Gabriel Viramontes, grew up in Lodi, a small town in Northern California. As a high school student,he was able to attend a unique program that allowed him to simultaneously gather his high school diploma and two associate degrees. This gave him the needed experience to be the first in his family to attend a four-year university and to pursue his undergraduate degree. Now Gabriel will be graduating with his degree in Biological Sciences with an emphasis in Ecology and Evolution. His love for empowering young minority students through education has also led him to minor in Natural Science and Education. As an Undergraduate student, Gabriel has had the opportunity to be a part of two undergraduate research opportunity center (UROC) programs: CAMP and SOAR. Within both programs he conducted research under Dr. Nobile who specializes in understanding Candida, a species of pathogenic fungi. These experiences solidified Gabriel's love for research, and have even led him to win various awards for his research poster presentations. In terms of extracurriculars, Gabriel has been involved in various outreach programslike Lift While You Lead and AVID Tutoring, which he hopes will help him gain the needed experience to push younger students into pursuing higher education. Gabriel is also a part of Alpha Phi Omega, a professional service fraternity, which has given him the opportunity to practice the fraternities’ pillars of leadership, friendship, and service. Starting this coming Fall, Gabriel will be attending the University of California, San Francisco a part of the TETRAD program, to pursue his Ph.D. in Microbiology. Gabriel’s greatest role model is Jane Goodall (one of the leading founders of observational research and biodiversity), who has inspired him to conduct his research specifically on the biodiversity of microorganisms. In the future, Gabriel hopes to establish his own lab and use his Ph.D. training to help future students within all education levels gain experiences that will push them to pursue higher education.
