2019 Jumpstart Workshop Organizers, Speakers, Facilitators (BMCC).
Meet the organizers, speakers and facilitators of our Jumpstart Grantsmanship Workshop in Manhattan, NY.
Dr. Bleu Knight
Dr. Bleu Knight has diversified STEM at New Mexico State University over the last four years through coordinating research education activities for the Student Training & Research through United Partnerships (STARTUP) component of the Minority Biomedical Research Support Research Initiative for Scientific Enhancement program. Prior to that, she spent two years developing and teaching undergraduate curricula comprising professional development activities, scientific writing, and ethics training for underrepresented undergraduate students interested in neuroscience research careers (participants in the NIH BLUEPRINT_ENDURE Neuroscience Research Program) at NMSU. Her research uses transcriptomics to illuminate programs that underlie developmental and transformative biological processes.
Edmundo Medina
Edmundo Medina is the Graduate Assistant of HSI STEM HUB.
Dr. Elba Serrano
Dr. Elba Serrano, NMSU Regent’s Professor, earned her Ph.D. in biological sciences from Stanford University and an undergraduate degree in physics from the University of Rochester. Her laboratory investigates brain therapeutics that target neuroglia cells, sensory disorders of hearing and balance, and neurogenetics. At the national level, Dr. Serrano is a prominent contributor to the development of policy for STEM research and workforce development. She has served as a member of the Advisory Committee to the NIH Director, Dr. Francis Collins and as co‐Chair of the NIH ACD Working Group on Diversity. Dr. Serrano is an elected Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and her achievements in promoting student success have been recognized with a SACNAS Distinguished Mentor Award, an Alfred P. Sloan Distinguished Mentor Award, and a Presidential Award for Excellence in Mentoring in Science, Engineering, and Math.
Dr. MariaElena Zavala
Dr. MariaElena Zavala has been a professor at CSUN for the last 30 years, where she has pioneered the Maximizing Access to Research Careers (MARC) and Research Initiative for Scientific Enhancement (RISE) diversity programs for STEM. She earned her undergraduate degree in Botany from Pomona College and her PhD in Botany from UC Berkeley. Dr. Zavala’s research focuses on the developmental regulation of plants. She served as president of the Society for the Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS), and was elected to the ASPB Executive Committee. Her achievements in research and mentoring have been recognized with the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering, the CSU Trustee Faculty award, and her societal appointments as a fellow by the American Association for the Advancement of Science, American Society for Plant Biology, and American Society for Cell Biology.
Dr. Martha Desmond
Dr. Martha Desmond is a Regents Professor at NMSU in the Department of Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology. She received her BA in Environmental Studies from Wells College and MS and PhD In wildlife ecology from the University of Nebraska where she studied burrowing owl population ecology. She completed an NSF International Postdoctoral Fellowship working with the Universidad Autónoma de Chihuahua and Texas A&M. Her avian ecology research focuses on birds in grassland and aridland systems as well as urban environments. While working in the border region, she became interested in educational programs for diverse communities. Educational programs that she has developed have mentored thousands of students locally and nationally across natural resource fields, working collaboratively with federal agencies on the development of diverse workforces.
Dr. Monica Torres
Dr. Monica Torres oversees the planning, development and implementation of educational programs at Dona Ana Community College. She works collaboratively with deans, division directors, department chairs and program directors to meet the needs of a diverse community of learners at the community college and the community at large. Dr. Torres has also previously served as an assistant professor, associate professor and department head at NMSU’s Department of English. There, she taught classes, advised graduate students and performed research. As department head she oversaw the operation of the department including curricular, teaching and administrative functions. Torres has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in English from NMSU. She earned a Ph.D. from the University of New Mexico in American Studies with an emphasis in Cultural Studies.
