Jesus G. Estrada

Jesus G. Estrada
Senior Scientist
Small Molecule Process Research & Development
Merck Research Laboratories
Host: Dipa Kalyani

Personal Story: Experiences as an undocumented Immigrant pursuing a career in chemistry

In this Ted Talk I will go over my experiences as an undocumented immigrant pursuing higher education in chemistry and leading to a career in the pharmaceutical industry. I have found that navigating through those experiences resulted in tenacity and resilience. I’ve been able to tap into these personal skills as a scientist tackling complex problems allowing me to come up with unique solutions. Science benefits greatly when teams are composed of people from diverse backgrounds that tackle problems with different approaches and perspectives.

Jeannette Brown Lectureship

The Department of Chemistry established the Jeannette Brown Lectureship to honor the career and legacy of one of its outstanding alumna. This lectureship will bring experts in all fields of chemistry from around the world to the University of Minnesota, with emphasis on highlighting the work and careers of Black, Indigenous, and people of color in the chemical sciences. The lectureship reflects and celebrates the pioneering work of Jeannette Brown as a talented chemist in the pharmaceutical industry for 25 years, author, historian, and tireless leader and advocate for the inclusion and advancement of African American women in chemistry-related professional pursuits and careers.

This lectureship is sponsored by Merck & Co., Inc., Kenilworth, NJ, USA, and by donations to the Jeannette Brown Lectureship Fund. Supporters can go to the Department of Chemistry’s giving page to donate.

Alumna Jeannette Brown

Brown is the first African American to receive a degree from the Department of Chemistry's graduate program, earning her master's degree in 1958. She is a former faculty associate in the Department of Pre-College Programs at the New Jersey Institute of Technology. For 25 years, she worked as a research chemist at Merck. She is the author of two books, "African American Women Chemists" and "African American Women Chemists in the Modern Era." She is a Société de Chimie Industrielle (American Section) Fellow of the Chemical Heritage Foundation (2004), and is a member of the first class of American Chemical Society (ACS) Fellows (2009). For her distinguished service to professionalism, she received the Henry Hill Award from the ACS Division of Professional Relations in 2020. For her work as a mentor to minority students and science education advocacy, she was elected to the Hunter College Hall of Fame in 1991; was honored by the University of Minnesota with an Outstanding Achievement Award in 2005; and received the ACS national award for Encouraging Disadvantaged Students into Careers in the Chemical Sciences in 2005.