Harvard Latino Alumni Alliance

HLAA Newsletter | NOVEMBER 2020

Fabiola Madrigal, LL.M '19

Volunteer, Programming Committee

Fabiola is an attorney, born and raised in San José, Costa Rica. She obtained her J.D. degree from the University of Costa Rica, and worked two years for the Costa Rican government before deciding to go to Harvard. In 2018, she was awarded a scholarship by the Fulbright Program that allowed her to pursue an LL.M. degree at Harvard Law School. 

Currently, she works as a legal and policy advisor for the Ministry of Foreign Trade in Costa Rica, where she focuses on international trade and dispute resolution. Prior to returning to her home country, she worked for a law firm in Washington, D.C. 

During her time at HLS she served on the board of La Alianza, the law school's latinx organization. La Alianza inspired her to join HLAA, where she currently serves as a volunteer of the Programming Committee: “Being part of HLAA has helped me keep in touch with the Harvard community, and has given me an amazing and supportive familia.”

Interested in joining our board?

Apply for our available positions: Student Support Co-Chairs (Undergrad & Grad), Marketing Chair, and Fundraising Chair here. 

RULING ON HARVARD'S AFFIRMATIVE ACTION CASE

The U.S. Court of Appeals has upheld Harvard's race-conscious admissions policy. We join the NAACP in celebrating this victory and its future impact on equity and higher education.  Read our statement here.

HARVARD SCIENTISTS HONORED AMONG TOP SCIENTISTS IN AMERICA

Eight Harvard scientist honored among the top Hispanic/Latinx Scientist in America

	Albert M. Galaburda, MD, Cognitive Neurologist/Senior Neurologist; Director of the Office of Diversity, Inclusion, and Career Advancement; Emily Fisher Landau Professor of Neurology and Neuroscience; and Co-director of the Mind Brain Behavior Interfaculty Initiative; Harvard Medical School and Harvard University
	Karina Noemi Gonzalez Herrara, PhD, Assistant Director of Diversity and Minority Affairs, Division of Medical Sciences, Harvard University. She has generated data that shed light on metabolic pathways that are important in the treatment of cancer.
	Santiago Lozano Calderon, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery; Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts General Hospital, and Harvard University. Lozano specializes in the evaluation and treatment of primary benign and malignant tumors of bone and soft tissue, as well as metastatic bone disease.
	Caroline Palavicino-Maggio, PhD, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Harvard Medical School. Palavicino-Maggio’s research studies how gene expression in amine neurons and neural circuits leads to changes in social behavior, specifically aggression in Drosophila.
	Ivan J. Santiago, PhD, Postdoctoral Researcher, Harvard Medical School. Santiago studies the complex growth trajectories of axons—the thin, tube-like output structures of neurons, which carry information from one part of the brain to another.
	Thiago Monteiro Araújo dos Santos, PhD, HHMI Hanna Gray Fellow, Harvard University. Santos hopes to inhibit the process of cells building their outer walls by studying the process. Inhibiting the process may lead to new ways to stop deadly infections.
	Carlos Manlio Diaz-Garcia, PhD, NIH Postdoctoral Fellow, Harvard Medical School. Diaz-Garcia uses a combination of genetically-encoded fluorescent biosensors to determine glucose consumption. He studies the energy metabolism of neurons and astrocytes in brain slices.
	Joseph E. Rodriguez Jr., PhD, SAO Astronomer, Solar, Stellar, and Planetary Sciences Division, Center for Astrophysics, Harvard-Smithsonian. Rodriguez works on the NASA Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) mission. His research focuses on understanding planet formation and evolution by studying circumstellar disks and exoplanets.

SEEKING SUBMISSIONS: HARVARD JOURNAL OF HISPANIC POLICY

The Harvard Kennedy School Journal of Hispanic Policy (HJHP) is inviting established and emerging scholars, including students, researchers, journalists, advocates, organizers, artists, and policy practitioners to submit work related to policy issues facing the Latinx community in the United States.

The theme of the 2021 volume, “Resilience and Reconciliation,” will explore the socioeconomic inequities highlighted by the pandemic, stories of perseverance in the Latinx community, and opportunities for bold and visionary policy reform.

HJHP is accepting research articles, commentaries, book and film reviews, artwork, opinion pieces, and blog submissions relevant to the Latinx community in the United States. All submissions must be the author’s original work. 

UPCOMING EVENTS

THE VACCINE

This webinar is part of the Unity Series, and will lead up to the 2021 Unity Weekend, a conference led by—and in celebration of—Harvard alumni of color.

GET LATINX ON BOARDS

January 15^th-17^th, 2021 Register here 

ETHNIC STUDIES:

• Immigration and States of Belonging: How Sub-Federal Immigration Policies Define Membership in the USA Nov 17, 3:00pm-4:30pm EST Event link (Password: 899898) By Tomás Jiménez. Stanford sociology professor, Candidate in Sociology Dept.  

• Next-Gen Harvard Success: A Socialize Remotely Signature Event: Inclusive Practices for Supporting First-Gen, Lower-Income Students In and Beyond the Classroom  Date: Tuesday, November 10, 2020, 12:00pm EST Register
• Next-Gen Career Series / Part 2: LinkedIn Lab with HKS Career Coach Natascha Saunders Date: Thursday, November 12, 2020, 1:30pm EST Register
• FGHA Virtual Mixer!  Date: Thursday, November 12, 2020, 5:00pm to 6:00pm EST Register
• Financing Your Future Date: Monday, November 16, 2020, 5:30pm to 6:30pm EST Register
• Know Your Strengths: Unpacking the Intersections of First-Gen College and First-Gen Immigrant Identities Date: Tuesday, November 17, 2020, 5:00pm to 6:00pm EST Register

Check out the full calendar here

OUR COMMUNITY

Enjoy the first children's picture book about becoming a TV news anchor. Amazingly illustrated, this inspiring Latina autobiography features a bilingual Spanish translation.

This autobiography is topical, as immigrants and women continue the struggle to claim their rightful place in America. The dynamic illustrations by Juan Calle go behind the scenes to show how breaking news is covered in a way no other storybook has done before. The book features a bilingual translation in Spanish and a glossary of TV terms. Join Leticia on her inspiring journey to achieve the American Dream.

Latinx Success Story: Sabrina Gonzalez Pasterski

At only 14 years old, she had already built her own single-engine airplane and flew it herself. Sabrina Gonzalez Pasterski, a Chicago native of Cuban descent, graduated from MIT with the highest graduating GPA of 5.0 in just 3 years and was the first woman to win the MIT Physics Orloff Scholarship Award. Sabrina, a Hertz Foundation Fellow, was listed as one of the 30 under 30 most influential people worldwide by Forbes Magazine, and her work in physics and PSZ Triangle for electromagnetic memory has been cited by scientists such as Stephen Hawking, Malcolm Perry, and Andrew Stromingern. In 2019, she graduated with her Ph.D. in theoretical high energy physics from Harvard University. Today she is a postdoc at Princeton Center of Theoretical Science.

CAREER CORNER

Ph.D. SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITY 

The Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security announced a new Health Security PhD track in the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Department of Environmental Health and Engineering. The track will begin accepting students for the 2021-22 school year, and applicants can indicate interest in their SOPHAS doctoral program application, which is due December 1, 2020. Full funding, supported by the Open Philanthropy Project, is available for up to 2 students. Dr. Tara Kirk Sell and Dr. Gigi Gronvall, both Senior Scholars at the Center for Health Security, will direct the track. A webinar will be held on October 21, 2020, at 2pm EDT to provide additional details about the program. Advance registration is required.

HEALTH SECURITY SCHOLARSHIP 

The Center for Health Security also announced a new Health Security Scholarship for Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health students pursuing a master of public health (MPH) degree. This scholarship is supported by the Open Philanthropy Project and is intended for MPH students with an interest in the field of health security, particularly those with interest in pandemics and global catastrophic biological risks. The scholarships will cover full tuition for the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health MPH degree, and up to 2 scholarships will be awarded per academic year. The inaugural scholarships will be awarded for the 2021–22 program year.

THE EVOLUTION OF EMPLOYMENT: JOB SEARCHING DURING COVID-19

Please note: Attendance is limited, so be sure to register today to guarantee your place. 

IN THE NEWS 

Appellate Court Determines Harvard Didn't Violate Federal Civil-Rights Law: link

Biden Wins the Presidency, Sending Harvard Students Celebrating in the Streets: link

Student Groups Celebrate Latinx Heritage Month: link

Harvard Grad School of Arts and Sciences to Reduce or Pause Admissions in Some Fields: link

Bacow Says Plans for Spring Semester 'Clouded in Enormous Uncertainty': link