Commencement

College of Ethnic Studies 

Micaella Ann Calvo
B.A., Asian American Studies; Race, Ethnicity and Health

As a daughter of immigrants, Micaella Ann Calvo has always taken her family and ancestors’ stories everywhere she goes as she navigates the world. From early on, Calvo understood the power that education holds as a form of liberation. That drove her zealousness in pursuing ethnic studies and teaching, cultivating the classroom into a space of safety, critical thinking and love.

While at SFSU, Calvo provided resources and referrals to the campus community at the Associated Students Women’s Center. Now the center’s director, she facilitated semester-long internships and hosted events all under the mission to provide support to misogyny-affected communities at SFSU. Along with participating in the Pilipinx American Collegiate Endeavor, Calvo has served her community through her time in Pin@y Educational Partnerships. Serving as a leadership coordinator and teacher, she taught Filipino American Studies at Phillip and Sala Burton High School, building meaningful relationships rooted in mentorship, care and trust, while fostering a classroom environment rooted in ethnic studies.

Ethnic Studies represents more than a degree Calvo earned in her undergrad career: It is something she plans to take with her as she continues her pursuit of serving youth and her community. Following graduation, she plans to gain experience as a classroom teacher and will further develop her skills outside of the Bay Area, expanding to the East Coast. She will also apply for teacher credential and Master of Arts programs in Education. Her long-term goal is to become an Ethnic Studies professor, where she can empower students through culturally relevant pedagogy, critical thinking and a deeper understanding of history, identity and resistance.

Isabella Esperanza Martinez-Bernal 
M.A., Ethnic Studies

Isabella Esperanza Martinez-Bernal is a second-generation Chicana from Los Angeles raised in a blended household by two public school educators. Her passion for ethnic studies stems from growing up in the classrooms with her parents alongside their students.

She first graduated from SFSU in spring 2024, earning a B.A. in Communication Studies and Race and Resistance Studies with Cum Laude honors. Rooted in intentional and radical engagement with the campus community and the community at large, she is a proud member and alumna of the General Union of Palestine Students (GUPS), Movimiento Estudiantil para la Liberación de Las Americas de San Pancho (MELA) and Sigma Lambda Gamma National Sorority Inc.

With a focus on advocacy work, Martinez-Bernal is completing her second term as the vice president of Internal Affairs for the Associated Students Inc. Board of Directors, serving the diverse student body of SFSU. Martinez-Bernal’s research for her thesis focuses on the intersection of Chicana and Latina girlhood and student organization/leadership. Her plans after graduation include moving back to Los Angeles to pursue jobs in higher education and applying to Ph.D. programs.

College of Liberal & Creative Arts 

Isabelle Luise Cruz Sena
B.A., French

Isabelle Luise Cruz Sena earned her B.A. in French with Summa Cum Laude honors, completing her degree in just three years while appearing on the Dean’s List every semester and working full time as a certified nursing assistant. Deeply engaged in both language study and health care, Sena brings exceptional cross-cultural awareness and empathy to her work, further enriched by her study-abroad experience in Paris and her volunteer service with Global Medical Brigades in Guatemala.

Now a patient care assistant at the Mission Bay Surgical Center at University of California, San Francisco, Sena combines intellectual rigor with substantial clinical experience. A graduate of the Class of 2025, Sena was selected as a 2026 undergraduate hood recipient. She is set to begin Columbia University’s prestigious Master of Science in Nursing program — an achievement that reflects both her academic excellence and her longstanding aspirations.

Sena is especially eager to continue integrating her interests in language, nursing and medicine as she takes this next step in her career. Through her academic distinction, resilience and commitment to service, Sena represents the very best of SFSU’s graduates.

Trinh Lê
MFA, Creative Writing

Trinh Lê is a lesbian poet, artist and educator of Vietnamese origin. They are a Marcus Recruitment Award recipient and the 2025 – 2026 Poetry Coalition fellow at the SFSU Poetry Center. They are one of nine aspiring literary leaders across the nation to receive the yearlong Academy of American Poets fellowship to support their career development.

Trinh collaborated across disciplines at SFSU, exhibiting their concrete poetry in the School of Art and starring in an experimental documentary with their original poetry in the School of Cinema. They have been a featured poet at readings across the Bay Area and have taught “The Craft of Poetry” and the “Art of Revision” courses to Creative Writing majors.

Trinh received the 2025 Black Mountain College Award from the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics for their concrete poem, made in homage to the wire sculptures of nationally recognized San Francisco artist Ruth Asawa. Trinh was nominated for the 2024 Pushcart Prize Anthology and was a finalist for the Brett Elizabeth Jenkins Poetry Prize. In 2023, Trinh was featured in the Asian Art Museum for the “Bernice Bing: Open Call” exhibition.

Trinh is a core volunteer and community archivist at the Bay Area Lesbian Archives in Oakland. They have conducted research with the archives of Bernice Bing, Etel Adnan and Theresa Hak Kyung Cha, exploring the nature of Bay Area women’s art and poetry in the 1970s.

Trinh received their B.A. in Political Science from the University of California, Berkeley, where they were an undergraduate poetry fellow at the Arts Research Center. Trinh is the eldest of three daughters born in Berkeley to two Vietnamese immigrants, who, through their perseverance and sacrifices, make Trinh’s poetry possible.

Graduate College of Education 

Emma Holland
B.S., Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences; Molecular Biology

Emma Holland started college in Massachusetts, passionately pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry. After a couple of life’s twists and turns, she found herself back home in the Bay Area working at Wings Learning Center, a school for kids with autism. There, she discovered a new passion in supporting her nonspeaking students and loved encouraging their ability to express themselves in meaningful ways. A semester after enrolling at SFSU as a Biology major, she added Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences as her second major, feeling more fulfilled by helping her students than she ever had at a lab bench.

Holland dedicated time to multiple corners of the field of speech language pathology. Since working at Wings, she has become a certified home care aide, providing in-home respite care to children with autism. She also worked in the Belmont-Redwood Shores School District as a substitute paraprofessional, helping students with disabilities. Her recent volunteer experiences include interning in a pediatric speech clinic with a focus on childhood apraxia of speech, as well as co-facilitating a conversation group for adults with aphasia through the Gray Matter Lab at SFSU.

In the fall of 2026, Holland will continue her journey towards supporting children with speech- and language-related disabilities by beginning a master’s program in Speech Language Pathology at San Diego State University. She hopes to help neurodivergent kids with autism and other support needs gain access to robust and functional communication through a combination of speech production and augmentative and alternative communication.

Jennifer L. Dudziec
M.A., Early Childhood Special Education

Jennifer L. Dudziec is a master’s and teaching credential candidate in Early Childhood Special Education at SFSU. Her interest in the field was piqued with a single community college class at City College of San Francisco in 2019, and it grew into a deep commitment to understanding how young children learn, connect and thrive.

During her final semester as an undergraduate majoring in Adolescent Development at SFSU, she took courses in Special Education that caused her to change the direction of her career. When a professor encouraged her to pursue a master’s degree, Dudziec took the leap. She returned to school with a toddler at home and a clearer sense of direction than ever before.

Dudziec’s commitment to the field has been recognized throughout her academic career, most notably when she was invited to introduce San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie at a State of the City event. She spoke as both an educator and a parent about early learning and family affordability. The experience reminded her how this work belongs in the broader public conversation. That same perspective, as both educator and mother, shaped how she understands child development, not only through research, practice and coursework, but through the lived reality of raising her daughter and welcoming her newborn son this spring.

At the heart of Dudziec’s work is a simple belief: differences are not deficits, children are capable and communicative, and meaningful learning happens through play, observation and genuine human connection. She looks forward to partnering with families, educators and communities to ensure that every young child, regardless of how they develop or where they come from, is met with the support and belonging they deserve.

Graduate Speaker 

Patra Holmes 
M.S. Chemistry (Biochemistry) 
College of Science & Engineering 

A first-generation college student, Patra Holmes exemplifies the transformative impact SFSU can have on an individual. Holmes’ 14-year university journey — marked by determination and perseverance — earned her multiple degrees: first dual bachelor’s degrees (one in Biochemistry, another in Cell and Molecular Biology with a minor in Computer Applications), now a graduate degree in Chemistry with a concentration in Biochemistry and a Graduate Opportunities in Learning Data Science (GOLD) Certificate. 

Holmes discovered her true calling in research. She not only excelled as a scientist, but she became a dedicated mentor and advocate for students who did not initially see themselves as scientists. She created inclusive spaces for students through her work with Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) and the Society for Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS). She also recruited and trained numerous students in biophysics research. \

In her graduate research, Holmes engineered novel protein probes to investigate how molecular crowding affects protein solubility in cells, offering insight into the molecular basis of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease. She also advanced tools for studying cellular biophysics by contributing to the development of a laser-based polarization technique for measuring protein diffusion in living cells. While at SFSU, she earned the Data Science and Machine Learning for Biotechnology certificate, participated in the Promoting Inclusivity in Computing program and has been awarded several scholarships and fellowships. 

College of Health & Social Sciences 

Graduate 
Manuel Lopez 
M.A., Family and Consumer Sciences 

A first-generation college student and child of immigrant farmworkers, Manuel Lopez navigated complex academic systems, financial aid, employment and housing without family guidance. Having experienced food insecurity himself, he understands the importance of community nutrition resources and is dedicated to advocating for and increasing awareness of these programs among his patients. His interest in nutrition began when he realized that his parents, who had chronic diseases like diabetes, did not have access to health care and lacked the financial resources and knowledge to access healthy foods. 

As a Clinical Nutrition undergraduate at UC Davis, Lopez worked multiple jobs, including as a tutor supporting others’ education and as a College Corps fellow collaborating with initiatives to reduce food insecurity and increase access to healthy foods. At SFSU, Lopez completed a 10-month dietetic internship providing nutrition services to at-risk populations. During this time, he worked with Meals on Wheels, a nonprofit organization reducing food insecurity and health disparities, and a hospital providing care for adults and children. Lopez also worked as a dietetic technician throughout the internship and graduate school.

Despite a heavy academic workload, internship hours and employment, Lopez always performed above expectations in internship rotations and was entrusted with higher-level responsibilities than typically given to interns. Lopez’s work addressed the nutritional needs of premature and high-risk infants in a neonatal intensive care unit. His professors say he exemplifies the successful SFSU student, shown through his work ethic, determination, resilience, calm demeanor, humbleness, empathy and passion for working with the underserved. 

College of Science & Engineering 

Denise Louise Steffen 
B.S., Civil Engineering

From the moment she arrived at SFSU, Denise Louise Steffen was determined to do more than just earn a degree. She wanted to find purpose, community and a way to give back. She is a first-generation college student earning her undergraduate degree in Civil Engineering and will be continuing as an SF State Scholar to complete her master’s degree with an emphasis in Structural Engineering. 

She is working with Associate Professor Jenna Wong on a project investigating the structural dynamics of buildings with vegetated roof systems. This cutting-edge research blends sustainability with structural engineering and pushed Steffen to independently study steel design, learn programs for structural analysis and collaborate with industry advisors. She is also conducting sensitivity analyses to assess the performance of these structures under various natural hazard scenarios. Her outstanding research earned her a spot as an SFSU representative at the CSU Research Competition in Humboldt. 

Steffen’s leadership highlights her passion to foster and impact the sense of community on campus. As a student assistant in the Engineering stockroom, she learned the ins and outs of supporting her department behind the scenes. With encouragement from mentors, Steffen became the professional outreach chair for the American Society of Civil Engineers and treasurer for the Engineering honor society Tau Beta Pi, where she has played an integral role in revitalizing the SFSU Alpha Gamma chapter. 

Lam Family College of Business

Undergraduate
Leah Selk
B.A., Labor and Employment Studies 

Leah Selk will graduate Summa Cum Laude with a major in Labor and Employment Studies and a minor in Spanish. Since transferring to SFSU, she has designed an interdisciplinary degree with a focus on social justice, equity and diversity. Through SFSU Abroad, she spent a semester in Buenos Aires in 2024, an experience that deepened her international perspective and commitment to global fairness.

Selk received her A.A. at Peralta Community College, then studied at Sonoma State University before transferring to SFSU. At Sonoma State, Selk conducted interviews to design culturally relevant therapy materials for Latina/o couples. 

After being diagnosed with autism, Selk became passionate about disability awareness on campus. She connected with disability resources at SFSU, which helped her succeed academically and personally. Selk believes her autism has enabled her to view political and social issues from different perspectives. She has pushed to make educational spaces at SFSU more welcoming to students with learning and other differences. 

Selk is a lifelong learner of social justice and actively participates in community events. She understands the significance of community involvement. She has testified before numerous city councils, arguing for a mental health response team and a ban on police holds that cause positional asphyxia, among other things, to better our communities. She remains committed to learning from others. She has also been an LGBTQ activist who has participated in events uplifting the queer community at SFSU and elsewhere through community building and issue amplification. 

Graduate
Phan Quay Su
M.S., Accountancy

Phan Quay Su was born and raised in a small village in Vietnam, where she faced gender inequity. There were limited professional and academic opportunities available to women, especially within higher education. These limitations hindered her growth both academically and professionally. Instead of letting these challenges defeat her, they motivated her to achieve academic excellence, break down barriers and provide greater support to her local community. 

As an international, first-generation college student, Su maintained a high grade point average while balancing multiple leadership roles and extracurricular class activities. While at SFSU, she was the treasurer for Beta Alpha Psi (BAP), an international honor society for accounting, finance and information systems. She actively participated in professional events like weekly BAP technical presentations, Meet the Firms and the BAP Annual Meeting in Las Vegas (2023). 

She volunteered significant hours to the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program for four years, providing free basic tax services to low-income families, individuals with disabilities, the elderly, F-1 and J-1 international students and individuals with limited English proficiency. During her tenure with VITA, she progressed from serving as a volunteer tax preparer to becoming the site manager and site coordinator.

Su was an accounting tutor with the University’s Tutoring & Academic Support Center (TASC), helping students develop a strong academic foundation through effective study strategies. She was the recipient of multiple awards including the International Student/Associated Students Scholarship, the Paul Wiese Memorial Scholarship, the Marcum Student Scholarship Fund and the Martinelli Family Scholarship. 

State Attorney General Rob Bonta 

On April 23, 2021, Rob Bonta was sworn in as the 34th attorney general of California, the first person of Filipino descent and the second Asian American to occupy the position.

Bonta’s passion for justice and fairness was instilled in him by his parents, who served on the front lines of some of America’s most important social justice movements. Instilling in him the lessons they learned from the United Farm Workers and the civil rights movement, Bonta’s parents lit a fire inside him to fight against injustice — to stand up for those who are taken advantage of or harmed. It’s why he decided to become a lawyer — to help right historic wrongs and fight for people who have been harmed. He worked his way through college, graduated with honors from Yale University and attended Yale Law School.

In the State Assembly, Bonta enacted nation-leading reforms to inject more justice and fairness into government and institutions. As attorney general, he sees seeking accountability from those who abuse their power and harm others as one of the most important functions of the job. In elected office, he has taken on powerful interests and advanced systemic change — pursuing corporate accountability, standing up for workers, punishing big polluters and fighting racial injustice.

Tommy Orange

Tommy Orange is the New York Times-bestselling author of the 2018 novel “There There” (Alfred A. Knopf), a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. His debut novel chronicled the fictional lives of urban Native Americans living in Oakland. In doing so, his book challenged the monolithic image of Native people. “There There” is a constellation of narratives of 12 characters whose lives all converge at an Oakland powwow and explores themes of identity, authenticity and Native history.

His latest novel, “Wandering Stars,” longlisted for the Booker Prize, was published by Alfred A. Knopf in February 2024. This novel, a continuation of his first, follows three generations of a family all the way back to the Sand Creek Massacre of 1864 and later to the Carlisle Indian Industrial School. His book examines the impact of colonization and forced assimilation through his characters.

His novels have been recognized by several organizations. “There There” won the PEN/Hemingway Award, the National Book Critics Circle John Leonard Prize and the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize and was shortlisted for the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction.

In 2019, he was honored by SFSU’s Department of Creative Writing with the Gina Berriault Award. The award, named after the late author and beloved faculty member, is given to writers who embody Berriault’s love of storytelling and commitment to supporting emerging writers.

Genesis Sorrick

M.A., Philosophy

College of Liberal & Creative Arts

In September 2020, amidst the chaos of COVID-19, the eerie orange sky from raging wildfires and the protests against police brutality, Genesis Sorrick gave birth to her first child. Bringing a human into the world during this time was incredibly daunting. Sorrick responded with her characteristic strength, integrity and clear-sighted optimism. Inspired to understand the world better and envision a brighter future for her daughter, she decided to return to college and complete her B.A. in Philosophy at SF State.

Later, during Sorrick’s first semester as a Philosophy grad student at SF State, she began to experience excruciating pain and debilitating neurological symptoms. Nevertheless, she refused to let desperation consume her. She channeled her energy into understanding her experience and found solace in her academic studies.

She excelled in her courses, writing brilliant research papers, contributing insightfully to discussions and the life of the department, working conscientiously as a teaching assistant and maintaining a 4.0 grade-point average (GPA). Living with chronic pain led Sorrick to her M.A. thesis: a remarkably original, meticulously researched and highly persuasive account of medical gaslighting.

“Philosophy allowed me to ground myself in something other than my pain and focus on envisioning a better world for my daughters,” she said.

Sorrick’s journey has been shaped by additional obstacles. She is a Mexican-born woman and the first in her family to complete a college degree. Also, as a member of the LGBTQ+ community, she came out to friends and family in high school in a primarily right-wing, conservative town. Rather than dissuade her from pursuing her dreams, these experiences helped Sorrick develop the strength and tenacity she has needed to thrive at SF State, raise her children and live with chronic pain. She is a remarkable person, with a strong commitment to enacting positive change, both as a philosopher and a mother.

 

Eddison Jintalan Contreras

B.A., Social Work

College of Health & Social Sciences

Eddison Jintalan Contreras’ social work journey was shaped by his own personal experiences of adversities and witnessing systemic inequities in different systems that he worked in. He is an Air Force veteran from a Filipino immigrant household and a member of the LGBTQ+ community. As a young airman, he worked under the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy during Operation Iraqi Freedom. He felt the tension between embracing his true self and serving the country. While working at a large health care provider, Contreras saw all forms of oppression embedded within the health care system. All these fueled Contreras’ passion for social justice and inspired his educational goals.

During his tenure at SF State, Contreras contributed to both the campus and broader community. He assumed leadership roles within Social Work Advocates for Visions of Empowerment (SWAVE), was the SF State representative to the 23Strong Council — comprising 23 accredited social work programs across California — and was a founding member of the University chapter of the National Society of Leadership and Success. Notably engaged in policy advocacy, Contreras led legislative teams during the annual National Association of Social Workers’ legislative lobby days in Sacramento. He also supported policy initiatives addressing police brutality in the Antioch community.

He is doing a capstone project exploring the correlation between recidivism rates and the mental health diversion program at the Contra Costa Public Defender’s Office, where he serves as an intern.

Contreras is graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Social Work magna cum laude. After graduation, Contreras aspires to pursue a Master of Social Work. His goal is to become a licensed social worker specializing in holistic methodologies for mental health care within marginalized communities. Additionally, he’ll continue engaging in macro-level and political social work initiatives contributing to systemic change and advocacy.

 

Jazz Monique Hudson

B.A., Africana Studies

College of Ethnic Studies

Jazz Monique Hudson, an Oakland native with over 15 years of expertise in youth development, educational arts, social justice and organizational change, epitomizes resilience and commitment to societal transformation. Despite the challenges she faced early in her life as a former foster youth and teenage mother, Hudson has overcome them and is now dedicating her life to being an advocate, artist and educator.



For example, Hudson was involved with organizations like the National Black Women’s Justice Institute, Black Youth Project 100 (where she was a founding member) and the Guardian Scholars Program. She was also a program director and founding member of the EMERGE Reentry Program, which focuses on supporting young women of color reintegrating into society after incarceration and academic pushout. Additionally, Hudson was a victim advocate for the San Francisco District Attorney and has had residencies, workshops and performances at universities like UC Berkeley and Princeton.

Serendipitously, her son’s 17th birthday coincides with the SF State 2024 Commencement, which Hudson says is a reminder of the strength and resilience found in the journey of motherhood. After graduation, she plans to pursue SF State’s Pre-Health Professions Post-Baccalaureate Certificate program, which will help her take the next step toward pursuing a career in health care as an osteopathic doctor specializing in allergy and immunology.

 

Devora Jimenez Domingo

B.S., Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences

Graduate College of Education

Devora Jimenez Domingo, originally from Guatemala, moved to the United States at a young age. Witnessing her Latinx community’s struggles due to language barriers, Jimenez Domingo has dedicated her work to assisting those with limited English proficiency, especially after recognizing the privilege she had being trilingual in English, Spanish and Mayan.

To support her community, Jimenez Domingo enrolled at SF State to pursue a degree in Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences with minors in Education and Special Education. During her time at SF State, she has actively contributed to the Gray Matter Lab, facilitating language therapy for Spanish speakers and promoting inclusivity in educational settings.

Jimenez Domingo also held leadership roles in various student clubs, advocating for cultural and linguistic diversity within the field of speech pathology.

Now preparing for graduate school to become a licensed speech pathologist, she aims to serve marginalized communities, particularly Black, Indigenous and People of Color, by ensuring their identities and linguistic backgrounds are acknowledged and respected in standardized testing and therapeutic practices.

 

Zen Lewis

B.A., International Relations/Political Science

College of Liberal & Creative Arts

In 2019, Zen Lewis’ journey to SF State began with her emigration from Serbia with the vision of achieving the American dream. As an 18-year-old in a new country with no financial support, she faced daunting challenges with housing and food insecurity, while attempting to find full-time employment with limited English fluency and work experience.

Today, Lewis is graduating with a double major in International Relations and Political Science with the highest honors, accompanied by Sigma Iota Rho and Pi Sigma Alpha societal honors. She represents the will and determination of young immigrant women who hail from war-torn nations to forge a new path, both for themselves and their home countries, so that those wars never occur again.

Lewis is a force of nature who speaks three languages, works full time in the wedding industry and serves as managing editor of the International Relations Journal. While earning the Migration and Refugee Studies certificate, she has demonstrated an exemplary work ethic, enthusiasm for global politics and resilience in the face of obstacles.

As president of the International Relations Student Association, Lewis has been a driving force, encouraging her fellow students and others in her community to get involved in domestic and international politics. She has represented SF State at Model United Nations and Model European Union conferences, where she received the Outstanding Head of Government Award. 

Lewis won the David Jenkins Scholarship for Political Activism for her impactful advocacy of student rights in a political uprising. She used her senior thesis to expand the discussion and analysis of new regime changes, using Serbia as a case study. Off campus, she has organized pop-up events for local artists and fundraisers for nonprofits.

After graduation, Lewis plans to seek a full-time position in San Francisco municipal government and pursue a law degree.

 

Meliza Matute

B.S., Business Administration (Decision Sciences/Finance)

Lam Family College of Business

Meliza Matute is a first-generation Salvadoran American student. Her parents came to the U.S. with very little money but impressed on her the importance of hard work and education. Those would be the keys to a successful life, they told her. Growing up in East Palo Alto, she became acutely aware of the differences in the level of safety, quality of education and scarcity of resources between her town and its affluent neighbors Menlo Park and Palo Alto. Thanks to a school transfer program, Matute experienced firsthand just how stark the differences were, filling her with a desire for a more equitable world.

Later, Matute moved to Tracy and was committed to attending SF State despite the distance. She traveled six hours a day on public transportation to complete her degree. She started out as a Finance major to increase her financial literacy. By her second year, she decided to also major in Decision Sciences. She graduates with a 3.94 GPA.

Outside of the SF State classroom, Matute spent her time educating young people about decision sciences. She volunteered with incoming high school freshmen, showing them the real-world application of math in business and how companies use math to make business decisions. She also worked as a student instructor/facilitator for the “Operations Management Supplemental Instruction” course, to deepen student understanding of difficult concepts.

Matute’s education and experience at SF State inspired her to choose a career that will benefit the common good. Knowing that one’s strength reflects that of their community, she aspires to use her financial and data analysis skills to better her community.

 

Loan My Tran

B.A., Mathematics (Mathematics for Teaching)

College of Science & Engineering

Childhood experiences with mathematics, particularly those with her grandfather, made a lasting impact on Loan Tran. Her family emigrated from Vietnam. Growing up, she’d stay with her grandparents while her parents worked. Her grandfather taught her math and made worksheets for her. She’d happily memorize multiplication tables and enjoyed playing strategy games like Connect Four. Surrounded by so much math, she naturally gravitated towards STEM and Mathematics at SF State. In addition to majoring in Mathematics, she completed a minor in Computer Science. She is the first in her family to graduate from college.

Tran conducted original research as an undergraduate even though she initially didn’t know anything about math research. In 2022, she participated in the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute Undergraduate Program. She set out to answer neuroscience-motivated math questions related to discrete math, geometry and computational algebra. For her academic achievements, Tran won the C.Y. Chow Memorial Scholarship, the Pamela Fong Scholarship in Mathematics, the David Meredith and Friends Scholarship and the Halmos Scholarship.

Interested in education, Tran volunteered as a tutor at Mastery Learning Hour and helped students with elementary school to high school-level math. She was also proudly a student assistant in the Department of Mathematics office. In her first “real” job, she enjoyed building relationships with professors and using her problem-solving skills in a new setting. Working there for two years, she even wrote the operations guide for other student assistants.

Next, Tran will pursue a Ph.D. in Mathematics to further explore her field and conduct more research. However, she still has an interest in a possible career as a high school math teacher.

 

Sabreen Imtair

M.A., Ethnic Studies

College of Ethnic Studies

Sabreen Imtair is a seasoned organizer and a prominent figure in the activist community. Throughout her time at SF State, she has also demonstrated being a dedicated scholar in the College of Ethnic Studies.

For example, Imtair serves as a youth organizer with the Arab Resource and Organizing Center, actively participating in movements such as the K – 12 ethnic studies campaign. Over the past six months, she has also played a pivotal role in organizing, mobilizing and fostering community engagement in support of ceasefire in Palestine.

Hailing from a Palestinian family with Bay Area roots, Imtair is a proud product of the region’s public school system and holds the distinction of being the first in her family to attain a college degree.

Her graduate thesis delves into the intricacies of community mobilization and organization within the Arab and Muslim communities in the Bay Area.

 

Joanna (Liyi) Huang

M.A., Education (Secondary Education)

Graduate College of Education

Joanna Huang has had a full circle moment: She’s now teaching at the same school district she graduated from.

At age 13, Huang moved from China to San Francisco, graduating from Francisco Middle School and Washington High School, part of the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD). That’s where she participated in English Learner programs, finding solidarity and community among immigrants from around the world.

After earning a degree in Managerial Economics with a minor in Education from UC Davis, Huang received her single-subject credential in Math from SF State in 2022.

Huang is now back at SFUSD for a different reason: She’s in her second year of teaching seventh grade at James Denman Middle School. This school has served as the site for her field research study, which looked at math participation among seventh graders. The study was partly inspired by her experience getting her credential at SF State, which allowed her to see that students who do not yet feel confident in mathematics can experience greater engagement, confidence, fun and learning through groupwork.

 

Son Hai Nguyen

MBA

Lam Family College of Business

Son Hai Nguyen earned an undergraduate degree in Economics from the National Economic University in Vietnam and gained extensive experience working in the banking industry as a financial analyst and corporate credit manager. In 2017, she relocated to the Bay Area from Vietnam with her spouse and their two young children. Wanting to continue her education, she enrolled in City College of San Francisco (CCSF) and completed an associate’s degree in Finance while maintaining a 4.0 GPA. She served as a member of CCSF’s Associated Students. Later, she decided to pursue an MBA at SF State.

She is “the top-performing student,” according to one of her professors at SF State. Another said she was “extremely prepared, positive and a cheerleader for her classmates.” Her classmates commented on her dedication to her studies, often studying without pause. Nguyen would often take on more than her share of responsibilities during group projects. She provided feedback to teammates to help ensure that their work was of the highest quality.

Throughout her MBA studies, Nguyen actively participated in various activities. In 2023, she joined the Lam Family College of Business Student Ambassador Program. Almost immediately she became a leader among the other ambassadors. She organized and co-hosted events specifically tailored to graduate students, creating an inclusive community with plenty of opportunities for networking.

Nguyen participated in the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) Program at SF State, where she served as an IRS-certified volunteer tax preparer and quality reviewer, assisting individuals with low incomes on their tax returns. Additionally, she was a research/teaching assistant for Management Professor Smita Trivedi and volunteered at the college’s Women’s Emerging Leadership Forum. She has actively supported and engaged in activities of the San Francisco chapter of the Association for Corporate Growth (ACG), fostering connections, collaboration and investment between Vietnamese and American businesses.

 

Su Ilayada Ozcan

M.S., Chemistry (Biochemistry)

College of Science & Engineering

Su Ozcan wants to develop new treatments without side effects. It’s a passion that stems from her early exposure to her grandfather’s battle with cancer. As an undergraduate in Turkey, she explored innovative therapies and gained two years of professional experience working with pharmaceutical companies. With women being relegated to the background and the value placed on science decreasing in her country, Ozcan decided to leave Turkey and pursue her academic goals in the United States.

As an international student at SF State, Ozcan focused on groundbreaking research in enzymology and medicinal chemistry to develop a novel side effect-free treatment for tuberculosis. She published these discoveries in scientific journals. She demonstrated her commitment to making a positive impact beyond the lab by serving as a teaching associate for two years. Accolades for her academic performance and commitment to science include the Henry Bertin Jr. Scholarship, the Agents of Change Build Merck Scholarship, the Bill Plachy TA (teaching assistant) Award and the CSU Trustees Award.

After SF State, Ozcan’s next step is to begin a Chemistry Ph.D. program at the University of Southern California, where she’s already been offered a graduate fellowship. Looking ahead, Ozcan is excited to continue her quest to develop new therapeutics and treatment strategies that will make an impact. She is eager to translate her academic research into practical applications and hopes to eventually establish a pharmaceutical company. Beyond medicine, she aspires to continue being a teacher and create educational opportunities for underprivileged children. She also hopes to provide financial and moral support for others, especially women in science.

 

Monique Scott

MPH

College of Health & Social Sciences

Monique Scott decided to pursue a Master of Public Health (MPH) degree at SF State after seeing structural and systemic health disparities affect her community. She began her career as a social worker, caregiver and care coordinator, assisting people navigating governmental and nonprofit assistance programs and managing medical conditions.

During the pandemic, she became a resource navigator and case manager for individuals exposed to COVID-19. Seeing how disparities impacted marginalized residents, she wanted to make a larger impact. She became interested in the social determinants of health and how prevention programs could more effectively help communities. 

At SF State, she explored her passion for research with the Health Equity Institute. Her assessment of participation of food establishments in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programs (SNAP) in urban university settings significantly influenced a statewide campaign to enhance access to SNAP benefits at CSU campuses.

She also published research on navigating nutrition inequities among pregnant and postpartum mothers and children in BIPOC communities. The Oakland native’s projects also included studies on how urban agriculture can use mutual aid practices and how built environment contributes to the adverse health outcomes of environmental injustices.

While at SF State, she was a Climate Action Fellow, a Graduate Equity Fellow and a President’s Leadership Fellow. She authored, published and presented her research at multiple local and national conferences. She also participated in the University’s Earth Week 2024.

After graduation, she will continue learning and applying her skills in research, writing and coordination to address health equity in the Bay Area. She plans to continue participating in strategies for community and policy-level interventions for marginalized communities of color. She is grateful for the SF State connections that contributed to her accomplishments.