Girlstart’s Women in STEM weekly series highlights various women who are making a difference in STEM. Be inspired as these incredible women describe how they became interested in their field, provide insight into a day in the life, and share learnings from their experiences.
Sam Marcellus
Bioinformatics Fellow @ Texas Department of State Health Services
Sam began volunteering with Girlstart at our Back to School STEM Saturday event where she loved hearing girls explain to their parents what they were learning. We are so grateful that she is back volunteering her time with us today and telling us about her career in Bioinformatics!
What sparked your interest and made you want to volunteer with Girlstart?
When I was a freshman in college, a fourth-grade girl from my hometown asked me what I was studying. I told her I was studying science and she replied, “Like a boy?” Since then I’ve been volunteering with groups who expose young girls to the vast array of STEM careers available.
Was there a specific person, program, or event in your life that led you to your STEM career?
I worked in a genetics clinic in undergrad and worked with patients who had been diagnosed via newborn screening and patients who were diagnosed later in life. The drastic difference in outcomes between the two groups made me want to pursue a newborn screening related career.
What are your favorite things about your career?
I love that we give kids the best opportunity to have a long and healthy life.
What exactly do you do as a Bioinformatics Fellow?
I write computer code to process and analyze DNA sequencing information for the Texas Newborn Screening Program.
What would you like to tell girls who are interested in pursuing a STEM career?
You have a unique voice in the world. Whatever career you decide to pursue, STEM or otherwise, the field will benefit from your life experiences and your voice. STEM fields often only have men speaking, so women joining the workforce bring new ideas and can spark big change. I have a quote on my desk from Shirley Chisholm for when I’m feeling discouraged, “If they don’t give you a seat at the table, bring a folding chair.” Don’t let anyone tell you that you don’t belong.
Why is do you think confidence in STEM important for girls?
Confidence in STEM is important for girls so that they aren’t discouraged away from pursuing their passions. There’s always going to be people that think women aren’t qualified to work in STEM, it happened to me on a conference call last week, but if you’re confident in your abilities you can stand up for yourself and persist.
