Samuel Chukwudi Okpechi is a first-generation graduate student at the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans. He is a PhD candidate in the department of biochemistry and molecular biology. Samuel graduated from Southern University at New Orleans with a BSc in biological sciences and was the valedictorian of the class of 2016. As an undergraduate, Samuel participated in multiple biomedical and clinical translational internship programs. As a graduate student, his research endeavor is centered on identifying and characterizing potent drug compounds for the treatment of breast cancer. Samuel has authored several peer-reviewed and cancer-related research articles.