It is my passion to support first generation college students because it provides me with the opportunity to give back to my community. I am a first-generation college student who was born in Flint, Michigan. My father worked in building maintenance and my mother occasionally worked as a secretary. I have two younger brothers; one assembles automobiles for General Motors and the other is a FedEx truck driver. I attribute my desire to be a life-long learner to my father who spent quality time with me as a child. I excelled in school, obtained a BS in Microbiology and a PhD in Genetics from Michigan State University. Then, I perform postdoctoral research in the area of chromatin structure and gene expression at Washington University in St. Louis. Following, I became an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (BMB) at the University of Iowa. In addition to teaching and mentoring, I am the Director of BMB Undergraduate Studies and the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Genetics. I operate a research laboratory focused on understanding and treating human diseases such as rare muscular dystrophies and a vision disease.