“I tell my students, 'When you get these jobs that you have been so brilliantly trained for, just remember that your real job is that if you are free, you need to free somebody else. If you have some power, then your job is to empower somebody else.”
- Toni Morrison
Diversity Statement
I AM PROUD to be a first-generation college graduate, the only person in my family to receive a Ph.D., and a Mexican American woman. The lack of representation of Hispanic females in academia is alarming. According to the 2020 National Center for Education Statistics, only 3% hold a full-time faculty position in degree-granting postsecondary institutions. To increase this representation, it is imperative that young scientists see themselves as individuals who hold academic appointments. My ultimate career goals were to acquire a tenure-track position at a research-intensive university that serves students who reflect the diversity of the United States, such as the University of New Mexico (UNM), and to focus my interdisciplinary research program on studying vulnerable populations understudied in neuroscience, them being: Hispanic/Latine, Indigenous American, and Black American women. At UNM, I am committed to incorporating diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in my research, teaching, and service.
RESEARCH
My research focuses on populations historically understudied in neuroscience, including women and racial/ethnic minorities. Specifically, I aim to understand how ovarian hormones, such as estradiol and progesterone, can contribute to the development and maintenance of co-occurring posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and alcohol use disorder (AUD; PTSD+AUD) and uncover unique risk factors that may make racial/ethnic minorities, with an emphasis on Hispanic/Latine, Indigenous American, and Black American participants, more susceptible to developing PTSD+AUD and barriers that prevent these groups from seeking treatment. My research program will also provide research opportunities for underrepresented minority students at UNM. I am committed to serving as a mentor in research programs already established at UNM, including Arts & Sciences Support for Undergraduate Research Experience (ASSURE), Undergraduate Research Training Initiative for Student Enhancement (U-RISE), and the El Puente Research Fellowship.
TEACHING
I am committed to celebrating the diversity of students' voices, backgrounds, and cultures. I aim to create an equitable classroom environment by de-emphasizing grades, providing opportunities for students to correct and learn from their incorrect answers on quizzes/exams, and offering opportunities to submit anonymous questions or comments regarding the day’s materials via an online discussion board. Depending on the course, my lectures and teaching materials will emphasize literature written by diverse voices, historically marginalized scientists, and statistics specific to the Southwest community I teach.
SERVICE
I am the embodiment of programs designed to increase diversity in science. Participating and receiving such opportunities has inspired me to support other marginalized individuals to take advantage of outreach opportunities or create them where they do not exist. I have been dedicated to serving on committees to enhance DEI at the departmental and institutional levels. I have been recognized for my commitment through the Rob Hollister Award for Community Service and Citizenship at Tufts University. UNM is already spearheading initiatives designed to break barriers for underrepresented groups. As an Assistant Professor at UNM, I will actively participate in progressing the UNM 2040 Strategic Planning Objectives by devoting myself to my research focused on underrepresented populations, providing an equitable learning environment, and serving my students and community.