Valentina Salgado Montanez.
Valentina Salgado Montanez (BS in Marine Biology) will represent the undergraduate students of the Spring Class of 2025 at the Monday, May 5, morning graduation ceremony. Salgado Montanez is originally from Bogota, Colombia, and moved to Miami, Florida, at the age of six. In high school, Salgado Montanez designed and conducted research in an aquaculture lab, validating her decision to pursue marine biology as a major. Driven by a desire to expand horizons, Salgado Montanez chose to attend HPU due to its strong Marine Biology program, diverse community, and beautiful campus in Hawai’i.
At HPU, Salgado Montanez embraced opportunities to gain professional experience. She served as a shrimp technician for the Oceanic Institute at the Makapuʻu Campus, where she was responsible for maintaining the proper water quality of the 8-meter tanks and collecting blood samples for genetic testing. While home in Miami, she volunteered in a lab, furthering her knowledge of breeding and feeding shrimp broodstock. Her volunteer work as an emergency dispatcher for the Hawai’i Marine Mammal Response provided insight into the importance of community outreach, communication, and quick decision-making in marine animal rescue.
Over the last year, Salgado Montanez worked as an undergraduate researcher under the mentorship of two natural science faculty, the principal investigators, studying toxins in algae that cause fish poisoning. This research was both challenging and rewarding, exposing her to various research interests and experience in both biology and chemistry, revealing a multitude of career options.
Upon graduation, Salgado Montanez plans to pursue internships in Southeast Asia, focusing on coral 3-D mapping and manta ray conservation.
