DARIAN JAMES, M.S. Graduate Research Assistant at University of Wisconsin-Madison

At an early age, Dar-ian James’ parents rec-ognized her desire to learn and her love for

disassembling and reassembling toys. They enrolled her in summer camps and after school programs which helped spark her interest in STEM. The Project Lead the Way curriculum and Partners for Mi-norities in Engineering and Com-puter Science summer camp were instrumental in Darian’s decision to pursue a STEM degree. Dur-ing her undergraduate years, one of Darian’s closest friends was diagnosed with bone cancer. Her friend’s battle ignited a passion to use non-invasive imaging tech-niques to study cancer and other diseases.

She is currently a 3rd year graduate student in the biomedical engineer-ing doctoral program at the Uni-versity of Wisconsin-Madison. She received her B.S. in nuclear engi-neering from South Carolina State University in 2015 and her M.S. in biomedical engineering from UW-Madison in 2017.

A 2016 National Science Founda-tion Graduate Research Fellow-ship recipient, Darian is also an LS-AMP Bridge to the Doctorate Fellow, a UW-Madison Graduate Engineering Research Scholar and a member of the Madison Alum-nae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.

Darian’s research combines sec-ond harmonic generation micros-copy, multiphoton fluorescence microscopy and machine learning to understand extracellular matrix (ECM) remodeling in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). IPF is a chronic interstitial lung disease with unknown cause and a progno-sis worse than that of many can-cers. Understanding ECM remod-eling in IPF via nonlinear optical microscopy and machine learn-ing may provide insight into the morphological changes the ECM undergoes, how the disease pro-gresses over time and, thus, pro-vide better prognostic information. Darian’s goals are to develop and apply expertise to the fights against lung disease and cancer while help-ing to increase the number of Af-rican-Americans pursuing graduate degrees in STEM fields.

Darian is a native of Orangeburg, South Carolina.

4 SOUL SISTER SCIENTISTS

LATONYA SIMON PhD Student/Biomedical Engineering Program

As a child, I was fascinated by the way things worked and even more so how they worked in the hu-

man body. While it might seem that my interests would mean a career as a medical doctor, as the daugh-ter of two civil engineers, my inter-ests manifested quite differently.

It was after a summer research in-ternship at the University of Colo-rado Boulder that I realized I could not only learn how the human body operates, but I could also work to en-gineer ways to help it operate better. I earned my bachelor of science de-gree in chemical engineering with a minor in biological sciences from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC). It was at UMBC, through the Meyerhoff Scholars Program, that I developed a pas-sion for research and scientific dis-covery. This led to pursuing a PhD in Biomedical Engineering at the UW Madison.

In my research lab I investigate the progression of calcific aortic valve disease (CAVD). While it is known that men acquire CAVD more often than women, much less is known about why or how this occurs. Furthermore, there are no current treatment options for CAVD, aside from surgical total valve replacement. Using the hearts from pigs, I am working to uncover points at which the disease changes pace between sexes, which could ultimately aid in the development of CAVD therapeutics. After com-pleting my PhD, I plan to work to improve the interface of scientific discovery and its communication with the general public.

I am originally from Burtonsville, Maryland.

The movie Hidden Figures told the incredible story of brilliant

minds who helped shape history in the space industry. And those

minds happened to be Black women who were scientists,

mathematicians and engineers who withstood jim crow laws

enforcing racial segregation not to mention gender bias.

The movie also prompted recognition of Black women scientists and engineers, past

and present. In effect, the movie showed that Black women

scientists and engineers are not hidden figures. Black women have

always been a part of scientific discovery and will continue to

make contributions.

To this end, UMOJA is featuring four local standout scientists in this issue. They are all currently

graduate students enrolled in rigorous doctoral training at the

UW Madison.

Each one is involved in cutting-edge research and interventions,

using complex technologies and claiming their space in the

research environment! Too often, Black women’s voices are not

heard or valued in the sciences. Here, these scientists share in their

own voices the path-breaking research they are pursuing and

some interesting facts about who they are and what drives their

scholarly passions.

UMOJA offers their profiles to its readers to supplement

the historical account shown in Hidden Figures and also to hopefully inspire teachers and

students alike to have Black girls pursue STEM.

CAREERS

By Angela Byars-Winston, PhD, Professor of Medicine, UW-Madison

6 UMOJA-Gateway to the culture March | April 2018

Learn more and register at www.howardthurman.org

Join us in engagingHoward Thurman’s legacy.April 26 - 27, 2018

Hosted by Upper House; Event sponsors: Bradshaw-Knight Foundation, Sel�ess Ambition, and Geneva Campus Church

“Dr. Thurman and I come from a much di�erent background; we are divided by experience, race, and history. And yet he spoke to me about what we universally share as humans without condescension.” Nic Gibson - High Point Church

“Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s name is recorded in history as an American national holiday. But one of his spiritual and intellectual mentors, Howard Thurman, may be the lesser known national treasurer that helped shepherd him to a position of seminal impact.” Coliér McNair - Zion City Church

365 East Campus Mall, Suite 200

Use the rate code Umoja20 toget the extended super early bird

rate through March 31, 2018

15TH ANNUAL CIRCLE OF WOMEN LUNCHEON

24 UMOJA-Gateway to the culture March | April 2018

GROUP PHOTO AT LUNCHEON

Delta Sigma Theta Sorority members at luncheon: (Sitting) Angela Davis, Deborah Biddle, President Terri Strong, Kirbie Mack, Isatu Hughes; (Standing) Candace McDowell, Verona Morgan, Gail Ford, Liz Synder, Stephanie Harris, Vanessa McDowell, Bukky Akinsiku Leonard, Christin Calloway, Dana Warren

Madison’s YWCA held its 15th annual Circle of Women TM fun-draiser on Thursday,

February 22, 2018 at Alliant En-ergy Center in Madison. CUNA Mutual Group was the presenting sponsor for the event, which raises funds to support YWCA Madison and its mission of empowering women and eliminating racism.

The theme for this year’s event was Reclaiming our Power. Instead of a traditional keynote address, the program featured a series of testimonials from individuals who shared how YWCA Madison has had a positive impact on their lives

YWCA Madison conceived the idea of Circle of Women as a way to encourage guests to learn about and network with others from di-verse social, ethnic, economic, edu-cational and cultural backgrounds.

Circle of Women also works to bring awareness to the work of YWCA by profiling participants and programs from their three ser-vices, which are Housing & Shelter, Race & Gender Equity, and Job Training & Transportation.

This year’s event was led by CEO Vanessa McDowell who said that the “YWCA exists in this commu-nity to provide access to resources and tools people can use as they

YWCA: work towards their goals. We work with others in our commu-nity to break down the barriers of racism, sexism, poverty and home-lessness. We couldn’t do it with-out each of you.”

For the event, an estimated 60 ta-ble captains each filled a table of 10 with friends, relatives and colleagues. Additional community members attended the event as guests of cor-porate sponsors and other support-ers to get a total attendance of over 867 people. CUNA Mutual spon-sored a $150,000 match. With spon-sor contributions and individual pledges, the event raised more than $385,000.