2025 Diversity Awards and Networking Reception Remarks by

Christopher Lopez

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-18 20:57:18 UTC

I am so grateful for this award and even more so for the many people who have encouraged and challenged me along the way. During my time at Stanford, I’ve had the privilege of working with Native and Indigenous communities—listening, building relationships, and helping to strengthen support systems for students with similar journeys.

I’ve learned a great deal from those who have shared their time, stories, and trust. Thank you.

Aaron Brown

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-18 20:57:44 UTC

Thulasee (Tulsi) Jose

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-18 20:58:11 UTC

We must continue supporting scholars and create educational environment that promotes diversity, equity and inclusivity. We must give voice to those who are invisible. I dedicate this award to my newborn daughter - Jophiel Ann George.

Jairo Noreña Velasquez

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-18 20:58:41 UTC

This recognition is deeply meaningful to me, but more than anything, it is dedicated to the underserved Hispanic families who inspire this work every day. Many face enormous challenges — from fear, to the weight of social determinants of health, to the barriers of navigating a complex healthcare system that can often feel overwhelming. They deserve not only medical care but also a helping hand in health promotion and empowerment.

Throughout my journey — from creating a social media platform reaching over 450,000 Hispanic followers, publishing a book to promote healthy lifestyles, educating through Spanish-language media across the country, and leading culturally sensitive initiatives at Stanford, including the development of the Health Disparities Curriculum and the implementation of Spanish-language educational videos and materials — my goal has always been to walk alongside these families, lifting them up, educating, and advocating for them.

This award belongs to them as much as it does to me. Cheers to our abuelos, our abuelas, and to all those who deserve an extra hand in achieving equitable health opportunities.

Andy Tsai

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-18 21:04:38 UTC

Anthony Cesnik

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-18 21:04:50 UTC

Astrid N. Zamora

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-18 21:05:00 UTC

I am deeply honored and grateful to receive this recognition, and it is truly inspiring to be among such remarkable awardees at our institution. This acknowledgment reinforces my commitment to the JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion) principles that are central to my work and my identity, both as an academic and as a person. I am thankful for the opportunity to integrate these values into my service, scholarship, and community involvement. Whether through advocating for equity-focused teaching practices in public health education, supporting mentorship programs for underrepresented minorities, or working with organizations like the Stanford Latinx Postdoc Association, I strive to ensure that JEDI principles guide every aspect of my work. JEDI is not just a framework for my professional endeavors; it’s a guiding principle that influences how I engage with and support others. Thank you for this recognition and for the opportunity to continue learning, growing, and working alongside such an incredible community.

Courtney W. Hess

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-18 21:05:15 UTC

Thank you so much for the honor of this award. I am grateful for Dr. Ana Goya Arce for being someone who sees trainees and works tirelessly to elevate them and make their work and efforts known and celebrated. I am grateful to work everyday with people that will continue to fight for justice and equity, even when it is costly. Having a community of people that are committed to addressing the deeply entrenched systemic inequities of our world, including in our healthcare, is appreciated more than ever so that we can step together in this work.

Dhriti Nagar

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-18 21:05:29 UTC

Emily A. Aery Jones

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-18 21:05:54 UTC

Jennifer Ortiz Cárdenas

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-18 21:06:11 UTC

Joy A. McKenna

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-18 21:06:23 UTC

I am motivated to uplift, enhance, and empower unheard voices. As a woman of color from a low-income background in science, I am thankful to my mentors, peers, family, and friends that actively included and listened to my voice. Recognizing this impact, I started the “How did we get here?" seminar series which provides a platform for postdocs to discuss the diverse path that they took to Stanford, facilitate workshops as a mentoring coach, and advocated for all postdoctoral scholars as a prior leadership member of the Stanford University Postdoctoral Association.

Maha Ramamurthy

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-18 21:06:37 UTC

I’m deeply honored and humbled to receive the JEDI award. This recognition means a great deal to me, as I’ve always believed that research and scholarship should go hand in hand with service and community care. During the pandemic, I started Paths (Padhaigal), a small initiative to support first-generation students in navigating their educational journeys. With the help of ten dedicated volunteers, we’re now working to build a global platform to expand this support. My public health efforts grew from a deep concern for how marginalized communities were navigating the COVID-19 crisis. I worked to improve health literacy through grassroots outreach and began collaborating with local groups in rural India to strengthen community-based healthcare. This included advocating for the training and support of community health workers and pushing for more accessible and culturally responsive care systems. These experiences have shaped my understanding of justice and equity not as abstract ideals, but as urgent, ongoing responsibilities. They continue to inspire the way I engage with the world—as a researcher and as a human.

Man Zhao

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-18 21:06:42 UTC

Marcela Radtke

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-18 21:06:54 UTC

Growing up, my family fostered children with physical and intellectual disabilities, making me cognizant of the inequities that exist between the preconceived labels of “abled” and “disabled” at an early age. These same values continue to serve as a guide for my professional endeavors, as I choose to promote and empower JEDI principles in my research, teaching, and mentorship. My research focuses on quantifying the physiological and cognitive consequences of food and nutrition insecurity in community and healthcare settings. I aim to implement innovative technology into existing healthcare infrastructure to serve as an objective biomarker of nutritional status to determine the effectiveness of Food is Medicine interventions in preventing and treating nutrition-sensitive chronic diseases. My research is centered through a health equity lens, by advocating for nutrition-related health policies to provide nutrition supports in racial/ethnic minority and low-income communities.

Sayane Shome

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-18 21:07:19 UTC

Shashi Singh

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-18 21:07:29 UTC

Troy Dildine

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-18 21:07:51 UTC

I am honored to receive this recognition and be among a group of awardees committed to the ideals of service and community. I will continue to dedicate my research and participate in initiatives that seek to improve access and pain treatment for all patients amidst a time and sociopolitical context that makes this work difficult to pursue and maintain. I appreciate the openness and vulnerability my community (patients, clinicians, researchers) has afforded me and will aim to remain resilient and move forward with gratitude and a lens that resists and uplifts all voices.

Felipe Perez

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-18 21:43:01 UTC

It is with immense gratitude that I accept the Dr. Augustus A. White III and Family Faculty Award, a recognition that truly belongs to all of us. I want to highlight the incredible contributions of our medical students, residents, fellows, staff, and faculty, whose hard work and compassion are vital to our mission of fostering health equity. This award reflects our collective dedication to making a meaningful difference in the lives of those we serve, and I am proud to share this journey with such an inspiring group. I am also deeply thankful for the unwavering support of my wife and daughter, whose love motivates me to strive for a healthier, more equitable future.

Nicole E. Exeni McAmis

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-22 17:51:40 UTC

Kathryn (Katie) Hanson

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-29 22:04:03 UTC

I am deeply honored to be recognized for this award. A big part of grad school is learning - and yet so much of this learning is complex and informal. Thank you to all of my mentors for their generous support and for providing such strong examples of inclusive learning environments over the years. I would not be here without their guidance. It is very important to me to pass along the support I received, and I have been fortunate to do a lot of that in my time here. Thank you to my mentees and peers who have trusted me with their learning and taught me just as much. It has also been incredibly rewarding to work alongside wonderful faculty, staff, and students in Genetics to improve the admissions process together. I am very grateful and lucky to be a member of these Bioscience communities and to be recognized today alongside the other amazing awardees.

Camilo Espinosa Bernal

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-29 22:04:59 UTC

I'm deeply honored to receive this award and to be recognized for my efforts over the past 6 years to improve graduate student life within my Department, my program, and the Stanford Biosciences community. Advocating for my peers and fighting for equity and justice within the academy has been just as important to me as my research for my graduate education. I'm grateful to have met wonderful collaborators in these efforts who have inspired me to push for positive change. I hope we all find in each other, especially in these uncertain times, the strength and support to keep fighting for a better future!

Youlim Kim

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-29 22:05:54 UTC

I am very touched to receive this high recognition, even more so knowing that many of my peers are deserving of this award. I am thankful to have met and worked alongside several of my fellow awardees in making Stanford Biosciences a more inclusive and enjoyable community. Student advocacy is what built the greatest aspects of Stanford, and I will continue to encourage future leaders to grow that community that I have been fortunate to belong to.

Mary DeFeo

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-29 22:06:55 UTC

Brenda Yu

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-29 22:07:16 UTC

I'm honored to be recognized with this award and even more grateful to my Stanford Biosciences community for always supporting me. Increasing accessibility to higher education has always been an important mission to me throughout my PhD journey, as I never would have gotten to where I am today without the help of many mentors. Through the initiatives I have led, I had the privilege of seeing my mentees grow and achieve their dreams. I'm extremely fulfilled knowing that I was able make an impact on so many lives, no matter how big or small, and I hope we can continue to lead by example by inspiring the next generation of scientists and leaders.

Lauren Goins

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-29 22:08:09 UTC

I am so honored to receive this award. Fostering a supportive lab environment has always been incredibly important to me because I would not be here today without the guidance and encouragement of strong mentors throughout my career. I have worked to put that value into practice with each decision I’ve made while building my lab. I prioritize individualized, supportive learning environments and design projects that align with students’ interests and personal goals, while also advancing our broader lab objectives. My commitment to creating an inclusive, collaborative, and effective training environment is rooted in recognizing and supporting each person’s unique needs and aspirations. My hope is to help build the next generation of world-changing scientists and scientific mentors who will continue to push discovery and inclusion forward.

Priscilla Li-Ning Yang

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-29 22:08:37 UTC

Kalai Diamond

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-29 22:08:59 UTC

Veronica Schulte

xyq76s5hrg — 2025-04-29 22:09:20 UTC

I am immensely grateful to be recognized in this space alongside these inspiring change-makers. Through mentorship, allyship, and advocacy, we can uplift each other towards our greatest potential. I am extremely appreciative of my team, whose authentic support, unwavering encouragement, and commitment to excellence make every challenge worthwhile. Their collaborative spirit truly makes our work shine, and I am deeply grateful for their partnership. Thank you for this incredible honor, and I hope we can continue to elevate this important work and be a beacon for others across the country.