Marguerite got her start in federal service as a 2016-2018 AAAS Science & Technology Policy Executive Branch Fellow  at the National Institutes of Health, where she supported policy implementation in the Office of Extramural Research. Through her experiences as a Black woman in the sciences, she is invested in creating and sustaining diverse, equitable, inclusive environments for STEM careers.

 

A native of Southern California, Marguerite began her journey in scientific research at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies as a high school student summer intern. She went on to pursue her baccalaureate studies in biochemistry and became a proud alumna of Spelman College. Marguerite then earned a PhD in neuroscience at the University of Pittsburgh, completing a postdoctoral fellowship in behavioral neuroscience at the Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU). During her time at OHSU, Marguerite also served as the program director for the OHSU Fellowship for Diversity in Research Program tasked with recruiting and retaining postdoctoral researchers from underrepresented backgrounds. In addition to her work at OHSU, she also held the title of program director for the Youth Engaged in Science (YES!) outreach initiative that aimed to enrich science educational programs to middle and high school students in under-resourced areas of the Greater Portland Metro area. 

 

Marguerite believes access to meaningful mentorship and network building make up the cornerstone of achieving one's goals. As such, she is actively involved in the #BlackInNeuro virtual community and the Society for Neuroscience, where she serves as a mentor for their Neuroscience Scholars Program for historically underrepresented graduate students and postdoctoral researchers.