Portraits

Cecil Benitez

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“Stanford taught me to dream big! Growing up in a small town in Mexico and later a small town in San Fernando Valley with limited resources, I was unaware of all the opportunities that exist. As a graduate student at Stanford, I was trained by leading scientists who pushed me to think critically. Now as a medical student, I have benefited by the warmth and medical expertise of physicians and public health advocates. Here, I have crafted my own dream and have the resources to accomplish it.”

Cecil Benitez, PhD ’14, Developmental Biology, currently an MD candidate in her 2nd year at the Stanford School of Medicine

Cecil is a former co-chair of the Latino Medical Student Association at Stanford. She is now involved on the national level as part of the LMSA executive board. She is also co-director of the “Flu Crew,” giving free flu vaccinations to the Stanford community and surrounding communities, including homeless shelters and farms. She has a BS in Physiological Science from UCLA.

Photographed near the Li Ka Shing Center at the School of Medicine, where she spends much of her time, on February 29, 2016.