Dr. Daisy Rosas Vargas is a science educator and communicator. She got her Chemistry BS from UC San Diego and her Chemistry PhD from Indiana University, Bloomington.
I did not have a planned path to where I am now. But I am extremely grateful that my path has taken amazing twists and unexpected turns.
Since I was a young child, I always wondered why things in the world were the way they were. Why did the leaves turn color in Southern CA (yes, we used to have real Autum, over 20 years ago). Why did stars twinkle? Why do I turn red-purple when I get sun-burned? I realized when I was incredibly young, I did not like the sight of blood. My brief hopes of being a vet disintegrated. But I knew I wanted to study some type of science. I was super curious about astronomy, but I never saw scientists that looked like me. It was too hard for someone like me, I thought.
In middle school, my science teacher nominated me for a week-long summer program, Tech Trek. There was one class in particular that changed me: Mystery powders. We were given various white powders and we had to run tests to figure out what they were. I later found out that this was chemistry, specifically forensic science/analytical chemistry. I continued taking chemistry classes in middle school and high school, including AP Chem. My high school chem teacher, Ms. Seo explained chemistry so well and made it interesting. However, I did not pass the AP exam, I got a 2. Spoiler: I still got a PhD in chemistry aka failing an exam in high school does not make a major impact on your future. I still wanted to pursue chemistry.
My first year of chemistry was a breeze (Thanks Ms. Seo!). The 2nd year was organic chemistry: everyone’s worst nightmare. The first test was incredibly hard, and I thought I had failed. 24 hours later, the exam was graded, and I got 20% above the average. Hmmm, this is not as tough as I thought. I really enjoyed this branch of chemistry, that I took all my electives on Organic Chemistry.
I did not know what one could do with that degree at the time. No one told me what happens after college. I am first-gen, there was one person in my classes that looked like me, no chem faculty that looked like me, no one with a chem degree that I knew, that looked like me.
Fast forward to my 2nd to last quarter senior year. I gave a presentation in class about olefin-metathesis. My professor told me he enjoyed my presentation and asked if I thought of being a teaching professor. He said I had a voice for explaining material and teaching. No one had ever told me I could be someone like that. I enjoyed explaining material and mechanisms to my classmates, I can do that. Turns out, you need a PhD, which one had to apply for graduate school about 5 months before that presentation. So, I decided that I would take a gap year after graduating and work, then apply to graduate school. I worked at the Genomics Institute of the Novartis Research Foundation. I learned about small molecule discovery for various diseases and my first cross-coupling reaction: the Suzuki Reaction.
I got into Indiana University in Bloomington for graduate school. I spent the next 5 years studying another cross-coupling reaction called an intermolecular reductive Heck reaction. During this time, I began volunteering at the local museum, Wonderlab Museum, as an Early Childhood Education Intern with the Education Director, Emmy Brockman. I learned so much from her about informal teaching, learning, and child development. This was a form of science communication, but for a young audience. With science communication in mind, let me explain the project I worked on in another way. This chemical reaction joins two carbons to form a new carbon-carbon bond. The carbon-carbon bonds can be right-handed or left-handed, just like our hands. Most molecules are 50% right-handed/50% left-handed. What makes this transformation so powerful is that it can make the new carbon-carbon bond be exclusively right-handed over left-handed. See, now chemistry doesn’t seem too hard to understand.
During graduate school, I found my niche of friends. A handful were in the chemistry department, but I also made friends in other departments as well. I joined a special cohort, I can Persist (ICP) of female BIPOC STEM students. I still stay connected with them to this day. We meet up, celebrate milestones, and visit each other.
After finishing graduate school, I got a teaching position as an Assistant Professor at a primarily undergraduate institution in the Northeast part of the US. Not a lot of people know, but you do not need a post-doc to be a teaching faculty at a college or university. It is optional, but not absolutely necessary. Research focused schools do need them for tenured-track faculty positions.
I was super excited to make an impact on young adults’ college experience, especially BIPOC students. I got to interact with students of different and similar backgrounds to me. I enjoyed interacting with students in a small size classroom and laboratory. Yes, there were small hiccups here and there. During this time in the Northeast, I became a board member for a local science museum and an executive committee member of the Division of Organic Chemistry. I volunteered at two of our local museums and continued to improve informal STEM learning activities. I started the first DEI committee for the chem department at the institution. I met other BIPOC faculty that were amazing both inside and outside of the institution. This seemed like an excellent job on paper. But it was only that on paper.
After 4 years, I left the position due to how unsupportive and unwelcome I felt by colleagues. I realized many people do not talk about these experiences as a BIPOC women in STEM faculty in academia. We talk about it amongst ourselves but not to or around our white faculty colleagues. If they do not hear it, it does not exist. If it is not seen or heard in person, it couldn’t happen at this ‘liberal’ campus. If it was experienced directly in front of them, it is not acknowledged or validated. I had some very supported colleagues, but I realized I could not stay in a position where my experiences were not acknowledged or I was not respected. I saw similar behavior and actions experienced by the few BIPOC students at a primarily white institution. Now, I reach out to current and future BIPOC faculty, and I consult them to assess their current or future employer. To anyone that is curious to hear the crazy, but real details of my experiences. I encourage them to reach out. I do not want this behavior to keep being silenced, hidden, or unacknowledged. It is something I wish someone had helped me with. I remember when I turned to my colleagues at other academic institutions and shared my experiences; they supported and validated my decision to leave academia. Their support made me feel heard, validated, and inspired to find more amazing colleagues like them.
I did not leave academia; I was pushed out by the integrated bias in the system and the unexplored biases of colleagues. I was sad that my dream job did not pan out. But as a PhD, I can do anything. A PhD, in any subject, carries with it a toolbox of skills: data analytics, curriculum/program development, project management, project coordination, communications,etc. I learned the red flags of workplace culture. I was okay with my STEM journey taking a new turn. I can always return to teaching at an academic institution, but I will make sure my colleagues are doing the work to support faculty of color and are putting the effort to learn and acknowledge biases and privileges.
Today my path is science communication and STEM education. I still feel passionate about teaching, but now I focus on informal teaching methods. Additionally, science communication is growing and needed in the world today where misinformation is more prevalent. I can make an impact on more people by making them excited and inspired by STEM. I can also give back more to a community that looks like me and has similar backgrounds to me. Now I get to work on projects with amazing people at LabX, part of the National Academy of Sciences, and Chemists in the Kitchen, as well as accessible teaching projects with Arizona State University and Carnegie Mellon University. I am also working with Latinas in STEM to illuminate curiosity in STEM in young and support undergraduates and young professional Latinas in STEM through their own career journeys.
My biggest advice is take your own path. Embrace the weird, scary, exciting turns. That path will lead you to where you need to be at that time. I cannot wait to see where this path leads me!
I did not have a planned path to where I am now. But I am extremely grateful that my path has taken amazing twists and unexpected turns.
Since I was a young child, I always wondered why things in the world were the way they were. Why did the leaves turn color in Southern CA (yes, we used to have real Autum, over 20 years ago). Why did stars twinkle? Why do I turn red-purple when I get sun-burned? I realized when I was incredibly young, I did not like the sight of blood. My brief hopes of being a vet disintegrated. But I knew I wanted to study some type of science. I was super curious about astronomy, but I never saw scientists that looked like me. It was too hard for someone like me, I thought.
In middle school, my science teacher nominated me for a week-long summer program, Tech Trek. There was one class in particular that changed me: Mystery powders. We were given various white powders and we had to run tests to figure out what they were. I later found out that this was chemistry, specifically forensic science/analytical chemistry. I continued taking chemistry classes in middle school and high school, including AP Chem. My high school chem teacher, Ms. Seo explained chemistry so well and made it interesting. However, I did not pass the AP exam, I got a 2. Spoiler: I still got a PhD in chemistry aka failing an exam in high school does not make a major impact on your future. I still wanted to pursue chemistry.
My first year of chemistry was a breeze (Thanks Ms. Seo!). The 2nd year was organic chemistry: everyone’s worst nightmare. The first test was incredibly hard, and I thought I had failed. 24 hours later, the exam was graded, and I got 20% above the average. Hmmm, this is not as tough as I thought. I really enjoyed this branch of chemistry, that I took all my electives on Organic Chemistry.
I did not know what one could do with that degree at the time. No one told me what happens after college. I am first-gen, there was one person in my classes that looked like me, no chem faculty that looked like me, no one with a chem degree that I knew, that looked like me.
Fast forward to my 2nd to last quarter senior year. I gave a presentation in class about olefin-metathesis. My professor told me he enjoyed my presentation and asked if I thought of being a teaching professor. He said I had a voice for explaining material and teaching. No one had ever told me I could be someone like that. I enjoyed explaining material and mechanisms to my classmates, I can do that. Turns out, you need a PhD, which one had to apply for graduate school about 5 months before that presentation. So, I decided that I would take a gap year after graduating and work, then apply to graduate school. I worked at the Genomics Institute of the Novartis Research Foundation. I learned about small molecule discovery for various diseases and my first cross-coupling reaction: the Suzuki Reaction.
I got into Indiana University in Bloomington for graduate school. I spent the next 5 years studying another cross-coupling reaction called an intermolecular reductive Heck reaction. During this time, I began volunteering at the local museum, Wonderlab Museum, as an Early Childhood Education Intern with the Education Director, Emmy Brockman. I learned so much from her about informal teaching, learning, and child development. This was a form of science communication, but for a young audience. With science communication in mind, let me explain the project I worked on in another way. This chemical reaction joins two carbons to form a new carbon-carbon bond. The carbon-carbon bonds can be right-handed or left-handed, just like our hands. Most molecules are 50% right-handed/50% left-handed. What makes this transformation so powerful is that it can make the new carbon-carbon bond be exclusively right-handed over left-handed. See, now chemistry doesn’t seem too hard to understand.
During graduate school, I found my niche of friends. A handful were in the chemistry department, but I also made friends in other departments as well. I joined a special cohort, I can Persist (ICP) of female BIPOC STEM students. I still stay connected with them to this day. We meet up, celebrate milestones, and visit each other.
After finishing graduate school, I got a teaching position as an Assistant Professor at a primarily undergraduate institution in the Northeast part of the US. Not a lot of people know, but you do not need a post-doc to be a teaching faculty at a college or university. It is optional, but not absolutely necessary. Research focused schools do need them for tenured-track faculty positions.
I was super excited to make an impact on young adults’ college experience, especially BIPOC students. I got to interact with students of different and similar backgrounds to me. I enjoyed interacting with students in a small size classroom and laboratory. Yes, there were small hiccups here and there. During this time in the Northeast, I became a board member for a local science museum and an executive committee member of the Division of Organic Chemistry. I volunteered at two of our local museums and continued to improve informal STEM learning activities. I started the first DEI committee for the chem department at the institution. I met other BIPOC faculty that were amazing both inside and outside of the institution. This seemed like an excellent job on paper. But it was only that on paper.
After 4 years, I left the position due to how unsupportive and unwelcome I felt by colleagues. I realized many people do not talk about these experiences as a BIPOC women in STEM faculty in academia. We talk about it amongst ourselves but not to or around our white faculty colleagues. If they do not hear it, it does not exist. If it is not seen or heard in person, it couldn’t happen at this ‘liberal’ campus. If it was experienced directly in front of them, it is not acknowledged or validated. I had some very supported colleagues, but I realized I could not stay in a position where my experiences were not acknowledged or I was not respected. I saw similar behavior and actions experienced by the few BIPOC students at a primarily white institution. Now, I reach out to current and future BIPOC faculty, and I consult them to assess their current or future employer. To anyone that is curious to hear the crazy, but real details of my experiences. I encourage them to reach out. I do not want this behavior to keep being silenced, hidden, or unacknowledged. It is something I wish someone had helped me with. I remember when I turned to my colleagues at other academic institutions and shared my experiences; they supported and validated my decision to leave academia. Their support made me feel heard, validated, and inspired to find more amazing colleagues like them.
I did not leave academia; I was pushed out by the integrated bias in the system and the unexplored biases of colleagues. I was sad that my dream job did not pan out. But as a PhD, I can do anything. A PhD, in any subject, carries with it a toolbox of skills: data analytics, curriculum/program development, project management, project coordination, communications,etc. I learned the red flags of workplace culture. I was okay with my STEM journey taking a new turn. I can always return to teaching at an academic institution, but I will make sure my colleagues are doing the work to support faculty of color and are putting the effort to learn and acknowledge biases and privileges.
Today my path is science communication and STEM education. I still feel passionate about teaching, but now I focus on informal teaching methods. Additionally, science communication is growing and needed in the world today where misinformation is more prevalent. I can make an impact on more people by making them excited and inspired by STEM. I can also give back more to a community that looks like me and has similar backgrounds to me. Now I get to work on projects with amazing people at LabX, part of the National Academy of Sciences, and Chemists in the Kitchen, as well as accessible teaching projects with Arizona State University and Carnegie Mellon University. I am also working with Latinas in STEM to illuminate curiosity in STEM in young and support undergraduates and young professional Latinas in STEM through their own career journeys.
My biggest advice is take your own path. Embrace the weird, scary, exciting turns. That path will lead you to where you need to be at that time. I cannot wait to see where this path leads me!
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