Dr. Yazmin Feliz is a postdoctoral researcher at the Columbia University Medical Center where she develops low-cost medical imaging solutions and supports translational research. She has a background in supply chain and project management, driving consumer product reformulations, quality recalls, and product lifecycle management at a fortune 100 company. Yazmin completed a B.S. in Mathematics of Computation from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and her M.S and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Columbia University.
Dr. Feliz grew up in Bronx, NY to a single mother who kept two jobs to make ends meet. She always told her that her greatest responsibility was to continue her education. “I considered the sacrifices that she had to make, that others had to make, for me to reach my goals.” Dr. Feliz said. When she was in the sixth grade, Dr. Feliz attended her first STEM workshop. She was enamored by the science experiments and robotics workshops but felt like engineering was out of her reach. It wasn’t until she had the opportunity to work alongside mentors that she believed she could fit into the STEM world.
Through persistence and hard work, Yazmin obtained full scholarships to attend undergraduate and graduate programs and during college, took on leadership roles in projects in varying areas of engineering. During freshman year of college in 2008, Dr. Feliz was first introduced to research. Her professor provided an opportunity to assist a graduate student with data collection for solar cell research, or to lead a new project, including sourcing equipment, materials, and setting up the lab space to create bacteria-repellent metals for food surfaces. Without prior knowledge, but with much excitement, Dr. Feliz cleared out a room in the basement of the university and got to work, delivering results within the first semester. “I saw an opportunity to solve a problem and seized it.” Dr. Feliz said. She co-authored her first publication and went on to win awards at the RPI Undergraduate Research Symposium and the Cornell Louis Stokes Conference.
From this point, her interest in STEM only grew and Dr. Feliz participated in projects each year. The first summer of college after failing to land an internship, she sought research at Columbia University in her hometown. She contacted 10 professors, 8 whom did not respond, one who politely declined, and a final who made it clear that “I was highly underqualified for the position but was willing to entertain a discussion.” Dr. Feliz said. “I showed up at his office the next morning for an interview and that same week joined the Artificial Organs Group creating an external kidney for hemodialysis patients.” It takes one person to believe in you to give you a chance, therefore fostering a network is important. Dr. Feliz went on to work at Johnson & Johnson, Inc. and geared her focus towards learning about the product supply chain life cycle and how innovations such as the research projects she worked on, were ultimately commercialized, and distributed to the end user. Throughout her work in industry and academia, Yazmin has utilized the engineering mindset to develop solutions to global healthcare problems.
Dr. Feliz began her PhD in 2016 and as a GEM fellow and NSF Graduate Research fellow, joined the Creative Machines Lab. Dr. Feliz led the Open-Source Portable Ultrasound project driven by a growing interest in intelligent, affordable, and complete point-of-care diagnostic imaging. This technology is first-ever imaging system that generates 3D sonograms for under $100 USD in materials cost, paving the way for ultra-affordable modalities to enter the ultrasound market. Dr. Feliz is launching her startup to provide a more user-friendly and economical imaging system that can be used for remote patient monitoring.
In her episode of “High-Tech Sunday,” Dr. Feliz discusses her motivation for creating portable ultrasound devices. “I am an engineer with a business mindset, ensuring that important scientific discoveries are paired with a business plan so these can be deployed to people who need them the most.” Dr. Feliz said. “I’m passionate about solving challenges related to healthcare in low-resource areas that can improve the quality of life. Mentors have helped shape my career and I motivate others in my community to work towards their professional dreams.” She was recently honored at the 2021Women of Color STEM Conference with the GEM Outstanding Young Alumnus Award for her early career achievements.
When asked what advice she would give other young women facing the same obstacles, Dr. Feliz said, “When in a room and you’re the only woman, or person of color, do not be shy to speak up. You’d be surprised how many will listen. You can accomplish anything.”
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has been tasked with…
Brown and Caldwell, a leading environmental engineering and construction firm,…
Humboldt State University, one of four campuses within the California…
