What Motivates Me

As a Mexican American from Texas and Arizona, I am the first person in my family to earn a doctoral degree. After earning my bachelor’s degree (2015) in electrical engineering from Rice University, I then earned my master’s (2017) and Ph.D. degree (2020) in electrical engineering from Stanford University, where my research was at the intersection of radar engineering and glaciology. While at Rice and Stanford, I served as a mentor for SHPE, El Centro Chicano y Latino, Stanford's EDGE Program, and the Bay Area Graduate Pathways to STEM programs to increase underrepresented students’ accessibility to resources, research, and graduate school, as well as to foster their sense of belonging in fields that have traditionally marginalized students from underserved communities. My commitment to enhancing inclusive culture in U.S. higher education thus drove me to complete my Ph.D. for more than just a degree – for those who didn’t have this opportunity, for those who came before and laid a path, for those who strived with me, and for those who will come after.