Argonne National Laboratory

Azucena Rodriguez

Learning Center Program Coordinator

Azucena Rodriguez is a Learning Center Instructor and is responsible for facilitating on-site activities that enable middle and high school students to explore Argonne’s unique culture of innovation and collaboration in the classroom.

Biography

Azucena Rodriguez is a Learning Center Instructor and is responsible for facilitating on-site activities that enable middle and high school students to explore Argonne’s unique culture of innovation and collaboration in the classroom. She also works with the Department of Energy’s Visiting Faculty Program to increase the research competitiveness of faculty members and students at institutions historically underrepresented in the research community. Her goal is to motivate the next generation of problem solvers to incorporate science into their daily lives.

Dr. Rodriguez participated in the Northwestern Teaching Certificate Program and has a PhD in Bioengineering as well as a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California. Prior to Argonne, she held numerous university instructor positions focused on leading learning activities for undergraduate and graduate students, and she has an extensive portfolio of outreach and informal learning experience.

Azucena holds memberships in the Society for the Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS) and the Latino Association of Graduate Students in Science and Engineering (LAGSES). Outside of work, she enjoys hiking, visiting national parks, and exploring the outdoors with her family.

Presentations

Rodriguez, A.G., Prashaad, D., Sturner, K. and Otmanski, J. 16 July 2022. Cybersecurity Virtual Escape Room: Stop a Ransomware Attack on a Car! Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA) 2022 Annual Conference, Chicago, IL.

Rodriguez, A.G., Bradford, D., Lotz, J.C. The relative contributions of endplate permeability to disc degeneration. Presented at 20th Annual Meeting of the North American Spine Society (NASS) Philadelphia, PA, Sept. 2005.

Publications

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS  

Rodriguez, A.G., Rodriguez-Soto, A., Burghardt, A., Berven, S., Majumdar, S., Lotz, J.C. Morphology of the human vertebral endplate. Journal of Orthopaedic Research, 2012. 30 (2): 280-7.

Rodriguez, A.G., Slichter, C.K., Acosta, F.L., Rodriguez-Soto, A.E., Burghardt, A.J., Majumdar, S., Lotz, J.C. Human Disc Nucleus Properties and Vertebral Endplate Permeability. Spine 2010. 36 (7): 512-520.