Diversity Statement
My commitment to promote and enhance the academic experience of students from historically underrepresented populations represents my personal goal of diversifying the STEM fields. These efforts are reflected throughout my teaching philosophy, scholarship, community service and art.
Classrooms are the perfect space to work towards promoting diversity and inclusion because they are populated by diverse students, not just from diverse ethnic backgrounds, but also include first-generation students, with learning disabilities, financial needs, among others. Inside the classroom, I use gender-neutral pronouns, encourage the participation of all students, and use team-based group activities to promote a sense of belonging. By developing a strong sense of belonging, the students feel welcomed and actively participate in their own learning. Another way to promote inclusion is to combine traditional lecturing with learner-centered teaching strategies to target different learning styles, where all students are engaged with the material. Lastly, sharing my Hispanic background and learning struggles as an undergraduate serves me as a powerful tool to help students identify with me on a personal level. My hope is for students to see in me a woman of color in science and inspire them to persist in a science career.
My scholarship includes quality mentorship and effective research experiences to build the scientific identity of students working in the lab by practicing a holistic approach to inclusive excellence, where all students get personalized opportunities for creativity and growth. As a mentor, my current contributions include working with students from underrepresented backgrounds from the Science Educational Equity (SEE), the CSU-LSAMP at Sacramento State and the RISE programs, who wish to pursue graduate programs. Mentoring underrepresented students involves thoughtfully advising them through the graduate school application process, while paying attention to their needs. My goal is to help students persist in their major and increase diversity in science leadership positions, as they move on to pursue graduate degrees. Lastly, my pursuit of federal research-training program grants is solely focused on increasing diversity in the STEM community.
My community service is the result of my involvement with the Society for Advancing Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS). As a SACNAS Diversity Leader: (1) I am trained in cultural competency and emotional intelligence; (2) founded the SACNAS at Sac State Student Chapter; and (3) give talks at the annual SACNAS National Diversity in STEM Conference and other venues outside of Sacramento State on the need of Diversity in Science.
Classrooms are the perfect space to work towards promoting diversity and inclusion because they are populated by diverse students, not just from diverse ethnic backgrounds, but also include first-generation students, with learning disabilities, financial needs, among others. Inside the classroom, I use gender-neutral pronouns, encourage the participation of all students, and use team-based group activities to promote a sense of belonging. By developing a strong sense of belonging, the students feel welcomed and actively participate in their own learning. Another way to promote inclusion is to combine traditional lecturing with learner-centered teaching strategies to target different learning styles, where all students are engaged with the material. Lastly, sharing my Hispanic background and learning struggles as an undergraduate serves me as a powerful tool to help students identify with me on a personal level. My hope is for students to see in me a woman of color in science and inspire them to persist in a science career.
My scholarship includes quality mentorship and effective research experiences to build the scientific identity of students working in the lab by practicing a holistic approach to inclusive excellence, where all students get personalized opportunities for creativity and growth. As a mentor, my current contributions include working with students from underrepresented backgrounds from the Science Educational Equity (SEE), the CSU-LSAMP at Sacramento State and the RISE programs, who wish to pursue graduate programs. Mentoring underrepresented students involves thoughtfully advising them through the graduate school application process, while paying attention to their needs. My goal is to help students persist in their major and increase diversity in science leadership positions, as they move on to pursue graduate degrees. Lastly, my pursuit of federal research-training program grants is solely focused on increasing diversity in the STEM community.
My community service is the result of my involvement with the Society for Advancing Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS). As a SACNAS Diversity Leader: (1) I am trained in cultural competency and emotional intelligence; (2) founded the SACNAS at Sac State Student Chapter; and (3) give talks at the annual SACNAS National Diversity in STEM Conference and other venues outside of Sacramento State on the need of Diversity in Science.
Increasing Visibility of Women in STEM through Art
Despite a recent increase in STEM degrees earned by underrepresented individuals, the representation of women of color in the workplace is lower when compared to their representation in the population. (Visit https://www.nsf.gov/statistics/wmpd to learn about Women, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering). A clear example of this underrepresentation can be seen by simply performing an online search for images of a scientist. While the search displays somewhat diverse result images, Black women and women of color are overwhelmingly underrepresented. And, their representation is almost non-existent as you start searching online for specific fields, like ecology and geology. In response to the lack of images of Black women and women of color in the STEM fields, I make art where they are overrepresented (at least in my portfolio).
Why do I use Art to Represent Women in STEM?
It is important to represent women as STEM workers and professionals because you cannot be what you cannot see. Now, I do not mean that by making images of women in STEM I am pushing these careers to young girls. Rather, they serve as options for what is possible. Personally, when I am interested in something, be it a movie, a song, or even my passion for diversity, it is because I recognized a bit of my identity in it. I like to relax and laugh a lot, so I mostly watch comedies. I like to dance, so I like fast-paced loud music. I am a Latina in STEM, so I work to amplify our presence. It was the same as I made my decision on what profession to pursue. I had my mother’s image as a role model to follow. But, I recognize that not everyone has a person or an image they can identify and follow. Knowing there are women currently working and being successful in all STEM fields sends a message of possibilities and empowerment. This is also true for the women who currently work these fields. For them, images of women in STEM send a message of inclusiveness. After each social media post, I receive comments from different women saying “That is me!”, “I wish I had these as a kid”, and “Thank you for representing us”. Ultimately, creating images of women in STEM sends a message of belonging. In summary, representation matters.
Why do I use Art to Represent Women in STEM?
It is important to represent women as STEM workers and professionals because you cannot be what you cannot see. Now, I do not mean that by making images of women in STEM I am pushing these careers to young girls. Rather, they serve as options for what is possible. Personally, when I am interested in something, be it a movie, a song, or even my passion for diversity, it is because I recognized a bit of my identity in it. I like to relax and laugh a lot, so I mostly watch comedies. I like to dance, so I like fast-paced loud music. I am a Latina in STEM, so I work to amplify our presence. It was the same as I made my decision on what profession to pursue. I had my mother’s image as a role model to follow. But, I recognize that not everyone has a person or an image they can identify and follow. Knowing there are women currently working and being successful in all STEM fields sends a message of possibilities and empowerment. This is also true for the women who currently work these fields. For them, images of women in STEM send a message of inclusiveness. After each social media post, I receive comments from different women saying “That is me!”, “I wish I had these as a kid”, and “Thank you for representing us”. Ultimately, creating images of women in STEM sends a message of belonging. In summary, representation matters.