PR scientist among 65 women in STEM award winners
Mónica Feliú-Mójer with a student (Credit: CienciaPR)
Puerto Rico native Mónica I. Feliú-Mójer, vice-director for Ciencia Puerto Rico and Science Outreach Program Manager for iBiology, has been selected to receive the 2016 Inspiring Women in STEM Award from INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine, CienciaPR announced Tuesday.
This award honors women who work to make a difference in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Feliú-Mójer will be featured, along with 64 other recipients, in the September 2016 issue of “INSIGHT Into Diversity” magazine, the largest and oldest diversity and inclusion publication in higher education.
“Dr. Feliú-Mójer has dedicated her life and work to mentoring and empowering women and underrepresented minorities to find success in STEM careers,” said Giovanna Guerrero-Medina, CienciaPR ‘s executive director. “She has inspired countless numbers of people through her outreach work. All of us at Ciencia Puerto Rico are extremely proud of her.”
Inspiring Women in STEM Award recipients were nominated by colleagues or mentees and selected by “INSIGHT Into Diversity” based on their efforts to inspire and encourage a new generation of young women to consider careers in STEM through mentoring, teaching, research, and successful programs and initiatives.
As vice-director of CienciaPR, a nonprofit that promotes STEM education and careers by engaging Latinx STEM professionals, Feliú-Mójer manages programs to strengthen the professional development of graduate students and connect them with role models and mentors and she leads the organization’s science communication initiatives.
“This award is very special. I cherish the opportunity to pay it forward to future generations and honor the trailblazers on whose shoulders we all stand,” said Feliú-Mójer. “I am humbled to be recognized for my work empowering young scientists, particularly young scientists of color, to make sure they develop the leadership skills they need succeed in their careers and also lift their communities as they climb.”
Dr. Feliú-Mójer, who was born and raised in Puerto Rico and has a Ph.D. in Neurobiology from Harvard University, is an expert using culturally-relevant and experiential-based lessons to make science and scientific role models accessible to underserved audiences. She has helped edit and publish more than 240 science articles for a general public and in 2013 was recognized with the Paul Shin Memorial Award from the Coalition for the Public Understanding of Science. Her work has been featured on international media outlets, such as Univisión, VOXXI, and Scientific American, among others.
In addition to working with CienciaPR, she is also Science Outreach Program Manager for iBiology, a UCSF-based nonprofit that produces free educational online videos featuring the world’s leading biologists.
