Erika Tatiana Camacho

Erika Tatiana Camacho is a Mexican-born American mathematical biologist and professor of applied mathematics at Arizona State University.^[1][2] She is a 2014 Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring (PAESMEM) awardee.^[3] She was taught and mentored in high school by Jaime Escalante, who was the subject of the movie Stand and Deliver.^[4]

Erika Tatiana Camacho
Born	(1974-09-03) September 3, 1974 (age 48) Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico
Nationality	American
Alma mater	Cornell University Wellesley College
Scientific career
Fields	Mathematical Biology Applied mathematics
Institutions	Arizona State University Loyola Marymount University Cornell University Los Alamos National Laboratory
Thesis	Mathematical Models of Retinal Dynamics
Doctoral advisor	Richard H. Rand
Influences	Jaime Escalante
Website	www.public.asu.edu/~etcamach/

Education

Camacho was born September 3, 1974 in Guadalajara, Mexico. She attended high school at Garfield High School from 1990–1993 where she was taught by Jaime Escalante.^[5][6] After graduating from Wellesley College, cum laude, with Bachelor of Arts degrees in mathematics and economics in 1997, she went to earn a PhD in applied mathematics^[7] from Cornell University in 2003 for her research on mathematical models of retinal dynamics.

Career

After spending a year as a postdoc at Los Alamos National Laboratory, Camacho joined the faculty of the Department of Mathematics at Loyola Marymount University in 2004. She co-founded and co-directed the summer Research Experiences for Undergraduates, the Applied Mathematical Sciences Summer Research Institute (AMSSI), that ran from 2005–2007 with support from the National Science Foundation and the National Security Agency. Her research focuses on mathematical models of photoreceptors in the retina.^[5] In 2007, she moved to Arizona State University where she is a professor of applied mathematics. In 2013–2014, she taught at MIT in the MLK Visiting Scholars program.^[8]

In September 2019 she began a 3-year rotation as a Program Director with the National Science Foundation. She was co-lead of the HSI Program and worked with the ADVANCE Program. She also served as a Program Director in the Racial Equity in STEM Program Description where she and the other Program Directors were awarded a 2022 Director’s Award for Superior Accomplishment: "For excellence, inclusion, collaboration, integrity, learning, transparency, and public service in creating and bringing to fruition the EHR Racial Equity in STEM Education Program Description, a timely idea whose impact may fundamentally change the scientific endeavor and NSF." ^[9]

In January 2023, she began a Fulbright Scholar Award at the Institut de la Vision in Paris (Sorbonne University). ^[10][11]

She is a staunch advocate for inclusivity in STEM.^{[12][13][14][15][16]}

Awards

Camacho is the recipient of the American Association for the Advancement of Science's 2019 Mentor Award^[17] and a 2014 Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring (PAESMEM),^[3] awarded for her research with and mentoring of undergraduates. In 2023 she received the M. Gweneth Humphreys Award in recognition of mathematics educators who have exhibited outstanding mentorship ^[18] and in 2020 she received the Louise Hay Award for Mathematics Education,^[19] both from the Association for Women in Mathematics. She won the 2020 SACNAS Presidential Service Award,^[20] the 2018 American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education (AAHHE) Outstanding Latino/a Faculty in Higher Education Research/Teaching (Research Institutions) Award,^[21] the 2017 HENAAC Education Award,^[22] the 2012 SACNAS Distinguished Undergraduate Institution Mentor Award,^[23] and the 2011 Hispanic Women's Corporation National Latina Leadership Award.^[24]

References

1. "Professor Erika Camacho's Home Page". Public.asu.edu. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
2. "Erika Camacho - iSearch". Isearch.asu.edu. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
3. . paesmem.net. Archived from the original on 2018-08-29. Retrieved 2018-06-26.
4. "Jaime Escalante in the 21st Century: Still Standing and Delivering - The Best Schools". Thebestschools.org. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
5. "Erika Camacho – Math4Science". Math4science.org. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
6. "Life In Absolute Values - Diverse". Diverseeducation.com. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
7. "Spotlights - Center for Applied Mathematics - Cornell Engineering". Cam.cornell.edu. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
8. "Erika Camacho, Mathematics – Martin Luther King Jr. Scholars". Mlkscholars.mit.edu. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
9. "NSF Director's Award Ceremony". events.tvworldwide.com. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
10. "U.S. Fulbright Scholar page".
11. "ASU math professors earn prestigious Fulbright Scholar Award".
12. "Women's Business Conference To Focus On Latinas In STEM Careers". KJZZ. 15 March 2017. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
13. "Featured Interview: Sloan Scholar Erika Camacho on Mentoring in Service of Diversity – Sloan Scholars Mentoring Network". Sloan-scholars.ssrc.org. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
14. "Once uninspired student, math professor finds passion in teaching". Statepress.com. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
15. "Erika Tatiana Camacho, Ph.D." Technica Magazine. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
16. "Hispanics Who Have Led the Way in Math - 7 Generation Games". 7generationgames.com. 9 October 2017. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
17. Holland, Richard. "ASU New College professor receives 2019 AAAS Mentor Award". ASU Now. Retrieved 9 February 2019.
18. "Humphreys Award 2023". awm-math.org.
19. "Hay Award 2020". awm-math.org.
20. {cite web|url=https://www.sacnas.org/honor-excellence/archive%7Ctitle=SACNAS Award|website=Sacnas.org}}
21. "AAHHE Award". American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education.
22. "award-winners-2017". Greatmindsinstem.org.
23. "SACNAS Award". Sacnas.org.
24. "Hispanic Women's Conference - Arizona PBS". Azpbs.org.

External links

• VME TV, in Spanish
• Camacho Discusses Applied Mathematics & Real-World Problems
• LATMATH: Modeling Photoreceptor Death and Rescue