After graduating from Fresno State in 1972, Dr. Ernest Marquez worked at The National Institute of Health until 2008. Marquez, who is is a Mexican American, tells his friend Judit Camacho what it was like to enter an industry in which he was a minority.
DR. ERNEST MARQUEZ: Really, what I've done primarily is to work to increase the diversity of the U.S. workforce, the scientific workforce. And for that I've been grateful forever. And Now I'm retired. But not really. There is nothing that lights up my life more than finding something that no one else in the world has found before – the thrill of discovery.
This story was produced by Seth Samuel and facilitated by Eloise Melzer. Find out how to share your own story with San Francisco StoryCorps here.