The Institute for Social Transformation’s Building Belonging program is designed to foster student success, increase engagement, and build a greater sense of belonging for under-represented undergraduate students through faculty mentored service-learning and research projects. Click here to learn more about the Building Belonging program.
Watch the 2023 student presentations and read these testimonials from Building Belonging Fellows.
PROJECT: Understanding advocacy around the root causes of migration- Transnational Solidarity in Central America and beyond
FACULTY MENTOR: Amy Argenal, Sociology
Roselyn Gloria
SociologyPROJECT: Venom Lab: Critical Archival & Digital Storytelling Mentorship
FACULTY MENTOR: Lily Balloffet, Latin American and Latino Studies
Marissa
Guzman
Feminist Studies / Latin American and Latino Studies
Miguel Narez Vazquez
DesignationLatin American and Latino Studies / Sociology
Fernanda Ruiz-Riedel
DesignationLatin American and Latino Studies / Politics
Sofia Trigueros Ufford
DesignationAgroecology / Latin American and Latino Studies
PROJECT: Language Comprehension and Cognitive Control
FACULTY MENTOR: Megan Boudewyn, Psychology
Lea Toledo
Cognitive SciencePROJECT: Examining Policies and Practices for Multilingual Learners in Community Colleges: The Case of Adult ESL
FACULTY MENTOR: George Bunch, Education
Xittlali Trejo
Education and PsychologyPROJECT: Laboratory Life and Social Death: The Problem of Diversity in Science and Society
FACULTY MENTOR: James Doucet-Battle, Sociology
Dimitri
Cardona
Sociology
Bhavya
Kallam
Biotechnology &Communications
PROJECT: Building capacity for research on servingness: A student-centered research agenda
FACULTY MENTOR: Rebecca Covarrubias, Psychology
Xitlaly
Reyes
Psychology
Janai Dagdagan
Psychology
Andrew O’Brien
PsychologyPROJECT: Socio-Ecological and Socio-Cognitive Underpinnings of Experiences with Math Stereotypes for Latine Elementary School Students
FACULTY MENTOR: Saskias Casanova, Psychology
Rodela Nirjhar
PsychologyPROJECT: Conexiones Culturales: An examination of belonging and youth participatory action research project with middle school Latine students
FACULTY MENTOR: Saskias Casanova, Psychology
Blandina Mendez
Psychology and Global Community HealthPROJECT: Tracking Colonial Deportations in South America
FACULTY MENTOR: Jeff Erbig, Latin American and Latino Studies
Anaí Rosales
Latin American and Latino Studies
Lourdes Ornelas
Latin American and Latino Studies and PoliticsPROJECT: Mapping farmland investment in the Mississippi Delta
FACULTY MENTOR: Madeleine Fairbairn, Environmental Studies
Junuh Tejeda Nussman
Benjamin Pa
PROJECT: Exploring the local politics of contested legitimacy and transformative climate urbanism: A comparative examination of Santa Cruz, San Jose, and San Francisco
FACULTY MENTOR: David Gordon, Politics
Crystal Solis
PoliticsPROJECT: Mapping Community Life: Using StoryMaps to Explore Histories of Resilience in the Central Andes
FACULTY MENTOR: Carla Hernández Garavito, Anthropology
Jennifer
Xilonzochilt
Anthropology & Sociology
Lily
Barajas
Anthropology & LiteraturePROJECT: The impact of exchange rate changes on global banks
FACULTY MENTOR: Grace Weishi Gu, Economics
Ravneet Kaur
Economics
Sinclair Madden
Economics
Rachel Cimino
Business Management EconomicsPROJECT: Disaster rebuilding costs and climate adaptation and mitigation: are we building back better?
FACULTY MENTOR: Galina Hale, Economics
Simran
Gaheer
Economics
Uvini
Ratnayake
Economics and Mathematics Combined Major, Minor in Technology and Information Management
Gohan
Garcia
EconomicsPROJECT: Ant Community Ecology in Tropical Rainforest Restoration
FACULTY MENTOR: Karen Holl, Environmental Studies
Ariam Asmelash
Marine Biology
Alyssa Hosmer
MCD BiologyPROJECT: Development of Social Preferences Based on Political Partisanship
FACULTY MENTOR: Hyesung Grace Hwang, Psychology
Genevieve
Greco
PsychologyPROJECT: Bilingual ERP Replication Project
FACULTY MENTOR: Liv Hoversten, Psychology
Lupita Mercado
Cognitive Science
Chris
Flores
Cognitive ScienceAeryn Armstrong-Azhar
Cognitive Science & Applied LinguisticsPROJECT: The Limits of Reforming Punishment: Youth Voices on the Structural Absence of Care
FACULTY MENTOR: Rekia Jibrin, Education
Lizeth Peña Sanchez
Education, Democracy and Justice; Latin American and Latino Studies/Sociology combined major
Elizabeth Peña Sanchez
Latin American and Latino Studies/Sociology combined majorPROJECT: Public Perspectives on Carbon Dioxide Removal Technologies
FACULTY MENTOR: Sikina Jinnah, Environmental Studies
Valeria Cuevas
Environmental StudiesPROJECT: Nutritional status and environmental enteric dysfunction in children
FACULTY MENTOR: Audrie Lin, Microbiology and Environmental Toxicology and Global and Community Health
Evelin
Vazquez
Global and Community HealthPROJECT: Building Belonging in Climate Change Impacts and Mitigation
FACULTY MENTOR: Michael Loik, Environmental Studies
Graciela Chavez
Environmental Studies and BiologyHannah Downing
Environmental StudiesPROJECT: Attaining Affirmative Action Goals in Public Procurement
FACULTY MENTOR: Justin Marion, Economics
Elina Singh
Economics and MathematicsPROJECT: Defining Culturally Competent Perinatal Care for Indigenous Farmworkers
FACULTY MENTOR: Christie McCullen, Sociology
Jennifer Rojas Heraz
SociologyJennifer Xilonzochilt
Sociology and AnthropologyPROJECT: Rape Counseling and Crisis Services for Latinas at HSIs and emerging HSIs
FACULTY MENTOR: Jaimie Morse, Sociology
Airam
Coronado
Sociology and Political Science
Dana Alvarez Hernandez
Psychology and AnthropologyPROJECT: Watsonville is in the Heart: Mapping a Recuperative History of Filipino Farmworkers
FACULTY MENTOR: Steve McKay, Sociology
Julie Fintamag
HistoryPROJECT: Into the Depths: Examining the Deep-History of Fishing
FACULTY MENTOR: Eréndira Quintana Morales, Anthropology
L Caine
Anthropology
Jaye Saad
AnthropologyPROJECT: Anthropology and the Co-Production of Medical Knowledge
FACULTY MENTOR: Megan Moodie, Anthropology
Kylie Flanagan
Sociology/Disability StudiesPrunella Crombie Presberg
Feminist StudiesPROJECT: Immigrants and the Welfare State in South America
FACULTY MENTOR: Sara Niedzwiecki, Politics
Chris Knight
Politics
Alexandra Mendes
PoliticsPROJECT: The origins of the Oyo Empire war horses (Ede-Ile, Nigeria) – an isotope approach
FACULTY MENTOR: Vicky Oelze, Anthropology
Elyse Venerable
AnthropologyPROJECT: Educational Equity in Agroecology Curriculum and Programing at UCSC
FACULTY MENTOR: Damian Parr, Agroecology
Sheyna Burns
Sociology and AgroecologyEliana Nunez
Education, Democracy, & JusticePROJECT: Economic benefits of birdwatching tourism in Colombia
FACULTY MENTOR: Natalia Ocampo-Peñuela, Environmental Studies
Olivia Fragiacomo
Environmental StudiesPROJECT: Trans Migrant Life Histories in Iquitos, Peru
FACULTY MENTOR: Justin Perez, Latin American and Latino Studies
Daniel Bautista
Global and Community HealthPROJECT: K-12 Ethnic Studies Pedagogy
FACULTY MENTOR: Josephine Pham, Education
Carlie Floyd
Education, Democracy, and Justice with a minor in Black Studies
Autumn Montez
Intensive Psychology major with a minor in Latin American and Latino StudiesPROJECT: Trade, Imperialism and Environmental Justice in Mexico
FACULTY MENTOR: Ravi Rajan, Environmental Studies
Maya Mendoza
Environmental StudiesPROJECT: Leadership in the Equitable and Ethical Design of STEM
FACULTY MENTOR: Jenny Reardon, Sociology
Micah Sargento Kim
Sociology/History of Art and Visual CulturePROJECT: Sociopolitical Involvement and Well-being in College Students
FACULTY MENTOR: Danny Rahal, Psychology
Narissa Carthy-Dundas
Psychology (intensive), Legal StudiesKyle Ko
NeurosciencePROJECT: Right Livelihood: Connecting Activism and Academia
FACULTY MENTOR: Dave Shaw, Anthropology
Fatima
Hernandez Alatorre
Community Studies
Netra
Yadav
PsychologyPROJECT: Identifying Pathways to Distributive Equity in Marine Protected Area Management in a Changing Climate
FACULTY MENTOR: Katherine Seto, Environmental Studies
Prachiti Sabnis
Skyln Jara
Marine BiologyPROJECT: Labor of Decentralization: Promises and Extraction in the Web3 Field
FACULTY MENTOR: Zoe Zhao, Sociology
