The Innovator and Motivator Podcast by AWIS-CAC features scientists who have demonstrated the ability to innovate and/or motivate in their chosen STEM career trajectory. For these podcasts, we invite the scientist into this conversation with their mentee to afford for rich conversations that matter. Here, we spotlight the podcast mentors that have been featured in past podcasts.
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Spring 2025 Innovators and Motivators Podcast with Dr. Valerie Taylor
with mentee, Dr. Lan Zhiling Valerie Taylor is the director of the Mathematics and Computer Science Division at Argonne National Laboratory. She received her Ph.D. in electrical engineering and computer science from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1991. She then joined the faculty in the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Department at Northwestern University, where she…
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Spring 2024 Innovators and Motivators Podcast with Dr. Abigail Ross
with mentee, Mauricette Rajaobelina Dr. Abigail Ross is a primate behavioral ecologist and the Founder and Executive Director of The Dr. Abigail Ross Foundation for Applied Conservation (TDARFAC). She graduated with a B.A. in Anthropology from the University of Wisconsin- Madison, M.A. in Biological Anthropology from Northern Illinois University, and Ph.D. in Evolutionary Anthropology from…
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Winter 2023 Innovators and Motivators Podcast with Dr. Laura Tran
with mentee, Malia Gasteier Dr. Laura Tran is an Assistant Editor with The Scientist magazine. She earned a B.S. in Medical Laboratory Science from Saint Louis University (2017) and a Ph.D. in Integrated Biomedical Sciences from Rush University (2023). Her research focused on how circadian rhythms and alcohol affect the gut and resulted in an…
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Fall 2023 Innovators and Motivators Podcast with Dr. Ashlynn Stillwell
Our fall 2023 Innovators and Motivators podcast hosts Dr. Ashlynn S. Stillwell, an Associate Professor and the Elaine F. and William J. Hall Excellence Faculty Scholar in Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She earned a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Missouri (2006), and an M.S. in Environmental…
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Summer 2023 Innovators and Motivators Podcast with Dr. Yamilé Molina
Dr. Molina is an Associate Professor in the Division of Community Health Sciences in the School of Public Health, an Associate Director for Community Engaged Research for the Mile Square Health Center, one of the oldest FQHCs and one of the few affiliated with an academic medical center, and the Associate Director for Community Outreach…
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Spring 2023 Innovators and Motivators Podcast with Dr. Kajal Gupta
Written by Kajal Gupta and edited by Christina Nowicki. Check out the Spring 2023 Innovators and Motivators Podcast with Dr. Kajal Gupta! (scroll to the bottom of this page to listen now) Dr. Kajal Gupta discovered her passion for science at a young age. She has always been naturally inquisitive and eager to learn new…