Baddie Professor isn’t just a personal brand—it’s a reflection of what I believe in.

Growing up as an Afro-Latina in an urban community, I learned early that appearance mattered. Fashion was more than clothing—it was culture, creativity, confidence, and self-expression. The people around me took pride in how they presented themselves, and so I did too.

When I entered mathematics and academic spaces, however, I quickly realized that I looked different from many of the people around me. My brown skin, curly hair, cultural background, and personal style often made me feel like I stood out. Over time, I began to separate my academic identity from my personal identity. I felt like I had to tone down parts of myself depending on where I was.

In mathematics spaces, I felt pressure to soften aspects of my culture and personality to fit expectations of what a mathematician or academic was supposed to look, act, and sound like. In other spaces, I sometimes felt pressure to downplay my intellectual interests and “nerdiness.” It seemed as though I was constantly navigating between different versions of myself.

Eventually, that became exhausting. I realized that I never felt fully comfortable anywhere because I wasn't allowing myself to be fully myself anywhere.

The more I advanced in my education and career, the more I recognized that these feelings were connected to representation. In many of the spaces I entered, there were very few people who looked like me or shared my experiences. When you rarely see someone who reflects you in certain places, it becomes easy to question whether you belong in that place.

I also experienced moments where my credibility was questioned before I even spoke. People were often surprised to learn that I was a mathematician, statistician, researcher, or professor. Some had already formed assumptions about who I was and what I was capable of based solely on my appearance. Those experiences revealed how deeply society still stereotypes women, particularly women of color.

That realization changed me.

I decided that I was no longer interested in shrinking parts of myself to make other people comfortable. I did not want to choose between being fully myself and intellectual ambition. I did not want younger generations to believe they had to choose either. It is liberating to stand fully in one’s truth.

That is why I created Baddie Professor, LLC.

Con mucho amor,

Kiara Sanchez, MS ♡