Service
Alliances for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP)
Executive Board Member, MSU 2015-2021
The Alliances for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP) aims to support the recruitment, retention, and graduation of underrepresented groups in doctoral programs via enriching professional development activities. AGEP holds monthly meetings, organizes a conference in the Fall, creates a Science Bulletin which highlights student research, and awards funds to active members to support their professional development. As a member of the steering committee, I assist with the logistics and planning of all of the AGEP related events. Most recently (2020-2021), I served as the Editor-in-Chief of AGEP's scholarly publication: the AGEP Science Today Bulletin, which highlights the research being conducted by the AGEP community.
Executive Board Member, MSU 2015-2021
The Alliances for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP) aims to support the recruitment, retention, and graduation of underrepresented groups in doctoral programs via enriching professional development activities. AGEP holds monthly meetings, organizes a conference in the Fall, creates a Science Bulletin which highlights student research, and awards funds to active members to support their professional development. As a member of the steering committee, I assist with the logistics and planning of all of the AGEP related events. Most recently (2020-2021), I served as the Editor-in-Chief of AGEP's scholarly publication: the AGEP Science Today Bulletin, which highlights the research being conducted by the AGEP community.
Ecology, Evolutionary Biology, and Behavior Graduate Student Organization
President | Colloquium Chair | Research Symposium Chair, MSU, 2015-2021
Throughout my graduate program, I was very active with our EEB graduate student organization. Some years I organized biweekly colloquia - where graduate students presented 30-min talks to the EEB community. Other years I organized their annual research symposium , which featured research talks from graduate students, lighting talks by faculty, a keynote address, and a poster session. I also fundraised over $5,000 to fund our professional and social activities.
President | Colloquium Chair | Research Symposium Chair, MSU, 2015-2021
Throughout my graduate program, I was very active with our EEB graduate student organization. Some years I organized biweekly colloquia - where graduate students presented 30-min talks to the EEB community. Other years I organized their annual research symposium , which featured research talks from graduate students, lighting talks by faculty, a keynote address, and a poster session. I also fundraised over $5,000 to fund our professional and social activities.
Society for the Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS) Chapter
President, MSU 2015-2017
SACNAS is an organization focused on fostering the success of underrepresented scientists. As President, I managed the chapter and organized professional development activities for the graduate student community including an annual research forum, LinkedIn Workshops, speed networking events and Science Cafés. Furthermore, I fostered collaborations with other multi-cultural student organizations on campus, and helped co-organized an applying to graduate school workshop for undergraduates.
President, MSU 2015-2017
SACNAS is an organization focused on fostering the success of underrepresented scientists. As President, I managed the chapter and organized professional development activities for the graduate student community including an annual research forum, LinkedIn Workshops, speed networking events and Science Cafés. Furthermore, I fostered collaborations with other multi-cultural student organizations on campus, and helped co-organized an applying to graduate school workshop for undergraduates.
Mentoring
I've thrived academically and professionally due to guidance I received from supportive mentors, and the access I had to valuable opportunities. My goal as a mentor is to assist students in their professional goals and connect them to valuable resources depending on their needs. In the past, I've mentored students in:
- microbiome laboratory techniques (DNA extractions, PCR, gel electrophresis, anaerobic culturing)
- Basics of R and ggplot
- Basics of the command line and microbiome bioinformatics
- Creating a poster for presenting scientific work
- Applying to and navigating graduate school as an underrepresented group
- Preparing competitive personal statements and research proposals for the NSF GRFP and Ford Foundation fellowships
Teaching
Certification in College Teaching (CCT)
MSU, 2021
Michigan State University offered a Certification in College Teaching Program for graduate students interested in a teaching at the college level. I attended workshops, seminars, and took formal coursework focused on best practices for teaching adult learners in a university setting. I also conducted an independent teaching project where I evaluated the effectiveness of R Shiny Apps in allowing students to explore key concepts from lecture, in an interactive manner
using real biological data. I developed and implemented two interactive, R Shiny apps to analyze and visualize microbiome sequence data for an undergraduate microbial genomics course.
MSU, 2021
Michigan State University offered a Certification in College Teaching Program for graduate students interested in a teaching at the college level. I attended workshops, seminars, and took formal coursework focused on best practices for teaching adult learners in a university setting. I also conducted an independent teaching project where I evaluated the effectiveness of R Shiny Apps in allowing students to explore key concepts from lecture, in an interactive manner
using real biological data. I developed and implemented two interactive, R Shiny apps to analyze and visualize microbiome sequence data for an undergraduate microbial genomics course.
Teaching Assistant
MSU, 2016, 2018, 2020
I have been a teaching assistant for in-person courses as well as asynchronous, online courses. The courses I TA'd were Ecology courses and Genetics courses. My responsibilities included grading, answering student inquiries, managing online discussion forums, holding weekly office hours, and proctoring exams.
MSU, 2016, 2018, 2020
I have been a teaching assistant for in-person courses as well as asynchronous, online courses. The courses I TA'd were Ecology courses and Genetics courses. My responsibilities included grading, answering student inquiries, managing online discussion forums, holding weekly office hours, and proctoring exams.