Helen Werner is a physiologist and molecular biologist with specific interests in human osteology, palaeopathology, and infectious disease. She has studied the expression of respiratory bacterial infections in skeletal remains and how the marginalization of a community compounds the intensity of disease. Her current research interests include looking at the physiology of preterm birth and how racism amplifies poor birth outcomes in women of color. She teaches Human Biology, Emerging Infectious Diseases and Human Physiology at Beloit College. Dr. Werner is a mom of four, and has experienced preterm birth first hand. In her spare time she enjoys reading voraciously, listening to podcasts, and coaching roller derby.

Ardita Fadiovski is a biology major along with a health and society minor at Beloit College. Ardita's goal is to understand the effects of historical trauma on preterm birth. After obtaining her bachelors degree she plans on continuing her education with a focus in epidemiology. With this, one day Ardita would like to do more research in this field and improve women's health.

My name is Brenda Martinez and I am majoring in biochemistry and minoring in mathematics. My goal is to understand historical trauma in African American women's pregnancy. I am also interested in looking at the pre-birth rates among different racial groups. After graduating from Beloit College, I plan to go into a biomedical science program in graduate school. In my spare time, I like to run, go to concerts and watch cartoons.

Kellyn Tippins is currently a senior at Beloit College on the track to obtain a bachelor of science degree in Biology. After graduating from Beloit College, she plans to continue her education on the graduate level with a focus on Microbiology and Immunology. As an African-American woman herself, she understands the challenges people of color in the United States face while dealing with systems that are stacked against us. With this research, Kellyn's goal is to help provide some insight into how the chronic stress of race affects the birth outcome of African-American mothers and hopefully support and advocate for the same type of quality care for all moms when giving birth. In her free time, Kellyn loves to sing, dance, and read any book under the science fiction genre.