7: Multi-Dimensional Role ModelÂ

Dr. Luis De Leon teaches evolutionary biology at the University of Massachusetts Boston. He is married with young twin girls. His own personal growth involves an inspiring story. Born in rural Panama without running water in his house, he followed his passion for science to become the first in his family to attend college at the University of Panama.

Then he ventured far from home to earn a doctorate in evolutionary biology from McGill University in Montreal. Overcoming the numerous cultural, linguistic, and economic barriers in a foreign city proved challenging.

Today Professor De Leon instructs and mentors diverse students in an urban environment, and provides fortunate young scholars with a "life changing" experience doing field work in Panama and the Galapagos Islands. Serving as a role model for American and Latin American students, he offers an important and necessary dimension in contemporary education.