A Vanderbilt chemistry professor is living proof of the power of experiencing STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) education early. Renã Robinson, associate professor of chemistry, has been immersed in science-related activities and classes since she was a child. Today she is leading a diverse lab of researchers, using chemistry to uncover clues surrounding Alzheimer’s disease. “Sometimes you can’t be what you can’t see. So for many students it can be hard for them to aspire to be scientists is if they don't have a role model. I’m working to help change that,” said Robinson, who is also the Dorothy J. Wingfield Phillips Chancellor's faculty fellow. Phillips was the first African American female in Vanderbilt history to receive an undergraduate degree, which she earned in chemistry. “It is especially poignant to me that I get to serve in that chair,” said Robinson. Childhood of STEM Robinson benefitted from camps and after school programs focused on math and science at a young age. But she laments that those opportunities were not offered to all of her classmates. “When I was in elementary school, I was bussed from my neighborhood to a predominately white school. I noticed stark differences in the quality of education. And even though I was only a child, I wrote a letter to my superintendent about it,” said Robinson. In high school Robinson’s job as a consultant at a department store makeup counter gave her an opportunity to find practical application to chemistry. During high school she was also invited to an intensive summer-long program in another state. “It was in an environment that was specifically for African American, Native American and Hispanic students. We did accelerated math and science the whole summer and it was so fun!” But Robinson was keenly aware that she benefitted from programs, camps and role models that her neighborhood did not. Follow Vanderbilt on Twitter: https://twitter.com/vanderbiltu Instagram: http://instagram.com/vanderbiltu Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vanderbilt LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/edu/school?id=19443 Subscribe to our YouTube channel: http://youtube.com/vanderbilt See all Vanderbilt social media at http://social.vanderbilt.edu.