Ana Estrella

Details

Education

• MS, University of Puerto Rico at Mayaguez (2013)
• BS, University of Puerto Rico at Arecibo (2004)

Teaching

• BIO 101 Biology in Your World
• BIO 210 Elements of Microbiology
• BIO 197 Leatherback Sea Turtle Ecology (Study Away Program: Costa Rica)
• BMS 110- Introduction to Human Biology with Integrated Service Learning
• IDS 115- Career Exploration for Sciences and Health Professions 

Campus service

• Public Affairs Committee Chair (2017-present)
• HHMI Sea-Phages Project Cohort 18- Phage Discovery supportive faculty (2025-present)
• Summer Scholars supportive faculty (2023, 2025)
• Curriculum Committee member (2023-present)

Professional experience

• Wildlife Biologist/Conservation and Recuperation Program of Puerto Rican Parrot Amazona vittata - Puerto Rico Department of Natural Resources - Wildlife Division
• Teacher Assistant/Biology Department- University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez Campus

Presentations

• A Lesson in Subtraction at Missouri State University Showcase on Teaching & Learning, Springfield, Missouri, August 2024
• Thinking of Leading a Short-term Program? at Missouri State University Education Abroad Faculty Luncheon, Springfield, Missouri, April 2023
• Empower Global Thinking and Sharpen Student Perspective with an Education Abroad program at the Globally Responsive Education and Teaching Conference, Springfield, Missouri, October 2021
• Teaching in an Education Abroad Context at Missouri State University Study Away faculty Luncheon, Springfield, Missouri, September 2018
• Co-facilitator: Diversity 101- Human Resources Supervisors training at Missouri State University, Springfield, Missouri, May, 2018
• A Short-Term Study Abroad Costa Rica: A Brief Overview, Academy of International Business (AIB) US Midwest Conference, Chicago, April 2018
• Co-facilitator: Diversity 101- Staff training at Missouri State University, West Plains, Missouri, January 2018
• Co-facilitator: OUCH! That Stereotype Hurts: Communicating Respectfully in a Diverse World at Arkansas State University faculty development training, Mountain Home, Arkansas, October 2017.
• Off the Grid at Missouri State University Study Away faculty Luncheon, Springfield, Missouri, September 2017
• The Fingerprint of the University on the Summer Program in Costa Rica, Friends of the Garnett Library, January 2017, West Plains, Missouri

Professional organizations

• American Society for Microbiology (present)
• Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography (2013-2018)
• American Association of University Professors (2015-2018)

Publications

• “Short-Term Faculty Led Study Away Programs to Puerto Rico: Emphasis on Women in Science, Technology, Math, and Engineering (STEM)”, Insights to a Changing World Journal, Vol. 2019, Issue 3, Fall 2019.
• A Short-Term Study Abroad Costa Rica: A Brief Overview”, Global Education Journal: Critical Thinking Series, Vol. 2018, Issue 2, June 15, 2018.
• Ecology of the Asian Clam, Corbicula fluminea (Muller), and its Impact on the Benthic Invertebrates in Guajataca and La Plata Reservoirs, Puerto Rico

Research and professional interests

Professional development/conferences

• HHMI SEA-PHAGES Discovery Workshop (2025) 
• Island Ecology in the Bahamas: A Teacher-Directed Field Study for Students, San Salvador, Bahamas (2019)
• Koch Summit for Faculty, Wichita, Kansas (2018)
• 6th Collaborative Diversity Conference - Facing racism in 2018 and beyond: A changing dynamic, Missouri State University, Springfield (2018)
• MBAA International Conference, Chicago, Illinois (2018)
• Facing Racism Institute Cohort 11th, Springfield, Missouri. October 2017
• Diversity and Inclusion Training Level I, Missouri State University, Springfield (2017)
• 4th Cultural Consciousness in the Classroom Workshop, Springfield, Missouri (2017)
• 5th Collaborative Diversity Conference, Springfield, Missouri (2017)
• 23rd American Society for Microbiology Conference for Undergraduate Educators, Bethesda, Maryland (2016)
• Study Away Program Fall 2016 Faculty Luncheon, Springfield, Missouri
• 2015 - Citizenship and Service Learning (CASL) West Plains Public Affairs Committee workshop, Springfield, Missouri
• ASLO 2013 Aquatic Sciences Meeting, New Orleans, Louisiana
• ASM Conference for Undergraduate Educators, Danvers, Massachusetts, 2014
• Ecology Project International Marine Education Fellowship 2015, Costa Rica
• 29^th Human Anatomy and Physiology Society Annual Conference San Antonio, Texas

Awards and honors

• Office of Citizenship and Service-Learning Excellence in Service Learning Award (2025)
• Missouri State University Board of Governors’ Award for Faculty Excellence in Public Affairs (2018)
• Ecology Project International Marine Education Fellowship (2015)