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Undergraduate Student Profiles

Arley Aguilar-Luna (Rachel Carson '21, Psychology and Latin American Latino Studies)
My name is Arley Aguilar Luna and I come from Santa Rosa, California. I am the oldest daughter of my immigrant parents who came to the United States as teenagers from Mexico.
Walter Arevalo (Porter '22, Computer Engineering)
My name is Walter Arevalo and I am from Santa Clarita, CA. I am the oldest of 2 and the first to go to college in my family.
Nabeela Ariqat (Class of '21, Science)
Nabeela Ariqat's family moved from Jordan to the U.S. one month before 9/11. After facing discrimination and multiple barriers, she found a home at UCSC.
Karoli Clever (Crown '21, Physics (Astrophysics) and Biochemistry & Molecular Biology)
I was born in Bulgaria when it was still behind the iron curtain, my parents fled with me and on foot when I was 5.
Yesenia Jasmin De Alba (Merrill '21, Latin American and Latino Studies)
My name is Yesenia De Alba and I am from Hawthorne, California. Being the second oldest out of four children, I am the first to go to a 4-year University and the first about to receive my bachelor’s degree.
Arcelia Gonzalez Jimenez (College Nine '21, Molecular, Cell, & Developmental Biology)
UC Santa Cruz senior Arcelia Gonzalez Jimenez, who hopes to be a doctor someday, was searching for ways to help with the COVID–19 pandemic.
Taina Morales (Kresge '21, Sociology and Latin American & Latinx Studies)
Being first-gen has influenced me to create programs that help other first-gen students like myself during their application process to their undergrad.
Julian Alexander Narvaez (Cowell '22, History of Art and Visual Culture)
My name is Julian Alexander Narvaez, and I’m an undergraduate in my third year majoring in History of Art as Visual Culture. I’m 21 years old and I’m from Ontario, California but I went to high school in Rancho Cucamonga.
Alejandro Ruelas-Mora (Oakes '21, Intensive Psychology and Sociology with a concentration in GISES)
I am a first-gen Latino transfer student. I came from a family of immigrants, some mixed-status and some are not. I grew up with ADHD and that maneuvered a lot of my early life.
David Sanchez Godinez (Class of '21, Science)
David Sanchez Godinez came to UCSC with a passion for scientific exploration, but adjusting to college life was a challenge. As a first-gen college student, he could not turn to his parents for advice about coping and thriving at a university.
Natalie Stoklosa (Kresge College '21, Psychology and Education)
My name is Natalie Stoklosa and I am from San Diego, California. I am the first person in my family to attend a 4-year university. I plan to pursue a master's degree in Psychology.
Amaris Trujillo (Cowell '22, Psychology and Legal Studies Major with a Minor in Latin American Latino Studies)
My name is Amaris Trujillo and I am from a small rural community near Sacramento, California. I am the daughter of two very hard-working parents from Durango and Guanajuato, Mexico.
Saul Villegas (Porter '21, Art)
I grew up in Avenal, CA a rural town in the Central Valley. Having a creative background in painting and working in a custom frame shop called Artisans allowed me at an early age to understand my skills as an artist.