Agustin Guerrero is a political science transfer from Diablo Valley College. He is the son of working-class Latinx immigrants and is himself a first-generation college student. After obtaining his B.A., he plans to attend graduate school to obtain a Ph.D. Agustin has spent his time at Berkeley engaging in hands-on experience with social science research as a Racial Equity Fellow at the Othering & Belonging Institute. He has also immersed himself in the organizing world as an intern at the UC Berkeley Labor Center. More recently, Agustin has earned himself a paid Research...
Adrian Alamo (he/him) is a first-generation, low income, Latino college student at UC Berkeley from Westlake, Los Angeles. He is a 5th year majoring in Computer Science and expected to graduate in Spring 2024. Communities like NavCal, EOP, CS Scholars, and DSP have fueled his determination to break barriers for others by sharing knowledge, resources, and social capital. His journey has taught him the value of hard work, resilience, and the importance of giving back to his community. With a strong work ethic and a hunger for knowledge, his interest lies to bridge the gap for...
NAVCAL Femtor, NAV2CAL Femtor, NAV2CAL Research Coordinator
Alishba Sardar identifies herself as Queer and Muslim. She immigrated from Pakistan to Richmond, Ca, at the age of ten. She is a former foster youth and first-generation college student. At UC Berkeley, Alishba is an Ethnic studies major and is involved in many communities such as Berkeley Hope Scholars, EOP, DSP, and the South Asian, Southwest Asian, and North African Initiative (SSWANA). She is a recipient of The Achievement Award Program (TAAP), Cal Alumni Leadership award, Richmond Promise Scholarship, Student Rising Above, and the James Storer Scholarship. In addition to her...
Jacky Zhao Chen (he/him/his) is a first-year, first-generation, low-income immigrant student studying computer science at Cal. Jacky was born and raised in Honduras (Central America) by Chinese parents making Spanish and Cantonese his first languages. He moved to the United States 8 years ago at the age of 10 and continued school here. In high school, Jacky was the president of Key Club and Captain of the Badminton Team. At Cal, he is a part of many communities on campus such as EOP, NAVCAL, Nav2Cal, Richmond Promise, DSP, CalNerds, and PiE. Jacky is still in the process of figuring out...
Jacqueline "Jackie" Salguera (she/her/ella) is a rising senior majoring in Public Health at Cal. Jackie is a first-generation student, Latinx daughter of Nicaraguan immigrants from Richmond, CA— a community systemized by oppression. Aside from academics, she is a Fiat Lux Scholar, EOP, DSP, NAVCAL/NAV2CAL, and BSP fellow. Jackie has worked with Contra Costa County Public Health Solutions to help prevent substance addiction as well as environmental injustice in her community. After graduating from undergrad. at Cal, Jackie plans on pursuing a master’s in public...
Jessica Allen is a transfer student from City College of San Francisco double majoring in African-American Studies and Social Welfare. She first joined NAVCAL as a student fellow in Spring 2020 and hasn't missed a beat since. She is on an educational path that leads to a Juris Doctorate in Civil Rights law, with the specific intent to serve her communities. As a first-generation, transfer, student parent, Berkeley Hope Scholar & DSP student, Jessica's mission is to pioneer initiatives and policy changes for marginalized pregnant and parenting families. When she became a mother at...
Having abandoned education in the eighth grade, Johnny's (he/him/his) re-entry student experience commenced in 2015. Identifying as a first-generation, formerly incarcerated, transfer student with a background in homelessness and addiction, Johnny is empowered by his lived experience and draws from those experiences to enrich his perspective in academia and excel as a scholar. Since arriving at UC Berkeley in 2019, he has been conducting independent research to examine post-release supervision through the lens of the formerly incarcerated and community corrections...
John Lam (he/him) is a first-generation Chinese-American hailing from Sacramento, California. His life journey has been marked by experiences that have ignited his passion for criminal justice reform, particularly at the intersection of technology and policy. John, who has a background of incarceration, firmly believes in the power of individuals with similar experiences to drive change. He is dedicated to utilizing technology and policy to improve the lives of those affected by the criminal justice system, focusing on areas such as housing, employment, education, and access to...
Prajwala Maharjan (she/her) is a first-generation, low-income, immigrant from Nepal. She is currently a sophmore at UC Berkeley, a fiat lux scholar, a mentor and intern for NAVCAL, and a part of EOP (Educational Opportunity Program). She is an intended Data Science major who plans to work with research and analytics for businesses as well as for international education, in the near future. Prajwala's mentorship and involvement in NAVCAL revolves around her goals to increase educational opportunities and improve educational support for those with the same upbringing as her.
Norma is a first generation, low income student at University of California, Berkeley. She is majoring in Business Administration with an interest in digital marketing and public relations. Norma experienced financial struggles with her family in Los Angeles. Once she arrived at Berkeley, she prioritized finding a community at UC Berkeley and connected with NAVCAL during her freshman year. She learned early on about how to succeed as an underrepresented student from NAVCAL. Afterwards, she took on leadership positions at the Chicanx Latinx Student Development (CLSD) office...
