Waves of Change. Oceans of Opportunity.

In the past three decades, women have made significant progress in various fields. Madeleine Albright made history in 1997 by being the first woman to serve as the United States Secretary of State. The ban on women serving in combat positions in the U.S. military was lifted in 2013. NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Christina Koch achieved a significant milestone in October 2019 with the first all-female spacewalk. Kamala Harris made history in 2021 by becoming the first woman and woman of color to serve as vice president of the United States.

Women of color have made major contributions to science and technology, such as Sherry F. Bellamy, who played a crucial role in the passage of landmark legislation in 1996 and was the first winner of the Women of Color magazine Technologist of the Year award.

Dr. Chon-Yin Tsai is an expert in fluid dynamics and applied computational fluid dynamics, and her contributions to the fundamental understanding of Fleet Ballistic Missile Underwater Missile Launch hydrodynamics issues are significant. She has authored numerous publications and reports covering applied research, computer code development, and problem investigation. She was recognized as the Technologist of the Year in 1999.

Mary Hor-Lao, the 2023 Technologist of the Year, is another inspiring figure. She led the development of the world’s smallest rechargeable implantable pulse generator and played a crucial role in creating an award-winning virtual clinic that transformed the lives of patients with chronic pain and movement disorders. HorLao has received recognition from IEEE Women in Engineering and is actively involved in STEM mentorship circles and philanthropic efforts to support children in her native Cambodia. Hor-Lao’s journey from surviving the Khmer Rouge’s brutal genocide to becoming a prominent figure in electrical engineering is a remarkable tale of resilience and determination.

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Yagna Pathak helps to open a new path in the medical field

Yagna Pathak has overcome multiple obstacles throughout her career. Growing up in hot and dry Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, until she was 11 years old, life took her suddenly across the Atlantic to the windy, cold Chicago, IL winters. This extreme change in environments would later create a family joke, but the challenges Pathak faced assimilating to Western culture were a precursor to the barriers she encountered in school.

Her sometimes-difficult rite of passage was a new milestone. Pathak understood that “assimilation” could mean the loss of her own personality and culture. Her solution was simple yet incredibly smart: “You can only make friends if you are authentic.”

This adage was one of the first cornerstones in the building of wisdom. Later in her college years, her unique background gave Pathak the ability to see intersections in her own migration story with the career struggles of women in STEM.

Even though she had been exposed to inspiring role models, and despite her parents’ emphasis on knowledge and education, Pathak quickly learned that indeed, women of color are underrepresented in the diverse areas composing the STEM universe. When she joined the National Science Foundation, she discovered why women of color do not enjoy a higher representation in STEM. She, like many others, was treated by the scientific community like a young child or dismissed as “just a woman.”

Pathak met this challenge with another brilliant strategy, using her culture and upbringing as a tool. Pathak realized that she had a choice to tolerate underrepresentation in silence, or she could be part of the group of women leading the way. By speaking up and advocating, Pathak made sure that those in the arena

Yagna Pathak, Ph.D. Manager, Medical Affairs Abbott

by Jessica Rafaeil jrafaeil@ccgmag.com

knew that she had earned her place. The confidence and enthusiasm that resulted from facing challenges head on soon reaped benefits that were tangible and palpable.

The reach of her assimilation and self-defining experiences later served as a beacon of light. The realization that she was part of a minority gave her the clarity to understand how these breaches of human understanding can affect millions of lives. Like many other children of immigrants in America, Pathak had experienced what it felt to be cast out. Like cable lines ready to be connected, Pathak made a discovery that would define her career—or better yet—her calling in life.

In changing her perspective, she was able to pinpoint a new objective: creating a platform that would allow more people to have access to health care. By 2018, she was transferring her experiences into a broader scope.

A diverse team would be tasked to “elevate the experience for patients who were already burdened by their debilitating disease,” as her bio reads.

As Pathak herself points out in a recent interview, at the right time, “the right people came together to create the NeurosphereTM technology.”

Pathak’s trailblazing path has been illuminated by the stars, her left brain—along with arts and dancing, as she has structured her universe based on her character, personality, and continuous learning. Moreover, as a proud member of the STEM community, she now represents the very best of what women of color achieve daily through dedication and passion for their work. 