Biography

Vanessa Light – Developing Educational Programs to Inspire the Next Generation

Vanessa is the STEM Education Program Manager for Illumina, where she develops educational programs to inspire the next generation of scientists, engineers and innovators.  Vanessa believes genomics will change everything—from how we diagnose and treat cancer to how we feed the world’s population—and igniting genomic curiosity in students is a critical first step to achieving Illumina’s mission.  She is equally as passionate about supporting teachers in their classrooms in ways that support their class dynamics, whether that is virtual settings, one of a kind hands-on activities or connecting classrooms with Illumina employees in various science roles.

Prior to joining Illumina, Vanessa was on the BlackRock Social Impact team where she helped create and develop volunteering and granting programs.  She attended San Diego State University and when she is not working, she is spending time with family or exploring the outdoors.

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