THESE DAYS the lab where Kristina Gonzales-Wartz works is a very busy place. A biomedical scientist with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Dr. Gonzales-Wartz has joined the Laboratory of Immunogenetics in Rockville, Md., on an urgent mission to develop monoclonal antibodies against COVID-19.
That’s an immense challenge, but Dr. Gonzales-Wartz is equipped for the fight. As a PhD candidate at New Mexico State University (NMSU), she gained expertise in developing artificial blood meal. “Blood meal replacements for mosquitos are critical for public health research, where large mosquito populations must be maintained to study diseases like malaria and dengue fever,” she explains. Before graduating with a doctorate in biology in 2018, Dr. Gonzales-Wartz and her team at NMSU broke new ground by developing SkitoSnack, an artificial blood meal replacement.
While her work as a postdoctoral research fellow at NIH started in 2019, Dr. Gonzales-Wartz began impressing the scientists there years ago. In 2012 she was awarded an NIH Bridge to Baccalaureate fellowship, and in 2014 she was named an NIH RISE (Research Initiative for Scientific Enhancement) scholar. Dr. Gonzales-Wartz also earned a Navajo Nation Scholarship and an AISES Lighting the Pathway to Faculty Careers fellowship.
You might think this accomplished STEM star followed a straight, upward path — but that’s not the case. “I always gravitated toward STEM subjects and would enter every science fair. But we didn’t have many science classes at my school,” she says, recalling her years at Red Mesa High School on the Navajo Reservation. “The only science class was biology, and I was in advanced placement. There weren’t courses like chemistry because my school didn’t have the money.”
Resources were scarce where Dr. Gonzales-Wartz grew up in rural Sweetwater, Ariz., about 20 miles off the main highway. In the home that she shared with her mother, stepfather, and three younger brothers, there was no electricity during her elementary-school years. “I would do my homework next to a propane lantern,” she says. “We didn’t have running water until I was in high school.”
Dr. Gonzales-Wartz rose above the odds through a combination of discipline, determination, and encouragement from her family. She excelled in academics, graduating as class salutatorian. She was also a starter on Red Mesa’s volleyball, basketball, and softball teams, and a National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) All-American Scholar-Athlete. And she wants you to know that her mother’s name is Laverne Gonzales and her grandmother is Amelia Watchman, both of Sweetwater. “They taught me to mention them,” she says, “because it’s respectful to tell people where you come from.”
Dr. Gonzales-Wartz rose above the odds through a combination of discipline, determination, and encouragement from her family.
When Dr. Gonzales-Wartz enrolled at Haskell Indian Nations University (HINU) in Kansas, she was excited to take more science courses. But she was relegated to mostly remedial classes because of the gaps in her secondary education. She turned her focus to American Indian studies, which became her major. “I knew when I graduated from college that I really wanted to contribute to my community, but soon I realized that doing so would require more than a degree in American Indian studies.”
So Dr. Gonzales-Wartz took additional college-level classes in subjects like human anatomy and chemistry. She got a job as a research assistant at the NMSU Laboratory of Molecular Vector Physiology in 2012, and a year later began her PhD studies. Her success as a graduate researcher led to her prestigious postgraduate research position at NIH.
Along the way, Dr. Gonzales-Wartz married her husband, Arsino, who’s also Navajo from rural Arizona. While moving to the East Coast last year was a big change for them and sons four-year-old Keanu and two-year-old Ari, they have settled in — in time for a new baby due in April.
After working for more than a year at the Laboratory of Malaria and Vector Research, Dr. Gonzales-Wartz was recruited last spring for a laboratory technician managerial position in the Laboratory of Immunogenetics, part of the Antibody Biology Unit at NIH’s NIAID. “They were interested in my experience isolating malaria sporozoites, the disease agents that enter the bloodstream when a mosquito bites you,” she explains. The lab recognized her potential to help identify potent monoclonal antibodies against COVID-19.
As she and her team battle a global pandemic, Dr. Gonzales-Wartz carries her Native community in her heart. “I know there are still students living in the conditions I did, going to school without good computers or reliable internet, and insufficient science resources,” she observes. “I want to go back home and make a difference, and I’ll find a way to do that. For now, I have to focus on a crisis that’s hitting not only Indian Country hard, but the entire world.”
— Susan Biemesderfer
Navajo Nation
At 25,000 square miles, the Navajo Nation is the country’s largest reservation. It has stunning scenery and iconic sights, like Monument Valley and Canyon de Chelly.
WHEN JOHNDAVID LANCASTER was in fifth grade, his mother was laid off because she didn’t have a college degree. But she unmistakably modeled the value of education when she went back to school full time to earn her degree in nursing while working a full-time job and a part-time job and taking care of Lancaster and his sister. By the time he was in ninth grade, his mom had completed her degree and taught her children a powerful lesson about tenacity. Her experience also showed Lancaster how important a degree would be to get the kind of job he wanted.
There was never a question of whether Lancaster would attend college. It seemed his mom and grandma already had made that decision. Grandma Judy, a pillar in Lancaster’s life, was always there with a warm meal or advice on diving into the stock market. “From a young age, she encouraged me to have a business mindset in the world around me,” Lancaster says.
It was Grandma Judy who took Lancaster and his sister to spend time with their great-grandpa JB. During these weekend trips, Lancaster was able to explore the outdoors and ask “tons” of questions. His family encouraged that curiosity and gave him old air conditioners, microwaves, and vacuums to take apart and analyze. They told him he should be an engineer. Since he had no idea what that meant, he googled “engineer,” and “mechanical engineer” popped up first. “Maybe I’ll do that,” he thought as a young teen.
Grandma Judy, a pillar in Lancaster’s life, was always there with a warm meal or advice on diving into the stock market. “From a young age, she encouraged me to have a business mindset in the world around me,” Lancaster says.
When Lancaster was a senior at Bartlesville High School in Bartlesville, Okla., he had an internship at ConocoPhillips. There, he had the chance to explore the wide world of professional engineering and learn about the different specializations. “I met with managers regularly, and their guidance led to my decision to major in electrical engineering,” Lancaster says. “I also got another great piece of job advice at CP that I kept with me: target the companies you want to work for.”
But the next decision for Lancaster was about college. He was looking for an affordable school with a great engineering program. A friend recommended the University of Arkansas, and after touring the campus and learning more about the program, Lancaster decided this was the right place for him.
In his sophomore year, Lancaster joined AISES and was able to attend the 2018 National Conference on a travel scholarship. He learned that Intel, one of his top job targets — actually his dream target — would be at the conference. Lancaster knew he had to connect. He made the most of the opportunity and bonded with the recruiter, coming away enthralled with the stories he heard about working at Intel. He landed an internship, and the following summer was on his way to Intel’s global office in Oregon.
Initially, Lancaster was a bit intimidated when his boss showed him a computer motherboard and told him he needed to inventory every part of it and understand how it all works. Lancaster developed a finesse for asking questions without interrupting people. He got in early, learned his colleagues’ schedules, and was encouraged by his managers to set up one-on-ones with people throughout the company. He met with at least four people each week. “I learned so much and made some amazing connections,” Lancaster says. “I continue to be mentored by the person I met at the AISES conference. That’s been remarkable.”
After his internship, Lancaster learned that he had won the Intel Growing the Legacy Scholarship through AISES, making him doubly appreciative of the connection between AISES and Intel — and his connection to both.
His time at Intel also helped Lancaster realize that he would like to pursue a master’s degree in electrical engineering, and possibly a PhD as well. “I want to help design the electronics of tomorrow,” he says. “I’m not 100 percent sure what that looks like, and I’m open to learning about new design roles. But for now, autonomous vehicles and machine learning are two areas that sound really cool to me.”
Lancaster also sees a possible MBA in his future. “Hopefully,” he says, “one day as an executive at a major corporation, I will be making decisions that could dramatically change the world for the better.”
— Ann S. Boor
Muscogee (Creek) Nation
With approximately 86,000 members, the Muscogee (Creek) Nation is the fourth-largest tribe in the United States. It is one of the Five Civilized Tribes of Oklahoma, and runs its government and many diverse enterprises in business, health care, gaming, cultural tourism, and education from its headquarters in Okmulgee.
