Kimberly Ona Ayala

I am currently a medical student at Yale University. I was born in Ecuador, but moved to Northern Virginia when I was eight years old. As an immigrant myself, I understand how living the immigrant experience in the U.S can be one of isolation and desperation; I have come to realize how migration may enable people to escape turmoil in their homelands, but keep them shacked with chains of poverty and alienation. Over the course of exploring my interests I had the opportunity to study at Cambridge University and expanded my understanding of the basic science behind human health and pathology by actively conducting biochemistry research at Pomona College. This understanding was complemented via a research fellowship in the Mayo Clinic’s Cancer Biology department. As a fellow I studied the structural characterization of metalloproteinases, primarily expressed in epithelial carcinomas. I earned my BA in Chemistry from Pomona College, where I assisted families at free urban clinics in working class communities in Southern California.

I am cognizant of how the opportunities afforded to me give me the responsibility to be an agent of change to those who are disenfranchised. As such, my aspiration to be a physician derives from a passion and desire to provide optimum health care to individuals who don’t have a voice, but need to be respected. I am committed to help marginalized communities access healthcare and am particularly interested in getting involved with advocacy and policy.

June 2017