My Outreach Experience

I feel that I have a moral obligation to promote equitable and equal access to scientific education and advancement for any gender, race, ability, and socioeconomic status. With my own personal hardships, my success in my career feels like random bits of luck facilitated by mentors and teachers who believed in me and inspired me. There were many interactions that were temporally minuscule but impacted me majorly. I hope to always espouse principles of equity and equality in the off-chance that an underrepresented aspiring scientist might find confidence and success.

My parents were my closest inspiration to do outreach. When I was much younger, they regularly volunteered with a local community organization. I remember tagging along while they chaperoned underprivileged children on a holiday shopping spree. But the McNair Scholars program at UC Davis also encouraged my participation in outreach while promoting diversity. I constantly consider the tremendous impact that the McNair Scholars program had on me when campus organizations ask for volunteers. That attitude has placed me in many situations where I can relate with students and provide a tangible picture of what it’s like to be a scientist or engineer - and hopefully I’m inspiring a future generation of diverse scientists and engineers.

In addition to the following outreach activities, I’ve also mentored three undergraduates and three masters students - some from underrepresented backgrounds - while at UCSB and CMU.

Outreach activities

Abilities Champions - 2020-Current
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Abilities Champions Employee Resource Group Member
Promotion of inclusion of interns and employees with physical, psychological, developmental, and neurocognitive differences as valuable contributors to the laboratory’s mission

Gelfand Center Outreach - 2019-2020
Carnegie Mellon University
Soft Machines Laboratory Outreach Chair
Coordinated outreach at Carnegie Science Center and various community events

Summer Engineering Experience for Girls - 2019
Carnegie Mellon University
Guest lecturer
Designed and taught an activity on energy for wearable computers to middle school girls 

ScienceLine - 2014-2018
University of California, Santa Barbara
ScienceLine Scientist
Answered general science questions for K-12 students while encouraging scientific inquiry.  

NanoDays - 2014-2018
Nanoscale Informal Science Education
NanoDays Volunteer
Engaged museum visitors and taught about emerging nanotechnologies. 

Ask-A-Scientist - 2014-2016
University of California, Santa Barbara
Media Relations Officer
Engaged with the local community at various events to talk about science in a public space. 

Center for Science and Engineering Partnerships - 2013-2018
University of California, Santa Barbara
FUSE Leader
Participated in science education outreach through demonstrations at local junior high schools. 

Explorit Science Center - 2013
Davis, CA,
Explorit Volunteer
Assisted with science demonstrations for visiting families. Assisted in data analysis of visitor trends.