
Pascale Guiton

Dr. Pascale Guiton is an Assistant Professor and researcher in the Department of Biological Sciences at California State University, East Bay. Her main fields of study are microbiology and parasitology, with much of her research focused on the parasite "Toxoplasma gondii".
Early life and education.
Pascale Guiton was born in Dechy, France and grew up Abidjan, Cote D'Ivoire. She attended high school at Lycée Classique d'Abidjan, graduating in 2001. After high school, she moved to the U.S. and applied to Georgia State University for her undergraduate degree. She was originally rejected, due to the harsher grading system in French schools compared to American schools. However after appealing this decision, she was accepted and went on to receive a B.S. in Biological Sciences in 2005, graduating "summa cum laude". She also received the William S. Kell Presidential Award for Academic Excellence. After that, she earned her Ph.D. in Biological Sciences and Medicine at Washington University in St. Louis in 2012. She completed a Postdoctoral Fellowship at the Stanford University School of Medicine from 2012-2017, where she worked in the lab of John C. Boothroyd.
Career and research.
Guiton currently works as an Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences at California State University, East Bay, where she teaches multiple undergraduate and graduate courses in microbiology, immunology, and parasitology. She also teaches courses focusing on women's contributions to the biological sciences. She received the Outstanding Mentor of Students Award for the 2020-2021 school year. Guiton is also the Principal Investigator of a research lab, which studies "Toxoplasma gondii", one of the most commonly found parasites in humans. Much of her research on "Toxoplamsa gondii" aims to find new differentiation and virulence factors"."
Advocacy and social justice.
Guiton has written extensively about race, gender, and socioeconomic status in STEM fields, as well as her experiences as a Black woman working in research and education. In her paper "No More Excuses - Addressing Race, Racism, and Socioeconomic Issues in the Science Classroom and Laboratory," Guiton discusses the importance of integrating social issues into science curriculum. She argues that educators have a responsibility to "engage students in more in-depth discussions around science-related issues, social justice, and basic human rights". Guiton believes that educators and scientists should not shy away from potentially controversial topics, as they are necessary for students to recognize the biases and cultural contexts that inform research and science curriculum. Guiton is also one of the authors of "Atlas of Black Scholarship for Inclusive and Racially Diverse STEM Curricula," a text that highlights the contributions of 120 Black scientists and physicians to different STEM fields. The aim of this document is to provide educators with information on the discoveries and achievements of Black scholars, which can then be integrated into in their course content. Guiton is also a co-founder of The Alliance for the Black Community (ABC) at CSU East Bay. ABC is a group of faculty, staff, and students who work to improve the experiences of Black students and faculty members in higher education. Through her work with ABC, Guiton has co-authored "Designing an Anti-Racist Syllabus" and "Anti-Racist Educator's Starting Guides".