Posts classified under: Student

I grew up in Bakersfield, CA and earned my BS in Genetics and Genomics at UC Davis. After undergrad, I joined a one-year postbaccalaureate research program at UC Davis (PREP@UCD) where I studied chromosome pairing and meiotic recombination in zebrafish under Dr. Sean Burgess. After PREP@UCD, I decided to stay at UC Davis for my PhD (Integrative Genetics and Genomics) where I continued my postbaccalaureate project. I am now a postdoctoral scholar in Dr. Patrick Allard’s lab using C. elegans to study the mechanisms by which toxicants negatively impact reproduction that can have transgenerational effects.

During my PhD, I was inspired by Dr. Marina Ellefson to pursue a career as Professor of Teaching. As a grad student, I enrolled in the Future Undergraduate Science Educators (FUSE) graduate academic certificate program, which provided me with pedagogical training and authentic teaching experience where I guest lectured for an upper division genetics course alongside Dr. Ellefson.

I am excited to continue my pedagogical training through IRACDA so that I can receive and implement the necessary skills to improve the quality of undergraduate science education to provide a student-centered learning environment.

In 2018, I graduated from Loyola Marymount University with a B.S. in Biology. During my undergraduate studies, I worked in the plant-molecular biology lab under the mentorship of Dr. Nancy Fujishige where I studied the symbiosis between Melilotus alba, a legume plant, and beneficial nitrogen-fixing rhizobacteria. There, I discovered my passion for understanding how plants interact with their environment at the molecular level, and decided to pursue a career as a biology professor. Being part of the LMU McNair Scholars program served as a crucial guide on my path to graduate school. After graduating from LMU, I moved to the Midwest to pursue my Ph.D. in the Plant and Microbial Biosciences program at Washington University in St. Louis, where I was an IMSD scholar. My doctoral work was in the lab of Dr. Dmitri Nusinow at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center. There, I studied a disordered protein’s role in red-light photoperception at the cellular, molecular, and biophysical level in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. I earned my Ph.D. in 2024, and am now a postdoctoral researcher in Dr. Rachel Shahan’s lab at UCLA. My research in the Shahan lab focuses on understanding developmental mechanisms using the Arabidopsis root as a model system. Specifically, my research investigates the role of a family of receptor-like kinases in regulating cell-type specific identity and post-embryonic organ development. My passion for teaching and mentoring undergraduates with the ultimate goal of becoming a professor led me to the IRACDA Program. Through IRACDA, I am excited to gain the skills necessary to achieve my career goal of becoming a biology professor who trains and inspires the next generation of scientists, leads cutting edge research in the field of plant biology, and contributes to the broader scientific community.

I come from the small indigenous Ben Zaa community of Teotitlán del Valle in the Central Valley of Oaxaca, Mexico, where Zapotec is our primary language. Growing up, I witnessed firsthand the significant health and educational disparities my family and community faced. These experiences ignited my passion to address these challenges, with a focus on obesity and related health problems, which disproportionately affect minority populations, including my own.

This drive led me to pursue a B.S. in Chemistry & Biochemistry at California State University, Long Beach, followed by a Ph.D. in Molecular Metabolism & Nutrition from The University of Chicago. As the first in my family to graduate from high school and college, I feel privileged to break new ground for future generations. My research in the Reue lab focuses on understanding sex differences in lipid metabolism. Using the Four Core Genotypes model, we aim to unravel the metabolic mechanisms behind sex-biased obesity co-morbidities.

My goal is to secure a faculty position where I can contribute meaningfully to the field of metabolism and mentor the next generation of scientists, particularly those from underrepresented, first-generation, and/or low-income backgrounds.

Beyond my scientific work, I remain deeply connected to my cultural heritage, dedicating my free time to preserving the art of Zapotec rug weaving—a tradition that reflects the resilience and creativity of my people.