Initiates at Santa Clara University (2024)
Gabriela Arcangeli. Inducted as a junior in 2023, Gabriela is a psychology and child studies double major and a member of the University Honors Program. She served as lead peer advisor in the Psychology Department for the past two years, where she also worked as a student assistant. For her 100-hour Psychology Honors internship, she worked at Recovery Cafe in San Jose, supporting individuals in recovery through community-building activities. Gabriela’s senior thesis explores the perceptual differences between parents and adolescents on parental psychological control and its impact on a child's self-esteem. In the fall, she will pursue a master’s degree in marriage and family therapy at Northwestern University. Ultimately, she hopes to work with adolescents in a residential treatment setting, specializing in trauma and addiction.
Christine Bardos. Christine is an English major with a minor in creative writing. Over the past two quarters, she has collaborated with Professors Juan Velasco-Moreno and Michelle Burnham of the English Department to edit an unpublished manuscript from the 1950s. Additionally, she completed an internship as a staff writer for the online magazine Study Breaks. Christine has also studied abroad in Stockholm and Reykjavik. This fall, she is eager to continue her international education through the Columbia Publishing Course at Oxford University, where she will gain professional experience in the world of book publishing.
Dylan Bear. Dylan is a double major in finance and psychology with a minor in economics. A native of Bellevue, Washington, he studied abroad in Milan, Italy. While on campus, Dylan held various leadership positions in Into the Wild, served on the Standards Committee for Delta Sigma Pi, and mentored underclassmen in the Bronco Academy of Mentorship. He was also a KSCU DJ and sports broadcaster for SCU Baseball, a peer career consultant, and a Duke’s representative in Lucas Hall. Upon graduation, he will start work at T-Mobile as an executive business operations manager in the Office of the CEO.
Maile Hee-Seon Belnap. Maile, a political science major and philosophy minor, has served as vice president of public relations and president for the women’s leadership organization IGNITE SCU, has been a peer educator for Professor Minowitz’s “Introduction to Political Philosophy” course for 2.5 years, and has worked as a research assistant for Dr. Elsa Chen's study on criminal-record expungement and clean slate law. An aspiring public servant, Maile has also worked at non-profit legal and political organizations, Congressional offices, law firms, and was selected as a UC Berkeley PPIA law fellow in the summer of 2023. Maile will be attending Loyola University Law School in Los Angeles.
Bailey Black. Bailey is a junior double majoring in political science and economics with emphases in pre-law and the public sector. He served as the chief justice for Santa Clara’s Associated Student Government and as coordinator for the Santa Clara Community Action Program’s Labor Advocacy Program. A native of Kirkland, Washington, he spent the fall semester working in Washington, D.C. as an intern with the U.S. Department of State. Baily plans a career in law.
Cassandra Blake. Cassandra is a junior double majoring in biology and public health science. Cassandra researches antibiotic resistance with Dr. Craig Stephens of the Biology Department and adverse childhood experiences with Dr. Kat Saxton of the Public Health Department. She won the University Library Undergraduate Research Award in 2023, studied abroad in Rome, and is a member of the University Honors Program. She has enjoyed being a peer health educator with the Wellness Center and a peer educator for the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department. Cassandra will spend her senior year interning at Recovery Cafe in San Jose as a Valeriote Goldman Fellow and participating in the Markkula Health Care Ethics Internship. She hopes to attend medical school after graduation.
Emma Braswell. Emma is a psychology major from St. Louis, Missouri. She has worked for two years in a social psychology lab with Professor Kathryn Bruchmann of the Psychology Department where she served as an assistant researcher and coauthor of a project on narcissism and social comparison. For her honors thesis she researched the mediating role of emotional sensitivity to music on the relationship between personality facets and uses of music. She plans to move to Los Angeles to pursue research in the psychology and music fields as well as to continue creating music of her own.
Blaise Burbank. Blaise is a religious studies major and sociology minor. She was a 2023-2024 Hackworth Fellow at the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics with a focus on relationship and dating ethics. She is the recipient of the Ted Mackin Award for the best senior thesis in Religious Studies, a member of Theta Alpha Kappa, and a member of Alpha Sigma Nu. She was involved in the Santa Clara Dance Department and performed in all of its shows. She will begin working in human resources at CooperVision in San Francisco.
Max Campos. Max is a finance and political science double major and is a member of the University Honors Program. He was actively involved with the Ciocca Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship and was the managing editor of the campus newspaper, The Santa Clara. Off-campus, Max was active in a pickle-ball league, spent countless weekends in Truckee, and volunteered with Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County. He will be working as an associate consultant at Bain & Co., a management consulting firm, in San Francisco.
Mateo Coghlan. Mateo has a double degree in finance and political science. During the last four years, he has worked at First Republic Bank, Sensiba, JusticeCorps, the SCU Housing Office, and more. He also served four years in the Judicial Branch of the Associated Student Government, ultimately serving as the chief justice. In his free time, he played intramural sports and competed across California as part of the Club Baseball team. For his honors thesis, he researched and wrote about predicting political moderation by expanding the inclusion-moderation theory. Mateo will attend Wake Forest Law School.
Mikaela Dacanay. Mikaela is a psychology and child studies double major from Sacramento. As a research assistant under Dr. Omar Davila, she was awarded the Hayes Fellowship to examine education and inequality, presenting her work at a meeting of the Critical Race Studies in Education Association and co-authoring a chapter on the social construction of merit that was published by Harvard Education Press. Mikaela completed her University honors thesis on emotionality, education, and teachers of color. She has also served as the public relations director and co-chair of the Filipino cultural organization Barkada of SCU, and as a teaching assistant for Kids on Campus. Mikaela will return to SCU to pursue a master’s degree in teaching and a teaching credential with a scholarship from the Future Teachers Project.
Allen Dao. Allen, a biology major, has served as an EMT on campus for the past three years. He has volunteered as a tutor with the Drahmann Center and as a health professions peer advisor. In addition, he was a healthcare ethics intern with the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics and conducted epidemiological research on liver disease in the U.S. at Stanford. Outside of school, he enjoys playing tennis and pickle-ball as well as coaching students. Next year, Allen will conduct research on pediatric liver disease at Stanford Medicine while applying to medical schools. Allen will receive the University’s Nobili Medal at tomorrow’s commencement.
Leyang Ding. Leyang is a physics major and a transfer student. He conducted physics research in experimental condensed matter with Dr. Chris Weber of the Physics Department. His research was supported by a Provost Fellowship and Geoff and Josie Fox Summer Research Fellowship. Leyang presented this research at the American Physics Society’s Far West and National Meetings. Leyang is also a professional badminton player, sparring with national players across the United States. He has won several medals in tournaments held in California. Leyang will begin a PhD in physics at the University of California, Davis.
Jenny Dinh-Tran. Jenny is a first-generation college student majoring in psychology. She worked as a research assistant in Dr. Rebecca Chae's and Dr. Rafay Siddiqui's Consumer Behavior Lab, exploring the relationship between personality traits and mysterious consumption, and on the impact of virtual reality on sustainable behaviors. In Dr. Kai Lukoff's Human-Computer Interaction Lab, she contributed to the Virtual Campus Tours project, creating immersive VR tours for prospective students. Jenny also enjoys making handmade products through crochet and ceramics and plans to pursue her interests in research and arts through a master's program in human-computer interaction.
Melanie Eng. Melanie, a neuroscience major and English minor, is a member of the University Honors Program. Last summer, she traveled to the Philippines with the Miller Center for Social Entrepreneurship as a Global Social Benefit Fellow to conduct action research with resource-poor communities of artisans. She has also worked in the laboratory of Dr. Craig Stephens helping identify patterns in antibiotic-resistant phenotypes and genotypes of uropathogenic E. coli. After graduation, Melanie plans to pursue a career in the biotechnology industry as a research associate in San Francisco.
Isabelle Fejes. Isabelle is a junior biochemistry major with minors in creative writing and Japanese. She has been conducting inorganic chemistry research with Dr. Meaghan Deegan as part of the project “Alkyne-Centered Reactivity of Metal Complexes at a Chemically Non-Innocent Pincer Ligand” since her sophomore year. Her favorite form of creative writing is poetry, and she is currently working as an assistant poetry editor for the Santa Clara Review. She has also supported the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department as a tutor and as an assistant for the general chemistry labs.
Anissa Fernandez. Annisa is a junior majoring in mathematics with minors in computer science and sustainability. Anissa has twice been awarded the Darin Butz Foundation Scholarship by the faculty in the Mathematics and Computer Science Department. Anissa serves as the president of the Association for Women in Mathematics at SCU and is dedicated to fostering a welcoming community that empowers women in math. In her free time, she enjoys reading and dark room photography. As a senior, she plans to apply to graduate programs in statistics or applied mathematics, aspiring to ultimately combine her love for mathematics and sustainability to promote the betterment of the planet.
Hannah Giarrusso. Hannah is a triple major in psychology, child studies, and Spanish. As a member of Dr. Jui Bhagwat’s Early Cognitive Development Lab, Hannah conducted research on the relationship between positive risk-taking during play and self-efficacy in children aged six-to-ten years old. She enjoys spending time in nature and traveling to experience new cultures and lifestyles. Hannah plans to gain additional post-baccalaureate research experience before pursuing a doctorate in clinical psychology.
Kamyllie Gutierrez Arteaga. Kamyllie, a junior majoring in English and philosophy, balances her time between SCU dance performances and mock trial competitions throughout the country. Her interest in helping people overcome injustice rooted in language barriers led her to tutor English-learning elementary children. She also presented a paper at the Sigma Tau Delta 2024 Convention on the power of storytelling for uplifting marginalized, oppressed identities. She is currently researching the impacts and causes of language barriers and translation failures in the legal system. Kamyllie plans to pursue a career in law.
Kinsey Hall. Kinsey is an economics major with a data analysis emphasis as well as a political science major. She ran for the Women's Cross Country and Track team and was president of the Economics Student Association. Kinsey gained diverse work experience during her time at Santa Clara as a research and teaching assistant in the Economics department, a Hackworth fellow on the ethics of homelessness, a front desk assistant in the dorms, and a campaign coordinator for local political campaigns. After graduating, she will be working at Stifel in San Francisco as a public finance analyst.
Maddie Hall. Maddie is a double major in psychology and women’s and gender studies. On campus, she interned with the Office of Institutional Research and was a research assistant in Dr. Kathryn Bruchmann’s Social Cognition and Comparison Lab. For Dr. CJ Jones’ trans studies class, she created a zine focused on accessing gender-affirming care under Medi-Cal, which received a Bannan Mission Integration grant for further development and distribution. Off-campus, Maddie has been working in Santa Clara County’s healthcare system, first as a government fellow in the Business Development and Managed Care Department and later as an intern with the Financial Planning and Performance Department.
Kiana Harker. Inducted as a junior in 2023, Kiana is graduating with a major in biology and a minor in public health science. She was highly involved in research in Dr. Ian Carter-O’Connell’s lab, where she studied the biochemistry of PARP-14 and its role in the development of diseases. For her honors thesis, she researched the role of sugar in the development of ADHD in children under the direction of Dr. Michele Parker. After graduation, Kiana plans to work as a medical assistant at a dermatology practice while she applies to medical schools.
Rachel Holzman. Rachel is a psychology major and Spanish studies minor. She worked as a tutor for the University’s Drahmann Center. She also served as a peer educator for Dr. Lisa Whitfield’s Statistics and Methods Practicum and as a research assistant for the Intimate Relationships Lab. Rachel has spent four summers working as a camp counselor. Last summer, she was a leader for the counselor-in-training program and a member of the camper care team. Rachel will begin work in an elementary school and plans on pursuing a master’s degree in school psychology.
Mae Krause. Inducted as a junior in 2023, Mae has majors in public health and anthropology with a minor in history. She is in the University Honors Program and is a member of the Santa Clara Belles, a women’s service organization. She is also a peer advisor for the Public Health Department. As a De Nardo Science Scholar, Mae researched postpartum health education and postpartum experiences in San Jose with Dr. Veronica Miranda (Anthropology) and Dr. Alice Villatoro (Public Health), and has enjoyed presenting her work at various conferences. In her free time, Mae enjoys hiking and reading a good book.
Christopher Lane. From Portland, Oregon, Chris is a political science and Spanish double major with a sustainability minor. He is a nature lover and studied abroad in Ecuador where he researched cacao harvesting techniques and analogue forestry. On campus, he worked as a student intern with the Center for Sustainability and was a photography club member. After graduation, he will work as an English teaching assistant in Spain for a year and then attend graduate school in the environmental field.
Kelly Lelapinyokul. Kelly, a double major in sociology and psychology, has served as SCU Sociology club co-chair for four years and has worked to grow the sociological community. She worked as a research assistant to Dr. Molly King of the Sociology Department and as an ambassador for the College of Arts and Sciences. Outside of school she enjoys working with youth and has volunteered at the San Jose Day Nursery and the Boys and Girls Club of America. Kelly will go on to work as a college advisor for first-generation students at Breakthrough Silicon Valley.
Catherine Lico. Cate is a double major in public health and political science. With a keen interest in health equity and policy, Cate served as a fellow with the Santa Clara County Health and Hospital Systems, where she worked on numerous health equity projects to improve healthcare outcomes and enhance patient care in the community. As an intern with Breathe California, Cate conducted outreach and education on tobacco cessation with local middle-school students. In her free time, Cate was a long-term volunteer at the American Red Cross and director of the Red Dress Gala for the Zeta Gamma chapter of Alpha Phi, raising more than $100,000 for women’s heart health. She plans to pursue a master’s degree aiming to advance healthcare policies and equity.
Kira Lipson. Kira is a psychology and communication double major. A native of Marin County, California, she studied abroad in London during her junior year. She has volunteered on campus as a peer health educator for the Wellness Center and as an upper-class mentor for the Women in Business Association. She has had multiple jobs throughout college working with children and adults with developmental disabilities, and plans to continue volunteering at youth centers in the future. Moving forward, she plans to work in external communications and project management at a local nonprofit.
Madeleine Luther. Maddie is an economics major with a data analysis concentration and minors in international business and Italian studies. Throughout her time at Santa Clara, she was a statistics tutor at the Math Learning Center, as well as an executive board member of Delta Gamma sorority and Kesem, an organization that supports children through a parent’s cancer. She has a passion for international economics and interned in Italian as a data analyst at a digital marketing firm in Milan. Maddie was also the recipient of the 2024 Hazel Award for excellence in undergraduate economics. After graduation, she will move to San Francisco to begin work as a health consulting analyst at Mercer. She later hopes to pursue a master's degree at Milan’s Bocconi University or the London School of Economics.
Nishant Misal. Nishant is a computer science major. He grew up in Marin County, California, and has worked at the SCU EPIC Lab building an e-commerce site for a small, homemade-jewelry business that shares a portion of its profits with those in need. Beyond campus, he has worked as a sports video editor for professional athletes, coaches, and media companies. Nishant plans to continue his education towards a master’s degree in computer science and engineering at SCU focusing on machine learning and artificial intelligence.
Asahi Irene Nagasaka. Irene is a double major in psychology and child studies with a minor in Spanish. She ran on the cross country and track team while working in retail, selling running shoes. Irene researched language learning through storybooks with Dr. Kirsten Read of the Psychology Department. She finds joy in the act of helping others and hopes to continue child advocacy work. Irene will begin her professional career in the mental health industry, working with children and adolescents while seeking clinical research opportunities.
Michael Nguyen. Inducted as a junior in 2023, Michael is graduating with a double degree in neuroscience and music and a minor in biology. He was a research assistant in Dr. Lindsay Halladay’s Behavioral Neuroscience Lab, studying the effects of early-life stress on behaviors such as fear, anxiety, and maternal care. For his research efforts, he was selected as a De Novo Fellow, ALZA Science Scholar, and a national Goldwater Scholar. He also worked as a neuroscience peer advisor and Markkula Center Healthcare Ethics Intern. In addition, Michael was the principal clarinetist of the SCU Wind Ensemble and studied with Professor Ginger Kroft. In his gap year, he will be continuing his research with Dr. Halladay and working in clinical positions while applying to medical schools.
Agustin Pace. Agustin is a junior economics and Italian studies double major. He has been a part of leadership for the Men’s Ultimate Frisbee Team for the last two years and is co-president of the Italian American Club. He studied abroad in Milan, Italy, working as a part time intern at a crowdfunding consulting firm. He spent the last two years working as a research assistant on the role of fascist Italian propaganda in the Bay Area during the 1930s, and plans to further expand on this research with the support of a Provost’s Research Fellowship.
Nikhita Panjnani. Nikhita is graduating with an English major and minors in Creative Writing and Theatre. She has served as the associate editor and then editor-in-chief of Santa Clara Review, SCU’s undergraduate-run literary magazine. Nikhita has also worked as a research assistant for Professors Kai Harris and Tim Myers in the English Department. She also served as the English Club co-chair and chair, as the vice president of SCU’s Sigma Tau Delta chapter, and as a peer educator in several English and French classes. She is the 2024 recipient of the Katherine Woodall Prize in Literary Criticism or Theory. Her honors thesis culminated in an original album exploring storytelling through songwriting. Nikhita adores creative writing, performing, and music, and will focus on songwriting following graduation.
Alexandra Pechersky. Alex is a double major in psychology and communication. Her strong interest in Spanish language and culture inspired her to study abroad in Barcelona, Spain, during the fall of 2022. Alex has conducted research over the past three years with Dr. Lang Chen in the Cognitive and Computational Neuroscience Lab, focusing on semantic thinking styles. Her passion for understanding human behavior and workplace organization sparked an interest in a career in human resources. This fall, Alex will begin her professional journey at a healthcare technology company, called TigerConnect, in Santa Monica.
Dominique Peter. Dominique is an economics major with a minor in environmental studies. She served as a teaching assistant for an upper-division macroeconomics class on campus and worked for an environmental consulting firm in Madrid during her studies abroad. She has volunteered at the Forge Garden and was an instructor for Sprout Up, a program that seeks to teach children about sustainability and environmental science concepts. She also served as vice president of finance for her Alpha Delta Pi chapter and is a member of Alpha Sigma Nu. Dominique plans to apply to law schools this fall.
Erin Potter. Erin is a psychology and public health double major. She was awarded the 2023 Valeriote Goldman Fellowship, a program that develops leadership skills among students and deepens the commitment to effective and ethical leadership for social change. During her fellowship, she interned at the Health Trust under the mentorship of CEO Michele Lew, focusing on community health initiatives and business strategy. As a co-president of SCU's Pre-Health Club, Erin aimed to help students network and gain essential knowledge for their approaching health-related professional journeys. She also served as the director of marketing for the Zeta Gamma chapter of Alpha Phi. Erin hopes to work in a business-psychology role before earning a master’s degree in business or organizational and industrial psychology.
Rian Jasmine Quiban. RJ is a proud first-generation college student graduating with a degree in computer science and a minor in mathematics. During her time at Santa Clara, RJ dedicated herself to giving back to the campus community. She worked as a desk assistant in Dunne Hall, a community facilitator in the Casa RLC, and a neighborhood representative in the University Villas. Beyond the residence halls, RJ found community in Theta Tau, the professional engineering fraternity, leading the organization as president during her junior year. She also served as a peer educator for LEAD students, joined the Dean’s Student Advisory Council, and worked as a Drahmann Center academic tutor. RJ plans to pursue a career in software engineering.
Alana Rieg. Alana, a psychology major, served as the president of her sorority. Originally from Los Angeles, she was driven by her passion for the environment and social trends to pursue minors in environmental studies and economics. For her honors thesis, Alana explored the relationship between personality traits and spending behavior among college students. During her time at Santa Clara, she has served on the Honors Program Advisory Council and as a membership student coordinator at the fitness center on campus. Alana will attend Claremont Graduate University to pursue a master’s degree in organizational behavior.
Lady Elizabeth Roy. Lady Elizabeth is a psychology major. A native of Columbus, Ohio, she worked at SCU’s HUB Writing Center for the last three years and served as president of Klesis Christian Fellowship. Lady Elizabeth also served as a Miller Center Fellow, working in Baltimore, Maryland, researching ways to allocate resources to better address the city’s racial wealth divide. For her honors thesis, she researched how the penal system denies citizens humanity. In hopes of changing the penal system and making a lasting impact, Lady Elizabeth will attend law school in the fall at Capital University.
Lucas Tan. Hailing from Manila, Philippines, Lucas is a psychology major with a minor in sustainability. He has conducted psychological research in the Learning and Remembering Lab and in the Teaching and Motivation in Education Lab. His honor’s thesis investigates teacher identity and teacher-student relationship quality. Lucas plans to pursue further education in cognitive psychology and human-computer interaction to prepare himself for a career that combines these fields.
Olivia Venderby. Olivia is a double major in finance and Spanish, with a minor in international business. Her international upbringing has fostered a passion for language and culture. For her University honors thesis, she explored the implications of Russia's invasion of Ukraine on the Ukrainian Hryvnia and the Russian Ruble. She is in the process of publishing her thesis in an international finance journal. Olivia was also a member of the Leavey Scholars Program and a Spanish tutor through the Drahmann Center. She will continue her education at Santa Clara University, pursuing a master’s degree in business analytics.
Aidan Weitl. Aidan is an economics major with minors in political science and Japanese Studies. In order to further his education in the Japanese language, he studied abroad at Tokyo's Sophia University during his junior year. Aidan has worked as a peer educator in economics on campus and has volunteered at multiple non-profits near his home in Walnut Creek, California. After graduation he plans to focus on serving his community in a full-time capacity before embarking on a master’s program in accounting.
Peytyn Yee. Peytyn is a psychology major and women and gender studies minor. She was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii, and was the co-president of Ka Mana’o O Hawai’i on campus. She volunteered to work in the IDEAS Lab with Dr. Barbara O’Brien in the Psychology Department on a project supporting middle-school student engagement in STEM activities. She plans a career in public interest law.