Post by Kelvin Pichardo

In the spirit of shining a spotlight on talented LatinX/Hispanics this month, I present to you my daughter. Táchira Pichardo is a Ph.D. candidate at the Boston University School of Medicine, Division of Graduate Medical Sciences, Mazzilli Lab, Section of Computational Biomedicine (it’s a mouthful). I encourage you to read about the amazing work she is doing. Please share this post, connect with her on LinkedIn, and more importantly, facilitate introductions to people in the pharmaceutical industry that can help provide allyship. At twenty-four years old, she is in the fourth year of her Ph.D. program, where she is working with Johnson & Johnson researching the role of the immune system in the progression of lung cancer. Táchira holds a Bachelor of Science in Integrative Neuroscience and Biochemistry, with a minor in Biological Anthropology, from the State University of New York at Binghamton. She aspires to a career in the pharmaceutical industry, researching the development of treatments to help improve and extend the life of millions of people suffering from lung cancer. She is working to cure cancer! In addition to her work in the lab, she has taken an active role to increase the representation of people of color at Boston University. As President of the Minority and International Scientists Organization (MISO), she works with the university administration to foster a more inclusive community. She is a mentor for students of color, in the Graduate Medical Sciences Community Catalyst Center (C3). And she is co-hosting a season of Vitamin Ph.D., a podcast covering topics concerning professional and personal development during doctoral study and beyond. To say our family is proud of her would be a massive understatement. Please take a moment to highlight a talented young LatinX/Hispanic person you know. Reach out to me if I can help make a connection. And let's collectively hold them up high, so they may hold up the next generation! #HispanicHeritgaeMonth Normila Pichardo, Amada Hänel, Heidi Eusebio, Joaquin Duato, Nicki Vasquez, Rogelio Braceras MD, Janet Castellano, David Hayes-Bautista, Alfredo Quinones-Hinojosa, Kenneth Aldape, Andrea Apolo, Freddy E Escorcia, MD, PhD, Ramiro Iglesias-Bartolome, Kirk McDonald, Steven Wolfe Pereira ⚡️, Jennifer Cohan