Anjola Adeyemo graduated with a major in Biology and a minor in Applied Statistics and Data Analysis from Kennesaw State University in May 2021. She is currently applying to masters’ programs and data analyst positions. Anjola wants to use data to improve healthcare for minorities and to track the spread of diseases. One of her research interests is in infant mortality and infant growth charts. Ultimately, after pursuing her education, she hopes to work at the CDC as an epidemiologist or as a data analyst.
Nicholas Arosemena is a senior mathematics major attending Morehouse College. He was born and raised in Stockton, California where he fostered a love of community service and mathematics. Nicholas has accumulated more than 1300 hours of community service as part of the Bonner Scholars Program at Morehouse College and has plans to attend graduate school to pursue a doctorate in one of the computational sciences. As part of the McNair Scholars program, he conducted five semesters of computational chemistry work with the Derricotte Research Group. He also spent time as a 2021 California Climate Action Corps Fellow working on initiatives to improve the air quality in his hometown. Additionally, he has completed summer research experiences at Emory University, UC Berkeley, and Harvard University in theoretical mathematics and biostatistics.
Nicholas is a second generation Panamanian-American on his father’s side and will occasionally spend breaks visiting his extended family in Panama. In his free time, Nicholas enjoys playing games of all varieties, whether they be tabletop games like Dungeons and Dragons, or video games like Apex Legends.
Elizabeth Chung is a senior at The Ohio State University majoring in biology on a pre-med track. Her motivation comes from her experience with taking care of her dad, who had primary progressive multiple sclerosis and passed away in 2018 due to disease complications. Elizabeth has participated in microbiology research with the Ohio State iGEM team and cellular reprogramming research with Dr. Katie Galloway at MIT. After she graduates in 2022, she will pursue an MD-PhD dual degree with the hopes of applying biophysics/computational biology to MS research.
As an aspiring physician-scientist, Elizabeth is excited to see how computational biology and biostatistics can be utilized to guide experimental design and optimize treatments for neurological diseases. Participating in this program will give her an opportunity to learn more about public health, which she will use to improve the current system for disability for underrepresented patient groups. She is incredibly thankful for this opportunity, and looks forward to connecting with new mentors, colleagues, and friends through this program.
Antonio Faneite is originally from a small town on the coast of Venezuela. He will be graduating from North Carolina Central University in December 2021 with a Bachelor’s in Nutrition and Dietetics. After graduation, he plans to continue his educational endeavors to pursue a Ph.D. degree. Antonio aspires to be a leading scientist, positively impacting the world through scientific research, including biostatistics, computational biology, and AI. He believes that scientific research catalyzed by excellence, honesty, and empathy can change the world; one study, one application, and one person at a time.
Alena Figueroa is a senior at the University of Hawaii – West Oahu, majoring in natural sciences with a concentration in applied mathematics. She plans to graduate in 2021 and later attend graduate school to earn a master’s degree in biostatistics. Last summer, Alena participated in Iowa’s Summer Institute in Biostatistics, where she worked on a project analyzing longitudinal data from the Parkinson’s Progressive Markers Initiative (PPMI). It was during this research experience that Alena discovered her interest in biostatistics, as it combined her passion for mathematics and statistics with her desire to improve public health. Her long-term career goal is to work as a biostatistician and aid in understanding diseases and their progression.
Donell Grant goes by D.J.! He is going into his senior year at George Mason University with a major in Statistics with a concentration in Applied Statistics and a Minor in Mathematics. D.J. is graduating in the Spring of 2022 with plans to go to graduate school shortly after. He would like to study a statistics related topic and believes this program will give him a better idea of what specifically he would like to study. After grad school, D.J. would like to find himself in a career that allows him the opportunity to help others, with his preferred path being research in the medical field.
Heriberto Lopez is a class of 2021 graduate of Saint Olaf College. He majored in Economics with a concentration in Statistics and Data Science. In the future, he hopes to be a data scientist or a biostatistician. His post-graduate plans are to apply to graduate school after taking a gap year to save money and obtain a master’s or a doctorate in biostatistics or applied statistics. He hopes to use data analysis as a tool to help underrepresented communities.
Andrea Nieves is majoring in computer science. She is currently studying at the University of Puerto Rico Rio Piedras and plans to graduate in 2023 after her fifth year studying. Her goals for the future include having a stable life that allows her to work and feel useful while also having free time to enjoy her hobbies. Andrea hopes this program will help her obtain a good career in the future so she can reach her goal of having a stable life.
Miracle Onyeoziri is a rising Senior at the University of Massachusetts – Dartmouth. She is a Health and Society major with an Aging and Health minor. Her career goals are influenced by a love for her community and by a love for science research. Her experiences with community organizing and biological and public health research have sparked her desire to pursue a career as an Epidemiologist with a concentration in data science.
Raven Delfina Otero-Symphony is a first-generation, rising senior majoring in Statistics with studies in Spanish, Population Health, and an interdisciplinary Honors Scholar Distinction at the University of New Mexico. A former El Puente Fellow, Raven currently trains in a computational biostatistics lab as an NIH-funded biomedical MARC Research Scholar. Informed by the disparities of her hometown, Raven believes that biomedical research can solve multi-faceted issues historically unaddressed by such, from mass incarceration to substance addiction and more. Raven’s forthcoming career ambitions include: interning at NASA; graduating in May 2022; conducting research abroad as a Fulbright Scholar; pursuing a PhD in Statistics or Biostatistics; and working at a United States federal agency.
Claudia Ramos is in her Senior year majoring in Biology at the University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras Campus. She plans on graduating in May 2022 and then pursuing graduate school to study Microbiology. Claudia hopes to eventually work at a research lab dealing with natural products and interesting microorganisms which will provide her with enough experience to open up her own lab in the distant future.
Carla Ramos Bezares is currently a Computer Science student at the University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras Campus. She will be starting her 5th and last year this August. Since she was a child, she has had an unusual interest in medicine and health and believes that computing has great potential to advance this field in ways not seen before. Carla has been involved in Health Informatics research since her sophomore year. After graduating, she would love to attend graduate school and programs that will help her specialize in this field.
Lindsay Salvati is from New Haven, CT and currently attends Connecticut College in New London, CT. She will be graduating in Spring 2022. Lindsay is a mathematics major with a statistics concentration, as well as a linguistics and psychology minor and a pathway in Entrepreneurship. She plans to go to graduate or medical school to obtain her master’s and then continue school to get a Ph.D. in Biostatistics. She would like to one day become a Senior Biostatistician at a hospital and process data associated with large clinical trials.
Alden Soto is a rising junior at the University of Colorado Boulder studying Applied Mathematics and Biochemistry. He intends to graduate in the spring of 2023. He is currently exploring opportunities for graduate study in the US, as well as determining what he would want to study and pursue when he attends graduate school. He is exploring his career options and is particularly interested in consulting work. In his free time Alden enjoys spending time in the outdoors with friends and family.
Nicholas P. Vasquez is a first-generation college student who is graduating in 2021 from California State University Monterey Bay with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Statistics. He plans to continue employment as a data science intern and enter graduate school for Statistics. His career goal is to work in the healthcare field, in any position that allows him to use data analysis methods, data science methods, and biostatistics methods. Nicholas hopes to make a positive impact on the lives of medical patients through his career.
Kelly Yip is a Biochemistry Major at Stony Brook University graduating in May 2021. After graduation, she is seeking to study and examine computational biology and its various implications on different populations of people and health outcomes. Kelly wants to further pursue graduate studies in medicine and desires to become a physician that deeply values, listens, and cares about people and underrepresented communities.
