I have always been fascinated with science. But growing up, I could never picture myself as a scientist. When I looked around I always saw scientists portrayed as old men with crazy hair who were always working alone in a dark laboratory. I just couldn’t picture myself working like that.
As I grew older, I got more frustrated with what I wanted to be when I grew up. I have many hobbies that aren’t traditionally “science”. I love baking, art, and writing and I thought I’d have to lost part of myself to have a career in science. Over the years, I’ve learned this is absolutely not the case and my hobbies make me a stronger scientist. I am passionate about science communication and dispelling the fear around science. We all use science on a daily basis without even realizing, the fear is mostly due to gatekeeping and miscommunication.
My goal is to make sure everyone feels like they can unapologetically be themselves as a scientist. Science is inherently political but it should be for everyone. When I was a graduate student I looked for opportunities that allow me to advocate for other students. I served the Speaker of the Assembly for Penn State’s Graduate and Professional Student Association where I worked on legislation to improve issues that graduate students face, especially pandemic related. I also served on DEI committees at both a department and collegiate level and co-authored the department’s DEI mission statement and introduced policies that gave students more structured support within the department. To further my reach outside of the Penn State community, I took on roles within the American Chemical Society as the communication fellow and the American Society for Microbiology as a Young Ambassador. These roles allowed me to connect with people across the United States and spark their interest in chemical and biological sciences.
Currently, I am a science writer at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard. I get to write about genomics and help researchers across the world analyze their data more efficiently. My job fills me with joy, I love being able to make a difference and help scientists make progress on drug discovery, epidemiology, and cancer therapeutics.
Follow my work on: