Nathalie Espinoza PZ ’26, Visiting Assistant Professor in Chemistry Christopher Dettmar, and Jana Gaskin ’25 (right) working inside The Nucleus.By Caitlin Antonios
Two to four times a week, Jana Gaskin ’25 is somewhere on Scripps’ campus rehearsing for the dance performances she has each semester. When she’s not in the studio, Gaskin is likely in a lab working on scientific research.
In a few short months, Gaskin will graduate as a chemistry major with a dance minor. The College’s robust dance program initially attracted her to the institution, but her love of chemistry has taken her to national STEM conferences, won her competitive internships, and earned her the 2021–22 Edison Scholarship for STEM students and the prestigious 2024 Barry Goldwater Scholarship.
Building Blocks of Research
Gaskin’s love of dance started early at just 13 years old and has been a constant in her life since. Her love of chemistry emerged later, after taking a chemistry community college course as a homeschooled high schooler. It was the first time she fell in love with a course, and not just because she liked the teacher, Gaskin says. Juggling two seemingly conflicting areas of study may seem tricky, but she insists they share plenty of similarities.
“When you look back on some of the brightest minds in science, a lot of them were also artists whose interest in the world led them to dive into deep, systematic study, whether that was physics or math or chemistry,” explains Gaskin. “For me, really keeping my right brain alive through dance and the consistent practice of the craft of creating is equally as important to me as building my analytical skills and critical thinking.”
Since attending Scripps, Gaskin has completed three internships during each summer break. She applied to her most recent 10-week internship at Merck, a research-intensive biopharmaceutical company, after meeting a Merck representative at a research conference. She was able to present at that conference because of research conducted through a previous internship. It all builds upon itself—and it all started at Scripps, Gaskin says.
“In all my applications, I talked about my past research experience,” explains Gaskin. “Research experience feels really daunting, so the fact that Scripps’ Department of Natural Sciences has opportunities where you can just email a professor and ask, ‘Hey, can I join your lab?’ is huge.”
While those research summers exposed Gaskin to new environments and a deeper knowledge of her areas of interest, it was also challenging.
“It was a good look into what the research process could look like, what doing that 40 hours a week really felt like,” she says. “But it was a hard summer in that we didn’t make a lot of progress scientifically.”
National Recognition and Academic Validation
When Gaskin received news that she had been awarded the 2024 Barry Goldwater Scholarship, it validated her long, sleepless nights studying and painstaking hours in the lab.
Congress established the renowned scholarship in 1986 to honor the work of former Senator Barry Goldwater and awards funding to undergraduate college students pursuing research careers in the natural sciences, mathematics, and engineering. Gaskin was among the 437 recipients out of a pool of more than 5,000 nominees.
“As a woman of color in STEM… it really made me realize that I am more capable than I think,” says Gaskin. “This was a very measurable and tangible milestone of my hard work and my potential being recognized by somebody far outside of Scripps.”
Gaskin plans to use the funding she received to help offset some tuition cost and pay for conference attendance fees and travel expenses, which can add up to thousands of dollars. She is still considering her post-graduation plans, but is interested in pursuing a PhD in chemical biology or attending physical therapy school.
As she reflects on her time at Scripps, she hopes her journey can encourage others to believe in their abilities even when there’s a voice of doubt.
“Professors say that we are uniquely prepared to enter research from a liberal arts education because it is so individualized and focused on your capacity to think and ask critical questions,” says Gaskin. “Don’t doubt your capacity to reach your big goals and aspirations.”
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