McNair Cohort 2025

Karen Agustin Paz
Psychology Major
Neuroscience Minor
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Laura Villasana
Research Project: Cilengitides effects on MFGE8

John Abed
Mechanical Engineering Major
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Elliott Gall
Research Project:  Exploring the Potential for Resuspension of Particle-bound PAHs From Cotton Cloth Exposure to Wildfire Smoke

Morrison Atlas
Black Studies Major
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Kiara Hill
Research Project:  An Autoethnographic Study on Black American & African Diasporic Grief and Mourning
 

Jasmin Alvarez
Anthropology Major
Faculty Mentor:  Dr. José Padín
Research Project:  TBD

Cece Austin
Psychology Major
Sociology Minor
Faculty Mentor:  Dr. Dara Shifrer
Research Project: Stigma, Disability, and Belonging: How Does Disability Impact Undergraduate College Students?
 

Davika Dige
Public Health:  Pre-Clinical Major
Faculty Mentor:  Dr. Leslie Fuller
Research Project: Menstrual Blood-Derived Stem Cells: A Less Invasive Approach for Stem Collection and Therapy

Sonia Fernandez Lopez
Social Work Major
Faculty Mentor:  Dr. Jessica Rodriguez-Jenkins
Research Project: Empowering Homeless Youth: The Role of Direct Cash Transfers in Supporting Independent Living

Keanna Garcia Andrade
Chicanx/Latinx Studies Major
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Martin Alberto Gonzalez
Research Project: Early Intervention, Lasting Impact: How Culturally Responsive Pedagogy Empowers Latinx Students

Christina Jenkins
Social Work Major
Faculty Mentor:  Dr. Shawn Smallman
Research Project: Climate Change Causing Rising Sea Levels: The Disappearance of the San Blas Islands, and the Guna People's Fight for Cultural Continuity

Annabel Jensen
Biology and Psychology Majors
Neuroscience Minor
Faculty Mentor:  Dr. Angela Ozburn
Research Project: Brain Regions Engaged in Binge-like Drinking in High Drinking in the Dark line 1 (HDID-1) mice
 

Tuesday Kirby Kahl
Applied Health and Fitness for Special Populations Major
Neuroscience Minor
Faculty Mentor:  Dr. Matt Lattal
Research Project: Noggin Bonks and Neurogenesis: Location of Impact Implications on Neurogenesis in Rodent Model TBIs
 

Ryan Lincoln
Public Health Service Administration Major
Psychology Minor
Faculty Mentor:  Dr. Richard Dozal-Lockwood
Research Project: Framing Trans Identity: A Media Analysis of Anti-Trans Violence, 2016-2025

 

Jennifer Logan
Psychology And Indigenous Nations Studies Majors
Neuroscience &  Indigenous Traditional Ecological and Cultural Knowledge (ITEK) Minor
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Tyler Cornelius
Research Project: Psychological Ethnobotany & The Loneliness Epidemic
 

Malaya Lualhati
Mathematics Major
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Kyle Ormsbyk
Research Project: Equivariant Combinatorics

Sharif Moonlight Maddox
Psychology Major
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Frodo Okulam
Research Project:  The Collective Impact of Physical Activity Somatic Therapy and Nature-Based Spirituality (PASTANS) on Individuals Recovering from Substance

Nico Morrelli
Geology Major
Space and Planetary Sciences Minor
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Melinda Hutson
Research Project: Examination of Two Atypical Carbonaceous Chondrites

Michelle Phan
Health Service Administration Major
Business Administration Minor
Faculty Mentor: Nhu To-Haynes, MPA H
Research Project: Exploring the Link Between Folic Acid Intake and Perinatal Depression Among Low-Income Mothers
 

Xochitl Quetzal
Biology Major 
Chemistry Minor
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Daniel J. Ballhorn
Research Project:  The Effects of Cultural Fire on Soil Biodiversity
 

 Nori Redmond
Data Science and Public Health Majors
Computer Science and Mathematics Minors
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Dorcas Ofori-Boateng
Research Project:  The Mental Health Effects of Technology Use in Education Among Adolescents
 

Nadeem Sadek
Mechanical Engineering Major
Electrical Engineering Minor
Faculty Mentor: Dr.  Raúl Bayoán Cal
Research Project: Freezing Processes and Dynamic Contact Line for Imparting Water Droplets in Microgravity

Esteban Salgado
English and History Majors
Medieval and Early Modern Studies Minor
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Alexis Butzner
Research Project:  TBD

Nathan Sjullie
Electrical Engineering Major
Faculty Mentor: Dr. David Burnett
Research Project: Signal Processing of Ecologically-Significant Signals for Transient Bedload Characterization
 

Olivia Smith
Political Science Major
Psychology Minor
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Joshua Eastin
Research Project: Dammed if You Do: Understanding the Socioeconomic Impacts of Hydropower Development on Indigenous Communities in the Pacific Northwest
 

Irene Stafford
Conflict Resolution Major
Psychology Minor
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Molly Wallace
Research Project: Dialogue Across Differences: Understanding the Impact of Relationship Building, Through an Inter-faith Facilitated Dialogue Between Church Leaders With Far-reaching Opposing Views

Phyo Theingi
Biology with Honor Major
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Anupriya Agarwal
Research Project: Identifying the Mechanisms of resistance to Venetoclax + Azacitidine in Acute Myeloid Leukemia
 

Jose Valencia
Social Work Major
Child Youth and Family Studies Minor
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Jessica Rodriguez-Jenkins
Research Project:  TBD

Maria Vazquez Parra
Biology Major
Chicano/Latino Studies Minor
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Melissa Patiño-Vega
Research Project: Regional Differences in Healthcare Experiences: A Comparative Study of Latinxs in Portland and Los Angeles

Jisselle Vazquez Parra
Biology Major
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Cristina Herrera
Research Project: Dual Lenses: Deportation and Family Separation Through Mainstream U.S. Media and Latinx Social Media Perspectives

Jae Viles-Erdelt
Environmental Sciences Major
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Max Nelson-Pincus
Research Project: Disenchanting Smokey the Bear: A Look At The Perspectives On Fire from 1850 - 1950 In Oregon

Kooper Wilson
Arts And Letters and German Majors
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Moshe Rachmuth
Research Project: Tracing the Freudian Animal in Moses and Monotheism
 

MCNAIR ALUMNI