I was born in North Carolina, and (fast forward 18 years) attended UNC-Chapel Hill for my undergraduate education, where I studied Biology and Spanish. In undergrad, I got to participate in a two-months long research experience in the Galápagos Islands, which, along with working in a fly lab, made me realize I wanted to pursue science as a career. This led me to the National Institutes of Health, where I was a postbaccalaureate fellow for two years. I studied subcellular organelle size scaling and fell in love with cell biology and microscopy. I like cell biology because I think it highlights the ways in which organisms are more alike than they are different; I used budding yeast in my experiments and was constantly amazed at how many processes this single-celled eukaryotic organism shares with other organisms. I’m hoping my future research is creative and interdisciplinary and incorporates biochemistry, cell biology, and any new fields I learn along the way. Outside of work, you could find me cooking new foods (especially bread – shout out to yeast), playing cello, being in nature, or spending time with my cat, Ralphie