Life & Exploration

Dr. Cammi Valdez is a vascular biologist, diversity expert, college administrator, faculty member, and champion of making STEM accessible. Through the workshops and seminars she has developed, Dr. Valdez has become an expert on issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). As a Latina and woman in science, Dr. Cammi Valdez has a lived experience and understanding of the pressures and challenges facing women and people of color. Dr. Valdez is a strong advocate for empowering and advancing women, first generation students, the LGBTQ+ community, and people of color. As an educator in this area, she promotes this work through the McNair Scholars Program at Wellesley and on national stages as an invited speaker at conferences. She is passionate about changing the landscape and the makeup of the people within higher education at all levels – students, faculty, and staff – to become more diverse, inclusive, and representative of the people in our society. Together we can make this a reality!

Wang Lab at Oklahoma University, Exocrine Peptidase Precursor Genes in Zebrafish

Dr. Valdez’s work in the DEI space began when she served as President of the Harvard Graduate Student Council, advocating on behalf of graduate students, creating programming, and recruiting diverse students. During her 2 terms as GSC President, Dr. Valdez accomplished policy changes at the Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, such as implementing the first ever Parental Leave Policy for graduate students. Additionally, she worked with Harvard University Health Services on increasing outside mental health visits from 12 to 24 and now 40 visits, as well as including coverage for in vitro fertilization and bottom surgery for trans students. Dr. Valdez was also involved with the Biomedical Graduate Student Organization (BGSO) for a number of years. While President of BGSO, Dr. Valdez created, organized, and implemented the first ever orientation program to create a sense of community amongst the 600+ graduate students based at Harvard Medical School. For this work, Dr. Valdez was recognized at the state-level by NASPA with the Richard F. Stevens Outstanding Graduate Student Award.

Harvard University GSAS/SEAS Commencement Marshall

Following her graduate work, Dr. Valdez was the Assistant Director of Undergraduate Research and Fellowships at Harvard College. In this role, Dr. Valdez started the Harvard Amgen Scholars Program (ASP) from scratch and co-Directed the Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship (MMUF) – working with talented undergraduates from diverse backgrounds interested in pursuing graduate education. Additionally, Dr. Valdez served as the Diversity Officer for her office, where she operated as an expert educator in research and fellowship opportunities and outreach initiatives for marginalized communities, including students from underrepresented ethnicities/races, LGBTQ+, first generation, and low-income backgrounds. Prior to this, Dr. Valdez was the Program Manager for the MIT Summer Research Program (MSRP).

One Harvard – Networking Session Leader – Graduate Diversity Recruitment

Diversity Leadership Training

Now, Dr. Valdez serves as the inaugural Director of the Ronald E. McNair Postbaccalaureate Achievement Program at Wellesley College, which provides academic and professional support to first generation, low income, and students of color on their path to STEM graduate education. At Wellesley, Dr. Valdez is very engaged in the conversations about making inclusive spaces where all students, staff, and faculty feel a sense of belonging on campus through her work on the Committee for Diversity (Co-Chair), Staff of Color @ Wellesley (Co-Chair), and Immigration Working Group. Through the research programs Dr. Valdez has directed, she has individually mentored more than 175 undergraduates.

As a faculty member in the Biological Sciences Department at Wellesley College, Dr. Valdez aims to inspire students to explore and pursue STEM through her teaching. She teaches a first year seminar “The Eye: A Window into Vascular Diseases” (BISC 103Y), which focuses on principles of the cardiovascular system from a physiological and cellular approach. This course also examines how vascular diseases in the eye have larger implications for cardiovascular diseases systemically. In addition, Dr. Valdez co-teaches an advanced writing seminar on applying to graduate school with Professor Jeannine Johnson, Director and Senior Lecturer in the Writing Program.

Harvard University Cheerleading!

Dr. Valdez received her B.S. in Chemistry (ACS certified) and B.S. in Mathematics from Southwestern Oklahoma State University in Weatherford, OK. Dr. Valdez earned her Ph.D. in Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology from Harvard University for her research on the role of pericyte loss in the retina and the implications for diabetic retinopathy under the mentorship of Dr. Patricia D’Amore and Dr. Joseph Arboleda-Velasquez. Dr. Valdez’s research has been recognized nationally with the prestigious National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship. Work from her dissertation “The Role of Pericyte Loss in Adult Retinal Microvascular Stability: Implications for Diabetic Retinopathy” has been published in the American Journal of Pathology and Current Diabetes Report.