Elba Serrano, NMSU Regents Professor, earned her Ph.D. in biological sciences from Stanford University (neuroscience/biophysics) with Peter A. Getting and her undergraduate degree in physics with a chemistry minor at the University of Rochester. Professor Serrano accepted a tenure track appointment at NMSU after postdoctoral training at Stanford University Medical School (Neurology) and the UCLA School of Medicine (Brain Research Institute). Her research focuses on development of the mechanosensory systems for hearing and balance and the role of neuroglia in maintenance of brain function. Dr. Serrano is committed to facilitating the career path of students who aspire to advanced degrees in STEM disciplines, and especially, achievement of a doctorate and entry to the professoriate. Over 120 diverse students have participated in mentored research in the Serrano laboratory, earned advanced degrees, and entered the national thinkforce. Her former mentees are employed as faculty, physicians, engineers, pharmacists, veterinarians, research scientists, public servants, ministers, and educators around the country. She has served as PI and PD for NMSU’s NIH Minority Biomedical Research Support (MBRS) Research Initiative for Scientific Enhancement (RISE) program and is the originator, PI, and PD of the pioneering BP-ENDURE Building Research Achievement in Neuroscience (BRAiN) Program that partnered NMSU and UCD-Anschutz for student research training. At the national level, Serrano has been a lifelong contributor to the NIH research mission and is an advocate for STEM workforce development and inclusion. She serves on the NIH BRAIN Multi-Council Working Group and the SFN Professional Development Committee.is a former member of NIDCD Council and the Advisory Committee to the former NIH Director, Dr. Francis Collins. She currently is NMSU Lead PI for the NSF HSI National STEM Resource Hub, a capacity-building and faculty development initiative that aspires to increase STEM student success at over 550 Hispanic Serving Institutions across all 50 states and the US territories. Among other distinctions, Serrano is an elected Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, recipient of a Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring (PAESMEM), a Ford Foundation Fellow, and a 2021 Fulbright Scholar (Portugal). Among other distinctions, Serrano is an elected Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, recipient of a Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring (PAESMEM), a Ford Foundation Fellow, and a 2021 Fulbright Scholar (Portugal).