacts and international environmental justice issues.

Grecia Rivera is a first-gen student from Peru. She was awarded a full scholarship by the Sweden government to attend Zamorano University (Honduras), where she earned a B.S. in Food Science and Technology. In 2018, she joined Duke University as a researcher, where she worked with Covid-19, 3D organoids and stem cells. Grecia was a GSMI mentee for the cycle 2022 and got accepted into graduate school. Currently, she is a Ph.D. student at the University of Colorado – Anschutz Medical Campus in the department of Microbiology. Her research focuses on how disrupting the interactions between the gastrointestinal tract and bacteria triggers colorectal cancer and IBD. As an underrepresented minority in STEM, she has experienced hardships and lack of opportunities. Therefore, she joined Cientifico Latino to make opportunities available and help other students to thrive in their scientific journey. Grecia loves dancing, running long distances, and hanging out with friends.

Hannah is a molecular biology PhD student at the University of Utah studying the roles of RNA editing enzymes and RNA sensors in antiviral immunity and autoimmunity. They received their Bachelor of Science degree from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona in Microbiology. Hannah is passionate about helping students from marginalized backgrounds, especially those with intersecting marginalized identities navigate academia and be successful in graduate school. They are also dedicated to mentoring undergraduate students and advocating for the LGBTQIA+ community in academia. Hannah was a GSMI scholar in 2019 and a GSMI mentor in 2020. Their experience with the GSMI opened up opportunities to join the Social Media Team.

JP is a PhD Candidate in Bioinformatics & Computational Biology at UNC Chapel Hill studying the role of 3D chromatin structure in response to environmental stress. He is the Founder and Host of the From where does it STEM? podcast where he interviews scientists from all over the world and asks how they got there. He was a Science Policy Intern in the NIH Office of Science Policy housed in the NIH Director's Office in 2024 and is complementing his PhD at UNC by pursuing a Graduate Certificate in Innovation for the Public Good. Through this training, he hopes to innovate in both science and social justice efforts. He is an NSF GRFP Fellow and always down to be a resource for others, especially those from minoritized and marginalized backgrounds.

Jennifer is a Biomedical Sciences student at the University of Illinois Chicago. She earned her B.S. in Genetics from Iowa State University, followed by a postbac at the University of Kansas under the NIH PREP Scholars program. She is very proud to be a first generation student raised by immigrant parents. However, this made it difficult for her to navigate the world of education such as transitioning to college, applying to undergrad and graduate programs, and all the challenges that come with being a minority in STEM. For these reasons, Jennifer is passionate about community outreach, advocacy for empowering future scientists, and increasing accessibility to resources that can assist underrepresented students. Outside of research and classes, she enjoys going to concerts, traveling, and spending time with friends and family.

Kenny is a rising 3rd year Ph.D student at the University of Pennsylvania who is focusing on the synthesis of photo-induced chemical tools to optically control biological receptors using light. With an emphasis in synthetic organic chemistry, photo-pharmacology, and chemical neuroscience, he aims to develop a wide expertise to better understand the bio-organic mechanisms of the brain and how they induce behavior. Kenny is a FGLI student who is the first in the family to achieve beyond a 2nd grade education. As a non-traditional student, he is driven to transform the frontiers of academia by recruiting, retaining, and mentoring underrepresented students to become strong candidates for graduate school and expert researchers in their respective fields, as shown by his work as president of ADSE@Penn (Alliance for Diversity in Science and Engineering, UPenn’s chapter). He is excited to be working with Cientifico Latino to further support minoritized communities.

Mari is a neuroscience PhD student working in The Grady Trauma Project at Emory University, supervised by Dr. Vasiliki Michopoulos. Mari is from Mexico but was raised in Watsonville, California an agricultural town in the central coast. Mari completed her B.S. in biology at Yale University, followed by a postbac at UC Santa Cruz under the NIH PREP Scholars program. Mari’s research focuses on the physiological impact of traumatic experiences on maternal health in pregnant persons from underresourced and marginalized communities. Beyond research, Mari is part of diversity equity and inclusion efforts at her institution and beyond, and is especially passionate about improving educational access for marginalized students. Mari’s aim as part of Cientifico Latino is to help dismantle educational barriers for aspiring scientists.

Maribel is a neuroscience PhD candidate in the Kim lab at the University of California, Davis. She is investigating the molecular and functional circuitry underlying the relationship between reward-seeking and social hierarchy. Maribel received the NSF-GRFP in 2021 as a postbac student. Maribel is first-generation Mexican-American and the first in her family to attend college and graduate school. She enjoys investing time in DEI initiatives that make science and graduate school more accessible.

Mindy is a 3rd year PhD student at UC Davis Graduate Group in Immunology. She grew up in the Philippines and moved to Los Angeles as a teenager. She did her undergrad at UC Merced where she graduated with a degree in Biomedical Sciences with an emphasis in Microbiology and Immunology. She was also involved in multiple pipeline graduate and research programs during this time. Mindy's current research focuses on understanding the molecular and cellular interactions between poxvirus viral proteins and host innate immune defenses. Outside the lab, Mindy continues to participate in her community by being both a mentor and mentee, organizing academic and social events, and volunteering for outreach opportunities.

Nicholas is a Gene Therapy and Vaccines PhD student at the University of Pennsylvania developing therapeutic mRNAs for use in lipid nanoparticles in the laboratory of Dr. Drew Weissman. He is Mexican American and was born and raised in the Rio Grande Valley. He got his start in research in the High Scholars Program at the University of Texas Pan American before starting undergrad at the University of Texas at Austin. He earned a bachelor's degree in biology with a concentration in microbiology. Since his start at the University of Texas, he has been avid about helping underrepresented minorities excel in STEM and has been involved in multiple outreach initiatives. He plans to continue these efforts during his graduate studies to continue to foster a welcoming and supportive environment for URM.

Rocío is a post-doc in the laboratory of Dr. Stephen Liberles at Harvard Medical School studying mechanisms of internal sensory neurons. She received her PhD in 2022 from Yale University and is a 2017 NSF-GRFP and For Predoctoral Fellow. She is originally from San Sebastián, Puerto Rico and received her Bachelor's degree in Biology from the University of Puerto Rico in Mayagüez in 2015.

I am a second-year doctoral student in the clinical psychology program at UTRGV. My research centers on adapting and developing interventions that are evidence-based, transportable, culturally informed, and effectively implemented in various community settings that benefit individuals with immigrant and linguistic minority backgrounds. I am particularly interested in developing these interventions for survivors of violence (e.g., domestic violence, human trafficking). Outside of school and work, I enjoy reading, watching movies, hiking, and playing video games.

Ya'el is a fifth-year PhD candidate in Neuroscience at Harvard University. She works with Dr. Maria Lehtinen, studying the role of cerebrospinal fluid and the choroid plexus in embryonic brain development. Ya'el applied for the NSF-GRFP as a senior undergraduate and received an honorable mention. She applied again as a second-year PhD candidate and was awarded the fellowship. Since then, she has also been awarded the HHMI Gilliam Fellowship. In addition to bench science, Ya'el is passionate about science education, writing, and mentorship. She has worked with Cientifico Latino for several years as a GSMI mentor and a GSEC mentor and is ecstatic to help students applying to the NSF-GRFP hone their applications.

Yaniris Molina Aponte works as a research technologist and lab manager at Johns Hopkins University. In August 2023, she will start graduate school as an immunology PhD student at Harvard University. She will be supported by the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship. Yaniris graduated from the University of Puerto Rico at Humacao, with a double major in Biology and Microbiology and a minor in Chemistry. She is passionate about science outreach and mentorship of historically marginalized students. She has worked with science outreach programs like the Puerto Rico Science Heroes, where she organized fun STEM experiments for children from underserved communities. Yaniris also collaborated with PROUD, an HHMI funded program at UPR-Humacao, to support first-generation students in STEM. As a member of Cientifico Latino, she aims to give back to her community with the goal of increasing the number of LatinX and Hispanic students pursuing graduate school in the US.

Yanitza was born and raised in Puerto Rico. She is currently a PhD candidate in the Department of Physiology at Yale University, working under Dr. Rachel Perry. Her research focuses on ovarian metabolism and its hormonal regulation, particularly in relation to obesity and overall systemic effects. She aims to develop strategies to delay reproductive aging, thereby reducing the pressure on early conception for individuals with female reproductive systems.

She has received prestigious awards such as Yale’s President’s Public Service Fellowship and the Dean’s Emerging Scholars Research Award. Yanitza is committed to women's health research and the empowerment of female scientists. She also participates in outreach programs like Científico Latino’s GSEC, where she organizes workshops to support graduate students.