Jason Diaz, Chemistry '09

IC has a very strong science program, and is a great place to live and learn. I come back regularly to engage with faculty and students, and it has continues to be a home away from home, both personally and professionally. I feel it has a perfect package for an aspiring scientist!

Current Position and Career Path

Head shot of Jason Diaz

Assistant Professor, Integrated Science, Business, and Technology Program, La Salle University

B.S. in Biochemistry, Ithaca College, 2009

Ph.D. in Cell and Molecular Biology, University of Pennsylvania, 2014

Penn-PORT Fellow, University of Pennsylvania, 2014-2017

What features of your education at IC has helped you the most?

These three aspects of my IC education laid the foundation for my success in my career:

  1. IC gives you an excellent education – IC recruits and maintains faculty who are invested in students and in good teaching practices. I felt very prepared during my first year of graduate school.
  2. IC gave me a true liberal arts education which allowed me to blend disparate educational disciplines and apply it to a variety of problems. I can easily talk about the social and scientific challenges for problems like world health disparities or even discrimination in the workplace.
  3. The opportunity to do research with faculty at IC was absolutely instrumental in not only developing my interest in science but also in giving me the foundation for success in graduate school.

What experiences at IC were important to you?

  1. Cross country and track and field. I competed on these teams all four years (go Bombers!) Being part of this group gave me an instant ‘family’ when I entered campus, provided fun travel opportunities, made me learn time management, and gave me amazing memories to last a life time. There are lots of groups to join on campus aside from sports, I highly recommend getting involved in something!
  2. The strong sense of community that was on campus. Some of my closest friends today I met at IC.
  3. The gorgeous Ithaca area and the outstanding views of Cayuga Lake. There will be high points and low points when you’re a student. It helps to have beautiful trails to escape to at the low points.