# Jessica Esquivel

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**Jessica Esquivel** is a Black Mexican and American physicist and science communicator, working at the [Muon g-2](/source/Muon_g-2) particle physics experiment at [Fermilab](/source/Fermilab). She is an advocate for gender and racial equity in science, and a lead organiser of [#BlackInPhysics](/source/Black_In_Physics), a campaign to recognize and amplify the work of Black physicists worldwide. She was also selected as an [AAAS](/source/American_Association_for_the_Advancement_of_Science) IF/THEN Ambassador in 2019.

## Early life and education

Esquivel was interested in science and engineering from a young age, inspired by [science-fiction](/source/Science-fiction) films and [space exploration](/source/Space_exploration).[1][2] She attended science camps as a child, and studied high school at the [Science Academy of South Texas](/source/The_Science_Academy_of_South_Texas).[1]

She obtained her Bachelor of Science from [St. Mary's University, Texas](/source/St._Mary's_University,_Texas) in 2011, with a double major in [electrical engineering](/source/Electrical_engineering) and [applied physics](/source/Applied_physics).[3]

Esquivel received a PhD in [physics](/source/Physics) from [Syracuse University](/source/Syracuse_University) in 2018, where her doctoral research focused on developing and applying [machine learning](/source/Machine_learning) methods to improve data analysis in [particle physics](/source/Particle_physics) experiments.[4] Specifically, she used [convolutional neural networks](/source/Convolutional_neural_networks) to analyze data from [MicroBooNE](/source/MicroBooNE) neutrino detection experiments. She was awarded a University Research Association Visiting Scholars Program Scholarship (2016) and Neutrino Physics Center Fellowship (2017) during her PhD.[5][6]

## Research career

In 2018, Esquivel joined [Fermilab](/source/Fermilab), where she works on the [Muon g-2](/source/Muon_g-2) project.[7] This experiment aims to test the current theories of the [Standard Model](/source/Standard_Model) of particle physics by measuring the [anomalous magnetic dipole moment](/source/Anomalous_magnetic_dipole_moment) of [muon](/source/Muon) particles to a high degree of accuracy. She has also spent her years at Fermilab focused on initiatives aimed at workforce training and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) projects.[8]

## Outreach and advocacy

Throughout her doctoral studies and research career, Esquivel has participated in a variety of science education and outreach programs. During her PhD, she published a series of blog posts about her experiences as a graduate student for the website *Interactions.org*.[9] In 2018, she received an award from the [Fermilab](/source/Fermilab) Friends for Science Education, recognizing her contributions to Fermilab's K-12 education and outreach program.[10] She represented Fermilab at Wakandacon 2019, a three-day convention celebrating [Afro-futurism](/source/Afrofuturism), science, technology, and Black culture.[11][12] In 2021, she was featured on the show *Mission Unstoppable with Miranda Cosgrove* aired by [CBS](/source/CBS).[13]

Esquivel is also a vocal advocate for increasing equity and diversity in science and has worked to improve the experiences of women, gender minorities, LGBT+ and Black people in science.[14][15][16][17][18] She proudly identifies as a Black, Mexican, lesbian woman.[19] She was one of 125 women awarded an IF/THEN Ambassadorship by the [American Association for the Advancement of Science](/source/American_Association_for_the_Advancement_of_Science) in 2019.[20] She was selected to represent the US delegation at the 2020 International Conference on Women in Physics, organised by [International Union of Pure and Applied Physics](/source/International_Union_of_Pure_and_Applied_Physics).[21]

In 2020, Esquivel was one of the leaders of the inaugural [#BlackInPhysics](/source/Black_In_Physics) Week, along with [Charles D. Brown II](/source/Charles_D._Brown_II) and [Eileen Gonzales](/source/Eileen_Gonzales).[22] The campaign, inspired by [Black Birders Week](/source/Black_Birders_Week) and other #BlackInX initiatives, aimed to increase the celebrate the contributions of Black physicists and amplify their work. BIPW was widely reported on and supported by *[Physics World](/source/Physics_World), [Nature Physics](/source/Nature_Physics),* [the American Institute of Physics](/source/American_Institute_of_Physics).[23][24] Esquivel is also a member of Change Now Physics, a team of Black physicists campaigning for racial equity at Fermilab.[25]

## Awards

- [American Association for the Advancement of Science](/source/American_Association_for_the_Advancement_of_Science) IF/THEN Ambassadorship, 2019[26]

## References

1. Hannibal, Mary Ellen (2020-03-28). ["What a Real Superhero Looks Like"](http://wise.nautil.us/feature/533/what-a-real-superhero-looks-like). *[Nautilus Quarterly](/source/Nautilus_Quarterly)*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20210126213510/http://wise.nautil.us/feature/533/what-a-real-superhero-looks-like) 2021-01-26 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2021-02-27.

1. ["Chicago's Black Women in STEAM Series: Meet Jessica"](https://www.adlerplanetarium.org/blog/chicagos-black-women-in-steam-series-meet-jessica/). *Adler Planetarium*. 2019-05-15. Retrieved 2021-02-27.

1. ["Jessica Esquivel"](https://www.earthsciweek.org/ifthen/profiles/esquivel/). *www.earthsciweek.org*. Retrieved 2021-02-26.

1. Esquivel, Jessica Nicole (2018). [*μ / π Separation using Convolutional Neural Networks for the MicroBooNE Charged Current Inclusive Cross Section Measurement*](https://surface.syr.edu/etd/845). Syracuse University. [doi:10.2172/1437290](https://doi.org/10.2172/1437290)

1. ["Previous Awardees"](https://www.ura-hq.org/awards/visiting-scholars-program/previous-awardees/). *Universities Research Association*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20210225074320/https://www.ura-hq.org/awards/visiting-scholars-program/previous-awardees/) 2021-02-25 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2021-03-02.

1. ["Spring 2017 Scholars"](https://npc.fnal.gov/spring-2017-scholars/). *Neutrino Physics Center*. Retrieved 2021-03-02.

1. ["Passionate about Particle Physics: Featuring Four Fermilab Women"](https://www.energy.gov/articles/passionate-about-particle-physics-featuring-four-fermilab-women). *Energy.gov*. Retrieved 2021-03-02.

1. ["Profile in Versatility"](https://www.aps.org/archives/publications/apsnews/202110/profile.cfm). *www.aps.org*. Retrieved 2025-03-11.

1. ["Mentors and Representation"](https://www.interactions.org/blog/mentors-representation). *Interactions*. Retrieved 2021-02-26.

1. ["Fermilab Education Office - Director's Award"](https://ed.fnal.gov/ed-award/). *ed.fnal.gov*. Retrieved 2021-02-27.

1. Bedford, Bailey (9 August 2019). ["Fermilab promotes science and diversity at Wakandacon in Chicago"](https://news.fnal.gov/2019/08/fermilab-promotes-science-and-diversity-at-wakandacon-in-chicago/). Retrieved 2021-02-26.

1. Bedford, Bailey. ["Channeling Shuri as a physicist at Wakandacon"](https://www.symmetrymagazine.org/article/channeling-shuri-as-a-physicist-at-wakandacon). *symmetry magazine*. Retrieved 2021-02-27.

1. ["Jessica Esquivel"](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm12291916/). *IMDb*. Retrieved 2021-03-02.

1. Bjorkquist, Robin; Bogdan, Abigail M.; Campbell, Nicole L.; Chessey, Mary; Cochran, Geraldine L.; Cunningham, Beth; Esquivel, Jessica N.; Gladstone, Laura; Gosnell, Natalie M.; Guruswamy, Sathya; Hallinen, Kelsey M. (2019-06-03). "Women in physics in the United States: Reaching toward equity and inclusion". *AIP Conference Proceedings*. **2109** (1): 050040. [Bibcode:2019AIPC.2109e0040B](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2019AIPC.2109e0040B). [doi:10.1063/1.5110114](https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5110114). [ISSN 0094-243X](https://www.worldcat.org/issn/0094-243X)

1. Hennessey, Eden; Cole, Joanne; Shastri, Prajval; Esquivel, Jessica; Singh, Chandralekha; Johnson, Rosie; Ghose, Shohini (2019-06-03). "Workshop report: Intersecting identities—gender and intersectionality in physics". *AIP Conference Proceedings*. **2109** (1): 040001. [Bibcode:2019AIPC.2109d0001H](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2019AIPC.2109d0001H). [doi:10.1063/1.5110070](https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5110070). [ISSN 0094-243X](https://www.worldcat.org/issn/0094-243X)

1. McCullough, Laura & Esquivel, Jessica (2020-05-01). ["The International Conferences for Women in Physics"](https://aapt.scitation.org/doi/full/10.1119/1.5145534). *The Physics Teacher*. **58** (5): 349–351. [Bibcode:2020PhTea..58..349M](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2020PhTea..58..349M). [doi:10.1119/1.5145534](https://doi.org/10.1119/1.5145534). [ISSN 0031-921X](https://www.worldcat.org/issn/0031-921X). [S2CID 219421439](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:219421439)

1. Taylor, Michelle (2020). ["Women in Science: The Intersection of Identity and Profession"](http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/566588-Women-in-Science-Exploring-the-Intersection-of-Identity-and-Profession/). *www.laboratoryequipment.com*. Retrieved 2021-02-26.

1. ["Black voices in physics: Jessica Esquivel"](https://physicstoday.scitation.org/do/10.1063/PT.6.4.20201022h/full/). *Physics Today*. **2020** (4). 2020. [Bibcode:2020PhT..2020W1022.](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2020PhT..2020W1022.). [doi:10.1063/PT.6.4.20201022h](https://doi.org/10.1063/PT.6.4.20201022h). [S2CID 241236877](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:241236877)

1. ["New Science: Jessica Esquivel - California Academy of Sciences"](https://www.calacademy.org/new-science/jessica-esquivel). *www.calacademy.org*. Retrieved 2025-10-04.

1. Hesla, Leah (12 September 2019). ["Fermilab scientist Jessica Esquivel selected to be AAAS ambassador for girls in STEM"](https://news.fnal.gov/2019/09/fermilab-scientist-jessica-esquivel-selected-to-be-aaas-ambassador-for-girls-in-stem/). Retrieved 2021-02-26.

1. ["7th International Conference on Women in Physics: U.S. Delegation"](http://www.uswip.org/7th/Delegation.html). *www.uswip.org*. Retrieved 2021-03-02.

1. ["Meet the organizers of #BlackInPhysics Week"](https://physicstoday.scitation.org/do/10.1063/PT.6.4.20201026b/full/). *Physics Today*. **2020** (4). 2020. [Bibcode:2020PhT..2020R1026.](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2020PhT..2020R1026.). [doi:10.1063/PT.6.4.20201026b](https://doi.org/10.1063/PT.6.4.20201026b). [S2CID 243455670](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:243455670)

1. Brown, Charles D. & Gonzales, Eileen (2021-01-04). "Excellence and power in the Black physics community". *Nature Physics*. **17** (1): 3–4. [Bibcode:2021NatPh..17....3B](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2021NatPh..17....3B). [doi:10.1038/s41567-020-01140-9](https://doi.org/10.1038/s41567-020-01140-9). [ISSN 1745-2481](https://www.worldcat.org/issn/1745-2481). [S2CID 230508779](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:230508779)

1. ["Stories from Black Physicists in Our Collections"](https://www.aip.org/history-programs/niels-bohr-library/ex-libris-universum/stories-black-physicists-our-collections). *www.aip.org*. 2020-06-26. Retrieved 2021-02-27.

1. ["About"](https://changenowphysics.com/about/). *Change - Now*. 2020-08-15. Retrieved 2021-02-27.

1. ["125 Women in STEM Selected as AAAS IF/THEN Ambassadors | American Association for the Advancement of Science"](https://www.aaas.org/news/125-women-stem-selected-aaas-ifthen-ambassadors). *www.aaas.org*. Retrieved 2021-02-26.

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Jessica Esquivel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jessica_Esquivel) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jessica_Esquivel?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.