Board

Laura Hertz, President

I am a PhD student in the Interdisciplinary Biological Sciences graduate program. I work in the Center for Synthetic Biology in Julius Lucks' lab studying the biophysical properties of a fluoride biosensor. I grew up outside of Boston, MA and traveled to Cleveland, OH to get a B.S. in biochemistry from Case Western Reserve University. Afterwards, I did a two-year post-bacc at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, MD.

While a post-bacc, I volunteered as a mentor to a high school student through the organization College Bound. I saw the benefits mentorship had on students by engaging them in meaningful, purposeful discussions about their futures. Personally, I have sought out a lot of mentorship for myself, both officially and unofficially, and am addicted to getting advice from people further along and smarter than me. I also love science, and doing science, and believe it should be available to everyone. However, we live in a society where there are barriers for some people, and I want to do my part in reaching through those barriers: thus, GMU.

Brianne Chiappetta, Treasure

I am a PhD candidate in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders. I work in Dr. Cynthia Thompson's Aphasia and Neurolinguistics Research Laboratory where we study language processing in healthy adults as well as in people with an acquired language disorder called aphasia. My focus in the lab is on the relationship between musical and linguistic processing.

My path to the PhD wasn't a direct path, nor was it always a successful one! I started my undergraduate degree at Arizona State University as a psychology major. After two years, I transferred to the University of Illinois at Chicago, where I graduated with a B.S. in Neuroscience. Shortly after that, I started volunteering in the Aphasia Lab which eventually turned into a job as a research technician in the lab. I worked as a research tech for 4 years before starting my PhD in the same lab. I applied to PhD programs 3 separate times over the course of 6 years (!) and by the final attempt, I was accepted to my top 3 programs! I am probably too familiar with the PhD application process! I learned a ton from each of my application cycles and would love to share what I have learned to help others who want to pursue a PhD. I am excited to help undergrads explore which career options to consider post-graduation.

Elijah Taylor, Recruiter

I am a Ph D student in the Interdisciplinary Biological Sciences (IBiS) program here at Northwestern. I study interactions between proteins and DNA in Alfonso Mondragon's lab. I grew up in the Metro Detroit area of Michigan, and graduated from the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor with a BS in Biochemistry.

During my time at the University of Michigan, I was fortunate enough to receive mentorship in several different capacities, from older undergraduates, graduate students, and my research professor. I was also a peer mentor and lab mentor to other undergraduates. For community service, I went back to the middle school I attended once a year to tutor in mathematics. By being on both the giving and receiving ends of mentorship, I have come to understand how important it is for growth and development. Because mentoring has helped me through my journey as a scientist, I want to do my part in paying it forward by continuing mentorship during grad school and beyond.

Devon Dulan, Undergraduate Liaison

I am currently a dual BS/MS student in Structural Engineering in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering here at Northwestern University. I am originally from Detroit, MI and moved to Evanston in 2017 to begin my studies. I have done research within my department in the past, and hope to someday work in the energy industry delivering sustainable design solutions.

Mentorship matters to me because I would not be anything close to the person I am today without the mentors I have had in my life. Both my personal and professional mentors have pushed me to become a better version of myself and to see all that I can become. I definitely believe this support and challenge has pushed me to find greater success here at Northwestern, and I want to pay that forward to other students finding their way here.

Luke C. Flores, PhD, Faculty Advisor

I am the Associate Director of First-Year and Transition Programs in Weinberg College and a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Neurobiology. I grew up in Corpus Christi, Texas and was the first in my family to attend college. I earned a B.S. in Biology from the University of Texas at San Antonio and a Ph.D. in Neuroscience from Northwestern University.

At Northwestern, I become very engaged with mentoring through the CLIMB (Collaborative Learning and Integrated Mentoring in the Biosciences) program, helping 1^st year graduate students adjust to the transition from their undergraduate education. I also realized how excited I was to work with undergraduate students working in my laboratory on summer research projects. Based on these experiences, I looked for opportunities to engage in mentoring and teaching after completing my PhD, and found what I was looking for with the First-Year and Transition Programs in Weinberg College. I am excited to support GMU because of the enormous benefit I have seen for both mentors and mentees in these types of programs.

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