News Release

Santiago Canyon College Student to Present Research at American Chemical Society National Meeting and Exposition August 20 to 24

​(Orange, CA)—Santiago Canyon College (SCC) bioengineering student, Angelica Escobar, will present research to 254th American Chemical Society National Meeting and Exposition in Washington D.C. August 20 to 24.

Escobar first began her research at California State University, Fullerton with the (STEM)2 program. Her research was centered on chemical synthesis. During the research program, it was her job to synthesis compounds with varying structures attached in order to see a relationship between the substituents and the way cancer cell lines behaved in the presence of the purified version of Escobar’s drug. Once her compound was synthesized she then had to isolate it to get rid of any byproducts. She then tested it several times to make certain it was a pure compound to be tested.

Within the first two weeks of her nine weeks’ worth of research, Escobar decided to form an abstract with all of the data that she had gathered thus far to send to the Society for Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS) which is a STEM conference for minorities. She was accepted into the conference in Long Beach in October 2016 where her research was then judged by The American Chemical Society (ACS) and won an award in chemistry. Escobar said, “I had no idea I was going to be judged, so this really came as a surprise to me.” As a part of this award, she was then invited to present her research at the 254th American Chemical Society National Meeting and Exposition in August 2017 in Washington D.C.

Escobar looks forward to this opportunity and other opportunities to research in the future. This summer, she is participating in another research program at University of Southern California (USC) as a part of the biology/geography/oceanography research team. “I like being able to be a part of different fields of research,” Escobar said, “So, I can broaden my options and see what I want my career to be in, specifically.”

Over the past 40 years, SACNAS has helped train and support the next generation of diverse STEM talent that are the most underrepresented in STEM. Chapters, conferences, leadership programs, Native American programs, regional meetings, and policy/advocacy initiatives provide students with the necessary resources needed to advance their education and careers.

For more information about the STEM program at SCC, visit www.sccollege.edu/STEM. For more information about the SACNAS conference, visit http://sacnas.org/. For more information on the ACS national meeting, visit https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/meetings/fall-2017.html.

About Santiago Canyon College
Santiago Canyon College (SCC) serves more than 17,000 credit and non-credit students each semester. The college prepares students for transfer to four-year institutions and careers, and provides courses for personal and professional development, as well as customized training for business and industry. The college is recognized for its adult education program which keeps the working adult—and senior—in mind by offering flexible schedules, and community locations. Serving the residents of Anaheim Hills, Orange, Tustin, and Villa Park, SCC is one of two comprehensive colleges under the auspices of the Rancho Santiago Community College District. Visit http://www.sccollege.edu to learn more.

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Contact: Judy Iannaccone

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