Initiates at Santa Clara University (2013)
Michael Adair. Michael is a sociology major with a minor in history. Originally a small-town boy from Jackson, California, he has traveled the world throughout his four years in college by backpacking across Europe, Canada, and going on an immersion trip to Peru. He was the president of the Sigma Chi Fraternity and has spent two summers working for Santa Clara as an orientation leader. Michael also works part-time as a blackjack dealer and spent last summer as a logistics intern at Target. After graduation, Michael will work as a recruiting coordinator at a startup in San Francisco.
Alexander Ambrose. Alex is a computer science major with an emphasis in cryptography and computer security. As a member of Pi Mu Epsilon, the mathematics honor society, Alex has tutored entry level Santa Clara math students for the past two years. For the past three summers, he has worked as a camp instructor for iD Tech Camps at Stanford University. Alex currently works part-time as a network routing intern at Check Point Software, and plans to continue full-time work in the computer security industry after graduation.
Ashley Armstrong. Ashley is an anthropology major with minors in economics and international business. A native of Reno, NV, she played on the women's basketball team and volunteered for the Bay Area Women's Sports Initiative and Santa Clara Community Action Program. In her junior year, she earned the Global Social Benefit Fellowship and interned for a microfinance institution in Paraguay. Next year, Ashley will pursue a master's degree in development studies at the University of Cambridge with the goal of one day starting her own social enterprise.
Nicole Assumpcao. Nicole is a double major in biology and psychology. A Brazilian native raised in Seattle, she enjoys being active, baking cookies, and poring over science articles. While at Santa Clara, she was engaged in research on memory and learning with Dr. Patricia Simone and Dr. Matthew Bell. She studied abroad in El Salvador last fall with Casa de la Solidaridad, where she fell in love with Central America. Moving forward, she hopes to combine her passions for science and social justice in a career relating to public health and infectious diseases.
Katherine Bercovitz. Katherine is graduating with a degree in psychobiology. She currently works with Dr. Patti Simone and Dr. Matt Bell studying the role of contextual cues and temporal spacing in the long-term memory of older adults. Serving as the campus president of the Jesuit honors society (Alpha Sigma Nu), Katherine attended the international Triennial Conference in Philadelphia this past fall. In her spare time, Katherine enjoys reading and studying languages. She will continue her studies in cognitive aging next year as a doctoral student at Harvard University.
Kiah Breslin-Kessler. Kiah is a psychology major and a native of Santa Cruz, California. She has worked as a research assistant for Dr. Kahan in the Sleep and Cognition Lab investigating the differences in phenomenal features of dreams with and without awareness. After graduation, Kiah will be moving to Spokane, Washington, and hopes to spend the next year gaining work experience in her field. She plans on applying to graduate schools in clinical psychology in the fall of 2013.
Rebecca Carruthers. Rebecca is a political science major with minors in French and Italian. A native of Seattle, WA, she had the opportunity to study abroad in London where she interned for a Member of Parliament, as well as in Milan where she interned for an international financial advising firm. She has worked for Santa Clara's Media Services department as an administrative assistant since her sophomore year, and this year joined the University Villas staff as a Neighborhood Representative. She is pursuing a career in international business.
Michelle Cabinian. Michelle graduates with dual degrees in theatre and marketing with a minor in musical theatre. In the past four years, she has been actively involved in the performing arts both on and off campus. Her favorite SCU performance was playing "Sally Brown" in You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown. After graduation, Michelle will continue to pursue her arts career, while also working in marketing for a start-up company. www.MichelleCabinian.com
Christopher Caruso. Christopher, a philosophy major and classical studies minor, is president and founder of Broncos for Life. His senior thesis was researching and developing an ethical theory that would be more flexible to modern people, but still seek to respect everyone universally. He has been an ethics intern at O' Connor Hospital and has spent the last year teaching Latin and classical mythology at Bellarmine College Prep and at Live Oak Academy. With the goal of becoming an ethics teacher, Chris will study for a masters degree at the Dominican School of Philosophy in Berkeley.
Erick Castellanos. Erick, a native of El Salvador and a double major in biochemistry and Spanish, had an interesting start at Santa Clara, changing his major a total of seven times. He researched silver nanoparticle-protein interactions with Dr. Korin Wheeler, which has culminated in a publication. He has spent the last two years working as a student-teacher at a local high school, implementing lesson plans to foster student achievement and laboratory etiquette. Next year, Erick will work at Genentech and as a medical scribe in order to strengthen his applications for medical school.
Jennifer Coleman. Jennifer is a psychology major. She has volunteered as a mentor at Innvision, helping children at transitional facilities, worked with autistic students on bettering communication and social skills, and interned at Momentum for Mental Health running music therapy and job workshops for patients. At SCU, she worked as a statistics tutor and researched language development of young children with Professor Read. In the fall, Jennifer will begin a PhD in Psychology at Palo Alto University.
Riley Costello. Riley, a psychology major from Lake Oswego, Oregon, led multiple retreats as part of Campus Ministry. She started the Zumba Fitness program at Malley and taught four classes there each quarter. She is a certified laughter yoga leader as well and plans to offer the benefits of laughter to senior citizens and corporations. Riley took some time off from her studies at Santa Clara to pursue her dream of writing a novel, and hopes to complete the novel for publication in the next year. She would be happy to take your email address for notification when the book is published!
Christine Cox. Christine, a psychology major and studio art minor, was Club Sports Council vice president, and president of the women's rugby club team. She has worked at a summer camp and after-school daycare for the City of Milpitas since the age of 16. She also spent a spring break in Panama with the Global Medical Brigades setting up a medical clinic that served hundreds of patients. Next year, Christine will be conducting research on decision-making at Stanford University while researching doctoral programs in child psychology.
Katherine Lynn Edgecumbe. Katherine is a double major in anthropology and Spanish. She conducted an independent research project on community development in a Latino arts organization in downtown San Jose and presented the results at the 40th Annual Anthropology and Sociology Undergraduate Research Conference. She also served as a community facilitator in both the Unity and Loyola Residential Learning Communities. Before graduating in December 2013, she will intern at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital in the Patient Relations department.
Amelia Evans. Originally from Kailua-Kona, HI, Amelia is graduating with a degree in environmental studies. While at SCU, she was a community facilitator, intern in the Office of Sustainability, and spent a summer volunteering in the Bronco Urban Gardens as a Donovan Fellow. She also studied abroad in Thailand and participated in the Washington Semester Program, during which she interned for the World Wildlife Fund and completed her honors thesis on the Farm Bill. She will spend the next year working as a naturalist for an environmental education organization outside of Seattle.
Connor Gemmell. Connor is a physics major with a chemistry minor. During his undergraduate career, he studied abroad in Seville, Spain, worked in the campus IT department, and researched nerve signal coding with Dr. Birmingham of the Physics Department. Hailing from Eugene, Oregon, his hobbies include playing music and working with computers. In the coming year, he plans to intern at a radiology clinic while applying to medical schools.
Emily Hawley. Emily is a political science major with a minor in Arabic studies. She spent her junior year studying in Amman, Jordan where she also interned for the Jordanian Institute of Diplomacy. Last fall, she studied constitutional law in Washington DC and interned with the Foreign Service Journal. While at Santa Clara she ran her first marathon and accidentally earned a standing ovation in the Benson Dining Center by knocking over all of the salad bowls. Next year, she will be returning to Jordan on a Fulbright Fellowship to study tribal influence on top-down democratization efforts.
Mary Kathryn Karasek. Kathryn, a junior from Cary, North Carolina, has spent her time at SCU studying history and economics, keeping track of the budget for the 2013 Solar Decathlon House, and exploring the wonders of California. She spent her summers working on the Solar Decathlon and visited Spain in the summer of 2012 to study and learn from the European competition. Her history paper, "Progress and Poison: Environmental Destruction in Japan" was accepted to the regional Phi Alpha Theta history conference and won SCU's Redwood Prize. She plans to work in the financial sector before pursuing a graduate degree in economics or business.
Katherine Kennedy. Katherine is a psychology major with a minor in economics. She studied abroad in South Korea at Yonsei University, and served as an Arrupe partnerships volunteer throughout her SCU career. She enjoyed taking voice lessons with Professors Kromm and Cromer. For her honors thesis, she investigated the effects of group singing on compliance with patients at an Alzheimer's Activity Center. It was there that she grew to understand her vocation. She plans to continue her education at the USC Davis School of Gerontology.
Eric Kittlaus. Eric is a physics and math dual major and a German studies minor. For the past three years, he has been involved in research projects with Dr. Chris Weber and Dr. Jennifer Woolley, pursuing his loves of science and entrepreneurship. With Dr. Weber, he published two articles in peer-reviewed journals. While at SCU, Eric started Calcblog, a math website for high school students, and has published a book on test preparation. Next year, he will be pursuing a PhD in Applied Physics at Yale University.
Tyler Knapp. Tyler's pathway "Food, Hunger, Poverty, and the Environment" introduced her to the writings of Timothy Morton and Arne Naess on "ecological thought." Her sculptures and research for her two majors, art history and studio art, as well as her Education and Outreach internship at the Forge Community Garden, allowed her to explore her interest in ecology on a personal level. After graduation, Tyler will move to San Francisco, travel, and volunteer at urban gardens. She will eventually pursue a master's degree in Education and Art.
John Mark Kreikebaum. John Mark is a physics major with a minor in mathematics. He is a hands-on learner and likes seeing projects come to fruition. For his senior honors thesis he set up a quantum optics lab for future students. He studied abroad in Freiburg learning German and participated in intramural soccer throughout college. He also maintains a website where he displays and sells his photographs. Next year, he will continue research developing dark matter detectors at Stanford University before applying to PhD programs in physics.
Nicholas Kumamoto: Nick is a junior math major with a minor in physics. While at Santa Clara, he has done research in module theory, a branch of abstract algebra. He is also a professional theatrical lighting designer, having designed for many shows at SCU as well for local theatre companies in the area. After graduation, he plans to continue to pursue his interest in math as well as in theatre.
Kelly Lamble. Kelly, a double major in finance and psychobiology, has served as captain of the women's tennis team for the last two years, helping the team to its first ever conference title. She was also the SCU student-athlete representative to the West Coast Conference. Her honors thesis focused on reform in the psychiatric drug industry. Last summer, she interned in the finance department at Lockheed Martin. In July, she will join Brownson, Rehmus & Foxworth as a wealth management analyst.
Ly Mai Le. Mai is a biochemistry major who worked on bio-organic chemical research with Dr. Michael Carrasco. She served as co-editor of the volunteer newsletter at O'Connor Hospital and, to further her interest in Japanese language and culture, served as the public relations officer for the Japanese Student Association. Mai plans to apply to dental school after graduation.
M. I. Madrone. M.I. is a computer science major who came to SCU as a transfer student from Cabrillo College, where they tutored math and physics and studied abroad in Argentina. A homeschool graduate always hungry for knowledge, they have been in college courses year-round for eight years, breaking only to couch-surf through Germany in the summer of 2009. In their spare time, they volunteer for the Triangle Speakers, an organization working to educate the community about lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender issues. This year they will begin a career in the high-tech industry.
Lindsey Nguyen – Lindsey is an English major and general business minor. She is a LEAD Scholar and served as a peer educator in English classes for two years. As an immersion trip participant, she volunteered in churches and dining halls in San Francisco's Tenderloin District. She studied abroad in London, where she also interned at an independent film studio as a marketing specialist. Her internship experience at the Lucile Packard Foundation for Children's Health, however, inspired her to pursue a career advancing cancer treatment with Varian Medical Systems in Palo Alto.
Mary Nguyễn. Mary, a double major in liberal studies and sociology, worked as a research assistant under Dr. Barbara Burns, director of the Liberal Studies Program. She presented her sociology capstone paper on the effects of school programs on school crime rates at the 40th Annual Western Undergraduate Research Conference. She has taught students from kindergarten to high school in Catholicism, English, and math. Following graduation, Mary plans to attend SCU's Graduate School of Education to earn a master's degree in education and a teaching credential.
Quynh Nguyen. Quynh is a mathematics major with a minor in urban education. Born in Vietnam and raised in the Bay Area, Quynh aspires to become a high school math teacher and to fulfill her goal of making a difference in students' lives and sharing her love for math. Her paper, "New Integer Sequences Arising from Three-Period Folding Numbers," co-authored with Professor Jean Pedersen, was recently submitted for publication. Next year, Quynh will enter SCU's teaching credential program as a Noyce Scholar.
Kevin Oliver. Kevin is a double major in economics and political science. As a research assistant to Dr. Lawrence Nelson, he worked on a paper about the ethical considerations of controversial medical treatments for the developmentally disabled. Kevin also competed for Santa Clara's cross country and track teams. He holds the school records for the 5000 and 10,000 meter distances and in 2013 became only the second Bronco in school history to qualify for the NCAA West Regional Meet. Kevin will attend the University of Chicago Law School.
Victor Republicano, III. Victor, a classical studies major, spent six weeks last summer studying over 100 ancient sites in Greece. He was also selected to be the Panetta Congressional Intern representing SCU in Washington, DC last fall. When he wasn't busy studying Ancient Greek and Latin, or rooting for the New York Yankees, he spent his time playing intramural softball, working for the Alumni Association, and coaching high school baseball. Next year, Victor will pursue a master's degree in Classical Philology at the University of Arizona.
Whitney Reynier. Whitney is a biology and environmental science double major. She worked as an undergraduate researcher with SCU's Biology Department, studying the effects of climate change on willow beetles in the Sierra Nevada. Whitney co-founded an environmental science and art education program for low-income students in San Jose, worked as community facilitator in Dunne Hall, and completed the Portland Marathon last fall. She studied abroad for an entire year, exploring Argentina, Chile, and the Galapagos Islands. Whitney will be working with the Nature Conservancy this summer; she aspires to work as a conservation and/or restoration biologist.
Dominic Rios -- Dominic is a history major with a minor in political science. During his sophomore and junior years, he served as a community facilitator in the ALPHA Residential Learning Community. This year, he was appointed as assistant resident director. Additionally, he has worked in the Leavey Athletic Center Equipment Room and was promoted to student-supervisor for this academic year. Next year, Dominic will begin teaching in San Diego with the Teach for America program.
Emily Robinson. Emily is a junior biochemistry major. She runs on the cross-country and track teams and was named to the WCC All-Academic First Team. She volunteers as an EMT for SCU Emergency Medical Services and serves as the squad's Training Director. Emily spent the past summer in South Africa, conducting field research on perceptions of tuberculosis among men and women living in Mukoma Village. Emily is currently working with Dr. Hess in the Biology Department, researching the genetic basis of stress tolerance in yeast as a model for explaining the causation of disease risk in humans.
Jonathan Salim. Jon is a double major in economics and political science, with a minor in international business. He has worked at the Jesuit Residence and the Ignatian Center throughout his four years at SCU. He also conducted an independent research project on the relationship between natural resources and armed conflict. After graduation, Jon will take a year to work before attending a graduate program in political science or economics.
Christiane (Mimi) Sanicola. Mimi, an economics and environmental studies double major, has pursued her passion for the environment through her work as the Senator for Sustainability on student government as well as through her internship with SCU's Office of Sustainability. She has also served as the president of the Equestrian team for two years and this past year received third place in all of Northern California for academy equitation. Mimi will be working with an environmental consulting firm in the coming year while applying to law schools.
Joanne Santomauro. Joanne is an English major with a specialization in teaching. As a Canterbury Fellow of the English Department, she wrote a thesis on the practice of tracking in secondary schools. This year, she also served as the president of Sigma Tau Delta, the English Honors Society. She studied abroad in Barcelona, where she taught English at a public high school. Joanne will be moving to Detroit to join Teach for America and earn a master's degree in Urban Pedagogy at the University of Michigan.
Rica Santos. Rica is a double major in political science and environmental studies. She worked as a writing partner at the HUB and served as the Multicultural Center representative and co-chair of Barkada, SCU's Philippine Student organization. Last fall, she studied international environment and development at American University through the Washington Semester Program. This summer, Rica will travel to Nicaragua under an undergraduate research grant before moving to Washington, DC to work for the National Council for Science and the Environment.
Jenna Saso. Jenna, a native of Morgan Hill, CA, is an economics major with a minor in international business. She served as student body president and worked to facilitate campus-wide collaboration and reinvigorate Bronco traditions. Jenna was heavily involved in student government and other areas of student life, serving as an orientation leader, a Magis Leadership Retreat facilitator, and an Alumni Association assistant over her four years. After graduation, Jenna will pursue a career in business with Stryker Endoscopy.
Aven Satre-Meloy: Aven will graduate with a double major in political science and environmental studies and a minor in International Studies. Aven was a Hackworth Fellow with the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics where he worked with faculty and students to implement an honor code at SCU. A two-time participant in the SCU Baja Program, Aven wrote his Honor's Thesis about his experiences in Baja California Sur. This summer Aven will work as a communications fellow with Mosaic, a clean energy investment start-up, and in the fall he will travel to Turkey to teach English as a Fulbright Fellow.
Erik Schaumann. Erik is graduating with a major in chemistry and a minor in economics. While at SCU, he conducted research with Dr. Fuller in the Department of Chemistry and was a teaching assistant for the Organic Chemistry laboratory component. He was also president of the da Vinci Community Council for one year, and he played as a percussionist with the University Orchestra, University Concert Band, and Pep Band. Next year, he will be taking additional courses while applying to PhD programs in Chemistry.
Meggan Sisto. Meggan is graduating a year early with a degree in psychology and a minor in creative writing. She has served as a student assistant for the math department as well as the public relations officer for Psi Chi. For the past year, she has been working with Dr. Kahan in the Sleep & Cognition Lab studying the features of lucid and non-lucid dreams. Meggan will have a work of creative nonfiction published in the first issue of the literary magazine Papino. After graduation, she will continue work on her baking blog and acquire work experience in the field of psychology.
Kyra Sjarif. Hailing from Jakarta, Indonesia, Kyra is a junior majoring in psychology and French with a studio art minor. She has conducted research with Dr. Tracey Kahan on the relationship between the menstrual cycle and dreaming. As a Donovan Fellow, she spent a summer teaching art and English at Narayan Seva Children's Home in Bali. While studying abroad in Paris, she interned at a nonprofit organization, Personimages, that promotes the arts for the mentally handicapped. She currently works as academic advisor in the Psychology department and French translator for the de Saisset Museum. She enjoys singing, traveling, yoga and meditation.
Nicholas Staib. Nick, a native of the Bay Area from Newark, California, is a junior and a double major in psychology and political science. At SCU, he has been involved in Campus Ministry and served a liturgy intern for proclamation ministry for the past two years. This summer, he will be an intern in the office of Councilmember Sam Liccardo for the City of San Jose. During his senior year, Nick will be the Events Coordinator officer for Psi Chi and he will serve as the Liturgical Coordination Intern for Campus Ministry
Amanda Taylor. Amanda is a mathematics and economics double major. She worked as a mathematics and chemistry tutor on campus, as well as a research assistant for Professor Ifcher in the Economics department. Her current research project, which also served as her honors thesis, examines the impact of the Great Recession on the subjective well-being of individuals approaching retirement age. In the fall, Amanda will begin working for LitiNomics, a consulting firm located in Mountain View, CA.
Shannon Thomas. Shannon graduates with a degree in psychology. She has worked as a teaching and research assistant in SCU's Sleep and Cognition Lab, as an experimenter in London's leading neuropsych department, and as an intern in psychiatric wards in Los Angeles. These experiences fostered her interest and passion for psychology, inspiring her to attend graduate school to become a clinical psychologist. She would like to thank her loving and supportive parents and friends, whose belief in her throughout this journey makes such achievements possible.
Elizabeth Wassmann. Liz is an English major and anthropology minor from Glenview, IL. Throughout her time at Santa Clara, Liz has been involved with numerous organizations, working as a reporter at The Santa Clara student newspaper, a retreat leader with the campus ministry program, an event manager at the Locatelli student center and an editorial intern at Santa Clara Magazine. She spent a quarter abroad in Rome and a summer in Indonesia with the Global Fellows program working with a non-profit on energy-efficiency issues. She currently interns with Zuckerberg Media in Menlo Park.
Nicolas Zavala. Nicolas is a biology major with a Spanish Studies minor. Coming from Chicago, he was shocked to find himself spending summers in the high Sierra Nevada studying the effects of climate change with Professor Elizabeth Dahlhoff. During the school year he was a laboratory assistant performing biochemical and molecular analyses, tutoring his peers for the Biology department, and serving as vice president of the Biology Club. After graduation, Nic will prepare for the MCAT and apply to medical schools.
Nicole Zona. Nicole is graduating with a double major in public health science and psychology. She grew up in Clinton, New Jersey and studied abroad in Rome. She has done research on the biological effects of stress during adolescence with Dr. Saxton of the Biology Department. In addition, she has conducted research on the social effects of stress in Vietnamese adolescents with the psychology department at UC Davis. She is a member of Alpha Kappa Psi business fraternity and plans on pursuing a joint-master's degree in business and public health.
Mackenzie Zorkin. Mackenzie is a triple-major in biology, anthropology, and public health. A native of Medina, WA, she studied abroad in Dresden, Germany. She has worked as a volunteer EMT for the last two years and as an Organic Chemistry tutor on-campus. She spent four spring breaks abroad setting up medical clinics with SCU Global Medical Brigades, serving as club president for one of those years. Mackenzie has also done HIV/AIDS education research in Ghana. She intends to apply to medical schools after taking time off to work as an ER scribe and dabble in some cooking.