Melissa Thiriez, MBA Candidate

Melissa Thiriez is the Director of Employer Relations and Partnerships in the SCU Career Center and MBA candidate at SCU.

She has worked for four years at SCU and finds passion in expanding opportunities for Broncos!

As a fellow in the lab, Melissa is working on investigating the connections between learning disabilities and accommodations in higher education among diverse student populations. 

Bethlehem Melaku '26

Bethlehem Melaku is a class of 2026 student from Oakland, California studying marketing. From a young age, Bethlehem has been interested in morals and ethics. Being interested in business as well, she knew that she would have to find a way to bridge the gap between sustainability and business practices. As an aspiring entrepreneur, Bethlehem has always observed the issues of unethical practices in the business world. She understands how important it is to how apply ethics into business so that she can help create a sustainable and moral impact on society.

Taking Professor Santoro’s business ethics class furthered her interest in the relationship between ethics and business. Seeing how she could assess corporate responsibility in theory was one thing, but being apart of the MAS BEHR lab would allow her to apply the theories to live research. Through the lab, Bethlehem hopes to urge companies to acknowledge their social and ethical responsibilities by utilizing her skills of critical thinking and ethical perspective.

Ellie Tng '25

Ellie Tng is a class of 2025 student majoring in Accounting from Fremont, California. Ever since Ellie switched her major from English to Business and then Accounting, she has been proactive about honing her skills and knowledge to become successful in the business/accounting world. Her goal is to not only leverage her skills to become successful in accounting, but also to encourage the utilization of underrepresented minority groups in business and accounting workplaces. Aware of the proliferation of unethical practices in the current international business environment, Ellie aims to act ethically and encourage ethical practices in her anticipated career as an audit accountant. 

In her time as part of the MAS BEHR lab, Ellie has researched the potential for consciousness in AI and what it means to be conscious. Ellie is particularly interested in this subject because she expects that as AI becomes more powerful and refined, the integration of AI in the business landscape will have significant effects on the livelihoods of everyday people. She hopes that her work at the MAS BEHR lab will contribute to an international business environment where ethics and social responsibility are integrated into the corporate framework.

Yoni Aidlberg '25

Yoni Aidlberg is a class of 2025 Finance Major in the Leavey School of Business and a member of the Men’s Soccer Team at SCU from San Jose, California. Through a lifetime of soccer, Yoni has established himself as a leader and will implement those skills to promote the success of his peers in the direction of a collective goal. Aspiring towards business ownership, he desires to promote inclusivity for a more dynamic and capable workforce while prioritizing the ethical model of businesses.

Yoni is intrigued primarily by the opportunity to research current business issues in terms of corporate social responsibility and the ways in which various businesses can be incentivized towards social awareness. He believes that the most successful business models are those in which CSR is foundational and prevalent, and looks forward to establishing such a business in the future as a metric and guide for others.

Olivia Vidal '26

My name is Olivia Vidal. I am a sophomore class of 2026 from Seattle, Washington. I am majoring in Management and minoring in Economics. I aspire to have a career in project management or product management, hoping to gain experience through this position.

Evan Westervelt '26

I am a sophomore transfer economics major from Tufts University. Born and raised in Colorado, much of my hobbies involve being outdoors and active. I also run an exotic car brokering business, Phoenix Exotics, which I started in late 2020. I've sold over $2 million worth of cars to date and have greatly enjoyed the process of starting and growing a business. The freedom of having a business has allowed me to work for a charity called the Morgan Adams Foundation which raises money for pediatric cancer research, I have worked with them for over 3 years organizing an event they put on every year and I have helped raise over $3.5 million for the foundation. At Santa Clara, I also play men's lacrosse, a sport that I have loved since I began playing at 6 years old.

Ben Broccoli

Ben Broccoli is currently a junior at Bellarmine College Prep in San Jose, California. Outside of the classroom, he likes to participate in both track and cross country, and he is also an avid ceramicist. These hobbies help instill him with patience, leadership skills, and a collaborative mindset. He first assisted in research in October of 2023 on Health Care in the Bay Area. He enjoys working with BEHR because he believes in the importance of maintaining just and ethical business in his community.

Abraham Zhong

My name is Abraham Zhong, and I am currently a Junior at Mountain View High School. I've always had a strong interest in biology and biotechnology, and I've participated in many summer programs that allowed me to dive deeper into the science behind many procedures, devices, or drugs that are used in medicine today. So, being able to work on the Bay Area Healthcare project was an intriguing and eye opening opportunity. We looked at all aspects of healthcare for local hospitals and companies, including their medical practices and research. This project was especially interesting, as we found examples of exciting developments in medicine, such as AI for patient care that ensures minority representation and safety. Overall, I am very grateful for being able to research these topics and put together the results for Professor Santoro's healthcare course, as well as working with many amazing people.

Annabelle North '24

Annabelle North is a class of 2024 student in the Leavey School of Business from San Carlos, California. Annabelle strives to advance the teams she works for through contributing to the growth of her organizations while also prioritizing the causes she supports. Regardless of the industry she ends up working in, she hopes to elevate ethical causes throughout her professional career.

What interests Annabelle in business ethics is the dynamic nature of the conversations within the BHR community. She recognizes that business ethics and human rights is integral to every aspect of business and believes that corporate responsibility should be an endless journey: there are always more opportunities to make business more ethical.

Katy Johnson '23

Katy Johnson is a senior studying Management and Communications with a Retail Studies minor at Santa Clara University.  They value bettering the world through studying and empowering positive human engagement. Additionally, that people have a responsibility to find routes that protect human rights regardless of the industry they stand in. Throughout their time working and studying at the university, they have seen many local and global instances of human rights being violated and have made it their mission to do their part in bettering the future.

Brooke Eldridge '23

Brooke Eldridge is a sophomore from Kansas City, Missouri studying Marketing alongside Retail Studies and Studio Art at Santa Clara University.  She ultimately strives to work in branding or advertising within the retail space. However, she also recognizes the retail industry’s history with human rights violations and unsustainable practices which she seeks to alleviate throughout her career. 

The Business Ethics and Human Rights space resonates with Brooke because of her strong ambition to explore businesses’ social impact in communities spanning globally. The MAS BEHR has allowed her to funnel her passion for ethics into corporate responsibility. Having an ethics-based business community has inspired her to investigate how human rights concerns interact with her fields of study.

Patrick Burke '22

Patrick Burke is a class of 2022 student from Los Altos, California studying finance. Patrick aspires to have a career in venture capital and private equity in Silicon Valley. He wants to assist in making decisions on investments in start-ups and technology companies. He recognizes that it will be important that I am proficient at understanding the ethical ramifications of an investment in order to invest in the right companies.

Patrick knows that the most ethical business decisions are not always the most profitable. However, he thinks that using business ethics within the venture capital field could help firms to start investing in companies that are going to benefit society. He also argues that investors can help new companies create and implement ethical standards that will assist the company with corporate responsibility and ultimately greater success. Patrick appreciates that working with the MAS BEHR lab has also allowed him to evaluate investments through a Jesuit ethical framework that upholds social justice and human rights.

Justin Armanino '23

Justin Armanino is a sophomore from Danville, California studying Finance. Deeply interested in business operations and wealth management, he plans to become a consultant or certified advisor. Beyond solely career-based aspirations, he hopes to engage with his community through his future path and strives to give back in a meaningful way. 

Justin first learned about the Business Ethics and Human Rights community through one of Professor Santoro’s business ethics courses at SCU. The case study-based class interested him and inspired him to learn more about the foundations of business ethics. With the MSBEHR Lab, Justin has really enjoyed the opportunity to apply his dual interest in finance and ethics to current events through his different assignments with the lab so far.

Caroline Glaser '23

Caroline Glaser is a sophomore from Portland, Oregon studying Finance. While her main interests academically include mainly finance centered work, she has a genuine passion for ethical business practices.

After taking a business ethics class at the university, she came to realize how much business and human rights truly do intersect at every level of a business. Caroline is particularly excited about corporate responsibility. She ultimately strives to implement general, widely applied accountability standards for businesses globally. Within the MAS BEHR, Caroline is able to utilize both her practical and analytical perspectives to bring her unique perspective to the team.

Taylor Kim '22

Taylor Kim is a junior studying Business Management and Environmental Studies alongside Retail Studies. Combining her different passions into one career path, Taylor aspires to work for an outdoor retailer and increase general access and equity in outdoor recreation. She also intends to apply her passion for environmental and sustainability efforts into her career.

What interests Taylor in the Business Ethics and Human Rights space is the overall goal for her studies to be grounded in improving the world and making a positive impact. She understands that making businesses more ethical is extremely important in our globalized world, regardless of industries. Taylor has really appreciated that MSBEHR has allowed her to explore specific cases and issues to apply her ethical ambitions to, and she appreciates how the lab’s different perspectives combine to make a truly dynamic space.

Camille Spence '23

Camille Spence is a sophomore from Houston Texas majoring in Finance. Specifically motivated by sustainability within business practices, she strives to implement corporate responsibility to any career path that she ends up on. At the root of her ambitions, she recognizes that the most successful careers are impactful as well.

What interests Camille most about Business Ethics and Human rights is learning about the precise ways that businesses can both negatively and positively impact human rights.  As an undergraduate business student, she feels empowered by the opportunity MAS BEHR has given her to have a genuinely active role in the business ethics community. She hopes to increase awareness in the corporate world and encourage businesses to fully realize their ethical roles and responsibilities.