Ph.D. Candidate, Biomedical Engineering
Research Interests: Computation Approaches to Understanding Cardiac Arrhythmia

PFTF Project Title:  “Explain it to a Fifth Grader: Developing Scientific Communication Through Community Outreach”

PFTF Project Description: My PFTF project will be a seminar series on scientific communication, which culminates in an opportunity for graduate students to explain their research to elementary students. The goal of the series is to provide the tools needed to break down complex STEM research into bite-sized pieces. This project will consist of a four-part series with the goal of providing the skills graduate students need to communicate their thesis project to elementary students. 

What inspired or drove you to pursue this project? Science skepticism is reaching new heights, and it is more important than ever to pique the next generation’s interest in the STEM fields. While most graduate students agree with this principle, it is difficult to bridge the gap between scientific passion and the simplicity required to communicate to a general audience. I hope my proposed project will provide an opportunity to facilitate STEM outreach in the Davis community, and energize a science communication effort that continues beyond this project. I have been dedicated to STEM advocacy and outreach, through various organizations, since I began my undergraduate degree. As a UC Davis Biomedical Engineering Student Association community outreach co-chair for the past 2 years, I have been working on STEM outreach in the Davis community, and I am looking forward to continuing that progress through my Professors for the Future project.

Originally posted here: https://grad.ucdavis.edu/news/professors-future-meet-2017-2018-fellows-part-two