-NCI, Program Director, Oct 2019-present
-Leidos, Program Analyst, Nov 2017-Oct 2019
-Kelly Services, Project Manager Center for Human Immunology, Autoimmunity and Inflammation (CHI), Jan 2017-Nov 2017
-Leidos, Biomedical Scientist, July 2015-Jan 2017
-NIH, NIGMS, Division of Training, Workforce Development and Diversity, Intern, May2015-July 2015
(Source)
Dr. Jessica Calzola presented a diversity training overview for the Center for Cancer HealthEquity, where her very first slide listed goals to “eliminate iniquities,” “optimize the workforce,” and “engage every person.”
Fast forward a few slides and there is a pie chart of the demographics in their CURE program awardees. The slice of the pie for White? 0%.
That’s not exactly engaging every person, but maybe that is what the DEI-devoted consider as optimizing the workforce.
(Source)
Cancer research is a very intense profession that should be reserved for the best and brightest regardless of race and gender. However, in a podcast about the National Cancer Institute’s iCURE program, Dr. Jessica Calzola said to have “diversity at every level,” administrators have decided to “reduce some of the barriers for applying and getting into the NCI environment by kind of not requiring individuals to identify investigators right away, right? Because that can be intimidating.”
You know what else is intimidating? Finding a cure for cancer. Perhaps eliminating the research aspect of an application is not going to garner your best researchers.
