December 27, 2024 • 7 mins
Dr. Vanessa Tyler speaks with Alena Analeigh McQuarter, who, at age 13 became the youngest Black person to be accepted into medical school in the U.S. Now at age 15, she is pursuing her PhD in Integrated Biological Sciences at Loma Linda University Medical School in California. She is also the creator of "The Brown STEM Girl" foundation to engage girls of color in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics).
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
And now as a brown person, you just feels so invisible.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
Where we're from, brothers and sisters. I welcome you to
this joyful day and freedom.
Speaker 3 (00:11):
Where we are.
Speaker 1 (00:15):
I know someone heard something and where we're going.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
We the people means all the people. The Black Information
Network presents Blackland with your host Vanessa Tyler. Welcome back.
Elena mcquarter young, very gifted and black and let her
mom Daphne tell it her child was born that way.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
I mean Elena was walking probably at ten months somewhere
around there. She was reading chapter books at you were,
what three years old? Reading full on chapter books could
hold a whole conversation and sentences at three years old,
you know. And yeah, so she was.
Speaker 2 (00:55):
She was pretty brilliant reading chapter books at three years old.
This was no typical toddler. Mom Defhanie says Elena had
to be raised to grow into her greatness. But how
it was.
Speaker 1 (01:09):
Very shocking initially because I didn't really know what to
do with her, and I'm like, well what do I do?
And what really alerted me one that she was watching
something on TV and out of the blue, which is
when I knew she could read. She said, Mommy, look
it says cat c at cat dog DLG dog and
(01:32):
I was like, no, it doesn't, and she said, yes
it does, and she said I can read as plain
as we're talking now, and it was just it was crazy.
And so I knew at that moment that I had
to navigate what was in her and I didn't know
(01:53):
what that looked like at the moment. But it was
a matter of me learning her love language, and it
was a matter of me learning her learning style, and
that's how we lived our lives.
Speaker 2 (02:05):
Well, many of us have been following you, especially that
appearance at the grill Icon Award show.
Speaker 3 (02:13):
I just want to say thank you, thank you to God,
who is everything in my life. Thank you. I want
to say thank you to my mom. She is my
biggest supporter man.
Speaker 4 (02:29):
She's giving me.
Speaker 3 (02:36):
She's given me all of the opportunities every little girl
would have wished for in this amazing experience is throughout
my life. I want to say thank you to mister
Byron Now and the grill and the entire Grio team
for honoring me tonight.
Speaker 2 (02:55):
Elena left the crowd in awe. She caught off one
of her braids and honor of Masha Amini, the twenty
two year old Iranian woman who fought for the rights
of women and girls and Iran Amini killed while in
custody of the so called Iranian morality Police. Elena used
her platform that night to speak out as the who's
(03:16):
who in business and entertainment cheered this young sister on.
Speaker 4 (03:21):
It was amazing.
Speaker 5 (03:22):
It was just, you know, that breathtaking experience, that the
door that you never thought you would be able to
walk through, sitting at the table with different people that
you know, never ruld have thought that you'd be able
to sit next to, and then just to be honored
in that room with icons.
Speaker 2 (03:41):
So back to her mission to change the world and
through her emphasis on stem bring the universe of science
to those who look like her. You're at Low Malinda
University Medical School in a PhD program majoring in biological sciences.
As you mentioned, with the focus on immunich the knowlogy
(04:02):
that really is the key to everything.
Speaker 5 (04:05):
I think that's the key factor of why I was
really intrigued when I was, you know, in the lab.
I really came into a field where the immune system
is ever evolving, it's always going to change, and find
a way to navigate around all the vaccines that we make,
(04:26):
or really anything that we try to fight back with.
Speaker 4 (04:30):
So it's it's a challenging field.
Speaker 5 (04:32):
It's a growing field, and being able to come into
a field knowing that there's a lot of research out there,
but there's you know, little grooves and pockets where new
research is formed and there's so much out there that
you can learn from just posing a question so and
knowing how to contribute to that.
Speaker 2 (04:53):
So let's talk about the expense of attending a medical school,
the expense of going to where you want to go?
What's that like?
Speaker 4 (05:06):
So with the PhD.
Speaker 5 (05:09):
Fully funded for all of my learning and everything included,
but there are some expenses outside.
Speaker 4 (05:17):
Of that that and I do need helps like.
Speaker 5 (05:21):
Travel, housing, just outside expenses that it would just mean
a lot to you know, have help with just so
I can, you know, focus on my learning.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
Are you living on campus?
Speaker 4 (05:35):
I live not far from campus.
Speaker 2 (05:38):
You live on your own yes? Wow? So at fifteen
you you have your own apartment or off campus apartment. Yes,
that's incredible in itself. How can we help? How can
our listeners help?
Speaker 5 (05:54):
I do have a go fund me up, just you know,
anything helps, really, anything that can go towards housing or
travel expences.
Speaker 2 (06:04):
Would help have so much to give to the world.
What would this mean if you cannot raise the money.
Speaker 4 (06:15):
I feel like it would put me in a situation
where kind of, you know, learning is kind of like
a struggle where trying to you know, focus on my
education and being able to do the things for my
platform that you know I love to do, and not
(06:35):
having the money for housing.
Speaker 3 (06:37):
You know, that's that's kind of really big.
Speaker 2 (06:41):
Elena and her mom at first reluctant to ask, but
they have started a goalfundme. They won't let money stop
a journey with a destination that's priceless. Young people need
to see her make it. It also gives them the
incentive to win. You give back a lot. You're an
inspiration to others like yourself. Are you optimistic about the
(07:01):
black children you encounter?
Speaker 4 (07:04):
Absolutely?
Speaker 5 (07:05):
I mean that's kind of you know, why I'm inspired
to do this is to show other girls of color.
But I would say anyone, you know, people of color,
that you can do this. You can come into these
fields and you know, brown girls can do stem.
Speaker 2 (07:23):
Absolutely, brown girls can do Stem. Follow her on Instagram
at It's the Brown Stem Girl and her fundraiser on GoFundMe,
Alena mcwater, I know you will save the world. Thank
you so much for talking with me.
Speaker 4 (07:38):
Thank you so much.
Speaker 2 (07:40):
I'm Vanessa Tyler. Join me next time on Blackland. Like
and subscribe. Look out for a new episode of Blackland
next Friday.
And now as a brown person, you just feels so invisible.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
Where we're from, brothers and sisters. I welcome you to
this joyful day and freedom.
Speaker 3 (00:11):
Where we are.
Speaker 1 (00:15):
I know someone heard something and where we're going.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
We the people means all the people. The Black Information
Network presents Blackland with your host Vanessa Tyler. Welcome back.
Elena mcquarter young, very gifted and black and let her
mom Daphne tell it her child was born that way.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
I mean Elena was walking probably at ten months somewhere
around there. She was reading chapter books at you were,
what three years old? Reading full on chapter books could
hold a whole conversation and sentences at three years old,
you know. And yeah, so she was.
Speaker 2 (00:55):
She was pretty brilliant reading chapter books at three years old.
This was no typical toddler. Mom Defhanie says Elena had
to be raised to grow into her greatness. But how
it was.
Speaker 1 (01:09):
Very shocking initially because I didn't really know what to
do with her, and I'm like, well what do I do?
And what really alerted me one that she was watching
something on TV and out of the blue, which is
when I knew she could read. She said, Mommy, look
it says cat c at cat dog DLG dog and
(01:32):
I was like, no, it doesn't, and she said, yes
it does, and she said I can read as plain
as we're talking now, and it was just it was crazy.
And so I knew at that moment that I had
to navigate what was in her and I didn't know
(01:53):
what that looked like at the moment. But it was
a matter of me learning her love language, and it
was a matter of me learning her learning style, and
that's how we lived our lives.
Speaker 2 (02:05):
Well, many of us have been following you, especially that
appearance at the grill Icon Award show.
Speaker 3 (02:13):
I just want to say thank you, thank you to God,
who is everything in my life. Thank you. I want
to say thank you to my mom. She is my
biggest supporter man.
Speaker 4 (02:29):
She's giving me.
Speaker 3 (02:36):
She's given me all of the opportunities every little girl
would have wished for in this amazing experience is throughout
my life. I want to say thank you to mister
Byron Now and the grill and the entire Grio team
for honoring me tonight.
Speaker 2 (02:55):
Elena left the crowd in awe. She caught off one
of her braids and honor of Masha Amini, the twenty
two year old Iranian woman who fought for the rights
of women and girls and Iran Amini killed while in
custody of the so called Iranian morality Police. Elena used
her platform that night to speak out as the who's
(03:16):
who in business and entertainment cheered this young sister on.
Speaker 4 (03:21):
It was amazing.
Speaker 5 (03:22):
It was just, you know, that breathtaking experience, that the
door that you never thought you would be able to
walk through, sitting at the table with different people that
you know, never ruld have thought that you'd be able
to sit next to, and then just to be honored
in that room with icons.
Speaker 2 (03:41):
So back to her mission to change the world and
through her emphasis on stem bring the universe of science
to those who look like her. You're at Low Malinda
University Medical School in a PhD program majoring in biological sciences.
As you mentioned, with the focus on immunich the knowlogy
(04:02):
that really is the key to everything.
Speaker 5 (04:05):
I think that's the key factor of why I was
really intrigued when I was, you know, in the lab.
I really came into a field where the immune system
is ever evolving, it's always going to change, and find
a way to navigate around all the vaccines that we make,
(04:26):
or really anything that we try to fight back with.
Speaker 4 (04:30):
So it's it's a challenging field.
Speaker 5 (04:32):
It's a growing field, and being able to come into
a field knowing that there's a lot of research out there,
but there's you know, little grooves and pockets where new
research is formed and there's so much out there that
you can learn from just posing a question so and
knowing how to contribute to that.
Speaker 2 (04:53):
So let's talk about the expense of attending a medical school,
the expense of going to where you want to go?
What's that like?
Speaker 4 (05:06):
So with the PhD.
Speaker 5 (05:09):
Fully funded for all of my learning and everything included,
but there are some expenses outside.
Speaker 4 (05:17):
Of that that and I do need helps like.
Speaker 5 (05:21):
Travel, housing, just outside expenses that it would just mean
a lot to you know, have help with just so
I can, you know, focus on my learning.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
Are you living on campus?
Speaker 4 (05:35):
I live not far from campus.
Speaker 2 (05:38):
You live on your own yes? Wow? So at fifteen
you you have your own apartment or off campus apartment. Yes,
that's incredible in itself. How can we help? How can
our listeners help?
Speaker 5 (05:54):
I do have a go fund me up, just you know,
anything helps, really, anything that can go towards housing or
travel expences.
Speaker 2 (06:04):
Would help have so much to give to the world.
What would this mean if you cannot raise the money.
Speaker 4 (06:15):
I feel like it would put me in a situation
where kind of, you know, learning is kind of like
a struggle where trying to you know, focus on my
education and being able to do the things for my
platform that you know I love to do, and not
(06:35):
having the money for housing.
Speaker 3 (06:37):
You know, that's that's kind of really big.
Speaker 2 (06:41):
Elena and her mom at first reluctant to ask, but
they have started a goalfundme. They won't let money stop
a journey with a destination that's priceless. Young people need
to see her make it. It also gives them the
incentive to win. You give back a lot. You're an
inspiration to others like yourself. Are you optimistic about the
(07:01):
black children you encounter?
Speaker 4 (07:04):
Absolutely?
Speaker 5 (07:05):
I mean that's kind of you know, why I'm inspired
to do this is to show other girls of color.
But I would say anyone, you know, people of color,
that you can do this. You can come into these
fields and you know, brown girls can do stem.
Speaker 2 (07:23):
Absolutely, brown girls can do Stem. Follow her on Instagram
at It's the Brown Stem Girl and her fundraiser on GoFundMe,
Alena mcwater, I know you will save the world. Thank
you so much for talking with me.
Speaker 4 (07:38):
Thank you so much.
Speaker 2 (07:40):
I'm Vanessa Tyler. Join me next time on Blackland. Like
and subscribe. Look out for a new episode of Blackland
next Friday.
Host
Vanessa Tyler
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