Isaac Yu (he, him)
isaac.yu@yale.edu

Isaac is a junior in Berkeley College from Garland, Texas. He is a Questbridge scholar majoring in American Studies with a focus in politics. He is a student journalist with bylines in the Yale Daily News, the New Haven Independent and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. He is also a Production & Design editor and Instagram editor at the News. Isaac is in Mixed Company, Yale’s oldest all-gender all genre a capella group. Outside of school, he loves nearly burning himself in the kitchen, laughing with/at his friends, and begrudgingly exercising. You can find him at Starbucks, the AACC or Atticus Market. He is addicted to cappucinos.

Arushi is a junior in Jonathan Edwards College from San Diego, California. On the pre-med track, she’s double-majoring in HSHM (History of Science, Medicine, & Public Health) and English. She’s on the board of the Yale Hunger and Homelessness Action Project, partakes in health advocacy initiatives on and off campus, and conducts research at the Yale School of Medicine. She’s also involved in student journalism with the Yale Herald, the Yale Undergraduate Research Journal, and Distilled. In her ground state, she can be found with coffee and a book at Book Trader, binging any number of comedy specials, or watching sunsets from high places. She really enjoys talking and loves to listen even more, so don’t hesitate to reach out to ask any questions at all, grab a meal, or just take a saunter around New Haven!

Estephanos is a class of 2023 Economics and Mathematics joint major in Berkeley College from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. At Yale, he has served as a research assistant on two projects in the Economics department both exploring the effect of gender and race discrimination on career trajectories/outcomes. Outside of academics, Estephanos has been able to explore his various interests at Yale through his involvement in clubs such as Kitchen2Kitchen and MathCounts, and being a Yale Young African Scholars mentor. In his free time, he loves watching and playing basketball, binge watching pretty much any Netflix show, painting, and playing volleyball.

Lily Dorstewitz (she, her)
lily.dorstewitz@yale.edu

Allison Cho (she, her)
a.cho@yale.edu

Allison is a junior in Davenport College from Chesterbrook, Pennsylvania. She is majoring in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology (MCDB) and hoping to pursue medical school afterwards. As a low-income student, her FGLI mentor inspired her to also become an ASP mentor. She is passionate about including music in her life. She plays the cello in the Davenport Pops Orchestra, Berkeley College Orchestra, and musical pit orchestras. She loves working with the elderly and doing genetics research at the Yale Medical School. To relax, she enjoys doing yoga, going out to eat, and playing just dance. Feel free to reach out with anything big or small.

Alex Taranto (she, her)alex.taranto@yale.edu">​alex.taranto@yale.edu

Enyo is a senior in Davenport College and is from Belchertown, MA. She is currently double majoring in Astrophysics and Film Studies. She is part of UCW and in her free time loves to watch movies, knit, eat, and hang with friends. She’s very excited to be an Academic Strategies Mentor and work with everyone!

Laiba Akhtar (she, her)
laiba.akhtar@yale.edu 

Faiad is a junior in Grace Hopper college, majoring in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental biology and a Global Health Scholar. He represents the great city of Houston, Texas where he grew up (i.e., he is a huge Houston Rockets fan!). He is very active in the First Generation, Low-Income community, where he is involved in Yale FGLI Advocacy Movement and Matriculate, an organization mentoring FGLI high school students. He is passionate about doing research and planning to pursue an  MD/PDH in the future. Outside of class, he loves eating at different restaurants, watching movies, and playing intramural basketball.  He also loves to chat, laugh, and meet new people!

Sandi is a senior in Jonarthan Edwards college majoring in environmental science with a focus on food and agriculture. She primarily grew up in El Monte, CA but also lived in her P’urhepecha and Nahuatl homelands of Mexico. On campus, she is a Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellow, works at the Native American Cultural Center, and dancer for Ballet Folklorico Mexicano de Yale. She’s also learned a lot as a peer liason for La Casa Cultural Center and Conexiones MECha mentor and is excited to help you grow!

Zully Arias (she. her)
zully.arias@yale.edu

Zully is a senior in Silliman College majoring in Statistics & Data Science. She is from Lyndhurst, New Jersey, a small town not too far from NYC. She has an interest in data journalism and is currently working on research geared towards environmental justice. She served as a Production & Design editor for the Yale Daily News and is also a camp counselor for Camp Kesem. In her free time, she likes solving jigsaw & sudoku puzzles, watching reality TV shows, and beating my friends in card games. She’s excited to be a part of the Academic Strategies Peer Mentor team!  

Elena Castro-Oliva (she, they)
elena.castro@yale.edu

Elena is a senior in Branford College, majoring in Architecture with a concentration in Design. She is originally from Greenville, SC, but really considers home to be wherever her avocado plant is. On campus, she serves as Co-Head Peer Liaison for La Casa Cultural and is a member of WORD: Performance Poetry at Yale. She is also currently serving as an assistant to the Yale Dura-Europos Archive (YDEA), where she works to create geospatial maps of the ancient Dura-Europos city and its buildings. She is passionate about urban planning, green infrastructure, and art of all kinds. She would love to chat about anything and everything (especially music, poetry, and the outdoors), so please feel free to reach out!

Michael is a senior in Branford College from Alameda, CA. He is a first-generation low-income student majoring in ER&M and Political Science with a language certificate in Chinese. Outside of classes, Michael is involved with the Asian American Cultural Center, the Chinese American Students Association, Dwight Hall, and Matriculate. He loves to explore local cafes, restaurants, and parks, and is more than happy to give recommendations. Michael is excited to support you in any way that he can as an Academic Strategies Mentor!

Matthew is a senior in Pierson College majoring in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology. He is from a small farm in a rural area outside Clay Center, Kansas. Matthew is a member of the FGLI community, as well as involved in Matriculate. On any given day, Matthew can probably be found drinking coffee and playing video games with his suitemates.

Laine Garber (she, her)
laine.garber@yale.edu

Laine was originally a member of the class of 2022, but after taking a semester off during COVID, she is now proud member of the class of 2022.5. She is majoring in Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology and History of Science, Public Health and Medicine. Laine is also a member of the varsity field hockey team, and as she originally hails from the Greater Philadelphia area, she is a passionate Philly sports fan. When Laine is not on the hockey pitch, in the lab or doing her history readings, she enjoys exploring the outdoors, whether it be hiking, skiing, biking or just relaxing. Laine also whole-heartedly believes that Hopper is the best Res College at Yale. 

Photo coming soon!

Sam is a senior in Branford College from Washington, DC—we are indeed taxed without voting representation in Congress! He is a simultaneous BA/MA student in East Asian Studies, focusing on modern China, and also a RSEE double major, concentrating on Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Along with his studies of classical and modern Chinese, modern Turkish, and Hungarian (you could say he likes to pick the hardest languages in the world and then convince everyone else to be as big of a language nerd as he is), he is an avid anti-Indo Europeanist. He is chiefly interested in the Russian influence in China’s northernmost provinces, the Soviet legacy and pre-Soviet cultural interaction in Central Asia, and fascist, communist, and socialist regimes of the past and present. He also has a keen interest in finding tiny classes with unique professors (ask him about his Slovene professor who picked him up from the airport)! Outside of class, he is a professional tap dancer alongside his identical twin brother and serves as a co-president of Taps. He has served as the choreographer for Steppin’ Out; volunteered with CityStep; worked as a Branford Aide; and has written and edited for Symposia. Of course, one of his passions is napping, and he finds joy in discovering international TV series on Netflix to binge at night.

Katerina is a Senior in Pauli Murray College studying Applied Physics. Katerina is also a member of the Energy Studies Multidisciplinary Program at Yale. Outside of class, she enjoys Physics research, listening to podcasts, and taking long walks. Katerina is a member of the YuQC, the Yale Undergraduate Quantum Computing Group, and the Yale Women in Physics. She is excited to work with students and help them explore different tools and recourses to aid their learning process. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to reach out to her!

Akweley Mazarae Larte (he/him & xe/xem/xyr) akweley.lartey@yale.edu

Akweley Mazarae is a senior Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality studies major also pursuing the Education Studies Certificate. Xe is passionate about making education accessible for students from immigrant communities, low-income students, and students with disabilities. Originally from the Greater Philadelphia Area, Akweley Mazarae loves reading (and sometimes writing) poetry, making playlists, and talking about all things Philly!

Karen is a senior in Benjamin Franklin College and hails from sunny South Florida. She is majoring in Economics and has a love/hate relationship with R. She’s involved with Yale Movement (a K-Pop dance group), the Yale Globalist (international relations magazine), and writes for a few publications in her free time. She enjoys picking up new hobbies, but her go-tos are baking, drawing, and working out. She is looking forward to meeting new people on campus and supporting them as an Academic Strategies Mentor, especially those who are FGLI!

Emme is a senior in Pierson College studying Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and the History of Science, Medicine, and Public Health. She is also pursuing the Global Health Scholars program and following a pre-medical track in hopes of attending medical school. She is originally from Poughkeepsie, NY, but loves New Haven for its plentiful food trucks, coffee shops, farmers markets, parks, and beautiful community! As a first-generation, low income student, she is passionate about health equity and access for marginalized communities and volunteers with a free clinic in the city. She also helps low-income students apply to college through Matriculate and teaches health education in New Haven Public Schools through Yale’s Community Health Educators. Outside of classes, jobs, and extracurriculars, Emme loves to sing, drink coffee, cook tasty vegetarian food, and ride her bike through New Haven.

Sayda is a senior in Davenport College from Northern Virginia. She is majoring in Psychology and is an Education Studies Scholar. As a psychology major, Sayda is a Research Assistant at the Social Cognitive Development Lab at Yale. On-campus, she is very involved with the first-generation, low-income (FGLI) community at Yale, being one of the Head Advising Fellows for Matriculate at Yale, the former sophomore representative for QuestBridge at Yale, an FGLI Student Ambassador for the Yale College Dean’s Office, and an FSY Counselor this past summer! In her free time, Sayda can be found with her friends searching New Haven for the best ice cream, bagels, and pizza! She is looking forward to contributing to the Academic Strategies Program!

Laura Nicholas (she, her)
laura.nicholas@yale.edu(link sends e-mail)

Laura is a senior in Pauli Murray College from Madison, WI. She is majoring in Cognitive Science and is an Education Studies Scholar. On campus, she’s been on the board of Yale Daily News for two years and recently finished up a second advising cycle for Matriculate. She took a spring gap semester to work at an education non profit, and is so looking forward to enjoy lots of coffee and living with friends again back on campus this fall. In her free time, she loves watching reality TV, listening to politics podcasts, and create extremely specific Spotify playlists. Laura is very excited to work with you through the ASP program this year!

Ayanle Nur (he, him)
ayanle.nur@yale.edu(link sends e-mail)

Ayanle is a senior in Davenport College from Denver, Colorado. He is a pre-med majoring in Neuroscience. He is the Vice President of the Black Men’s Union, as well as the Secretary of Black Pre-Health at Yale. He is on the Club Archery team and also serves as an Advising Fellow for Matriculate. He is a QuestBridge scholar and a first-generation low-income college student. Ayanle is also involved with the Yale Muslim Students Association. In his free time, you can find Ayanle playing basketball, board games, or getting boba and hanging out with friends.

Sheri Ofwona (she, her)
sheri.ofwona@yale.edu(link sends e-mail)

Sheri is a senior in Grace Hopper College from Nairobi, Kenya. She explores her wide range of academic interests at Yale by double majoring in Economics and Global Affairs. She also explores her interest in human rights through the Multidisciplinary Academic Program in Human Rights. On campus, you can find her working at the Undergraduate Admissions Office as a recruitment coordinator or dancing on Yale’s first, finest and only step group - Yale Steppin’ Out. She enjoys making Spotify playlists, picnicking and buying novels that seem interesting (whether or not she reads them in their entirety a separate and slightly complicated conversation). Sheri hopes to help other students find creative and sustainable ways to explore their interests at Yale while prioritizing their mental and physical health.

Alejandro Ortega (he, him)
alejandro.ortega@yale.edu(link sends e-mail)

Alejandro is a second-semester senior in Benjamin Franklin College majoring in Ethnicity, Race, and Migration. He was born in Venezuela and grew up in Miami, FL. Alejandro is involved in Danceworks, Volunteer Income Tax Assistance, and AIESEC. He is a Questbridge scholar and a proud member of the first-generation/low-income community on campus. Outside of class, he enjoys spending time with friends, cooking vegan food, and watching Tik Toks.

Chloe Papai (she, her)
chloe.papai@yale.edu(link sends e-mail)

Chloe is a senior in Berkeley College from New Orleans, Louisiana. She is majoring in Economics with a concentration in French. Outside of class, she works as a college aide (for the best college at Yale) and a financial literacy educator (check out ReisUp - it’s free for Yale students to learn all about money!), in addition to being an Academic Strategies Mentor. Chloe enjoys cooking, making cajun food when she’s homesick, exploring New Haven, and drinking coffee. She is so excited to be an academic strategies mentor and pay forward all the help and support that other students have provided during her time at Yale.

John Plumeri (he, him)
john.plumeri@yale.edu(link sends e-mail)

John is a senior in Pauli Murray College from Long Island, New York. He is a Political Science major and member of the Men’s Lightweight Crew Team. He is also a Pre-frosh Mentor and a Spanish peer tutor for the Center of Language Study. While not on the water or in the classroom, John enjoys cheering on his favorite sports teams (Go Browns), dancing at WOADs, binging shows and watching movies.

Tony Potchernikov (he, him)
tony.potchernikov@yale.edu(link sends e-mail)

Tony is a junior in Saybrook College from Nashville, Tennessee returning from a gap year. He currently studies Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry. He is a Hahn Scholar and undergraduate researcher under the mentorship of Prof. De La Cruz and also works with community organization Stand Up Nashville. In his free time, Tony enjoys cooking, figuring out how to play piano, and impromptu painting. He is excited and grateful for the opportunity to be an Academic Strategies Mentor and looks forward to working with fellow students on campus—and please feel free to reach out to him with absolutely any questions!

Jerry Ruvalcaba (he, him)
jerry.ruvalcaba@yale.edu(link sends e-mail)

Jerry (he/him/his) is a senior in Timothy Dwight College, majoring in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology while also seeking a Certificate in Data Science. He was born and raised in Los Angeles, California and is the proud son of two Mexican immigrant parents. On campus, he is involved in undergraduate research — whether that be by working directly as a research assistant for the Malvankar lab group or through supporting Yale undergraduate work as a member of the Yale Undergraduate Research Association. Additionally, during the school year, he serves as a Spanish interpreter for the HAVEN Free Clinic, writes for the Yale Scientific Magazine, and mentors for Matriculate at Yale. He is passionate about his cultural heritage and hopes to combine his love for medicine with his background in his career. In his free time, Jerry loves watching and reading up on Formula 1 news or going out on runs.

Avik Sarkar (any/all pronouns)

avik.sarkar@yale.edu(link sends e-mail)

Avik is a senior in Davenport College from Boston, Massachusetts. He’s majoring in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and pursuing a certificate in French. As a queer person of color and the child of Bengali immigrants, he’s particularly interested in queer and trans aesthetics across South Asia and its diasporas. On campus, Avik works as a Dwight Hall Urban Fellow at the Yale Prison Education Initiative, which offers Yale courses to incarcerated students. He also organizes events and supports programming at the Asian American Cultural Center as a student coordinator. In his free time, he loves spending hours at Koffee, taking long walks around New Haven, and staying up way too late talking to his suitemates. He’s so excited to join the Academic Strategies team!

Maayan Schoen (she, her)
maayan.schoen@yale.edu(link sends e-mail)

Maayan is a senior in Davenport College considering majoring in Psychology or Humanities. On campus, Maayan is involved in Jewish life, The Politic magazine, YCC, tutoring in New Haven public schools through IRIS, and a few other clubs whose mailing lists she can’t leave. Hailing from Atlanta, GA, she loves making jewelry, hanging out with her suitemates, and smiling at people she remembers sitting near during shopping period (often despite no indication that they remember her). She is especially excited to work with peers to succeed through medical challenges that may come up, as ASP was such a great resource in her own experience. Let’s be in touch!

Gladys Venegas (she, her)
gladys.venegas@yale.edu(link sends e-mail)

Gladys is a senior in Silliman from Anaheim, California. She is majoring in Neuroscience with a certificate in Spanish. She has also been involved in Matriculate and Ballet Folklorico Mexicano de Yale. She enjoys dancing in New Haven and eating out with friends. She is a part of and loves the FGLI community at Yale, which is why she is especially excited to be working as an Academic Strategies mentor :)

Hillary Warolin (she, her)
hillary.warolin@yale.edu(link sends e-mail)

Hillary is a junior in Silliman College and an Eli Whitney student from Stillwater, Minnesota. She is currently pursuing an English degree but loves exploring areas of anthropology, economics, and language studies. Outside of classes and work, she loves hiking, reading comics (particularly anything from the Mignolaverse), snowboarding, running Dungeons and Dragons games, and getting coffee. Having used many of the Academic Strategies resources herself, she is thrilled to be a part of the ASP Mentors team and looking forward to connecting with other students!

Beichen Zhang (she, her)
beichen.zhang@yale.edu(link sends e-mail)

Beichen (she/her/hers) is a second-semester junior in Pierson College from Shanghai, China. She is currently studying Economics. On campus, she works as a campus tour guide and a FroCo, in addition to being an ASP mentor. She is also involved with Smart Woman Securities and was a President’s Public Service Fellow. Beichen enjoys exploring places around New Haven, meeting new people, and collecting city maps. She’s super excited to meet everyone!