Doctoral Student I'm a first year genetics PhD student working with Dr. Andrea Sweigart to investigate the genetic basis of a common and strong plant hybridization barrier known as hybrid seed inviability. My goal is to uncover causal genes and gene regulatory mechanisms behind this hybridization barrier. For my research I will be using closely related species of Mimulus (Monkey Flowers). By using these species I also hope to find evolutionary patterns underlying hybrid seed inviability. Education Education: I began my educational journey at Fullerton College, a small local college to my home in Southern California. I eventually transferred to the University of California, Santa Cruz where I double majored in Plant Science and Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology.