Alexandra D. Simmons N., Ph.D. is a tenured professor and pre-health advisor in the Biology Department at the University of St. Thomas, Houston. She received her B.Ed. in biological sciences from the Universidad Catolica Andres Bello (Venezuela) and her Ph.D. in human population genetics from the Instituto Venezolano de Investigaciones Cientificas (Venezuela), followed by postdoctoral training at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas. She has taught undergraduate genetics for over 15 years and her research focuses on undergraduate scientific learning.