Cohort 5 (2019)

Estrella Allen is a Peruvian and African American who grew up in Arizona, moved to Long Beach, and later attended San Francisco State University. Estrella is striving to obtain her B.S in Biochemistry and plans to minor in holistic health. Her research interests include clinical neuropsychology and pathology, and with these interests, she hopes to achieve a PhD and either be a neuropsychologist or pathologist. Estrella will build credibility, gain scientific knowledge, and obtain a mentorship through the resources SF BUILD offers. With everything she accomplished from SF BUILD. Estrella will help to aid those from mental illness and act on breaking the stigma of mental illnesses in the Latino and Black community.

Eslah Alowdi is an undergraduate student pursuing an Integrative Health Bachelors degree and Holistic Health certificate. She expects to graduate in May 2020. Born in Yemen and a native to the Bay Area since she was two years old, she successfully merged her two cultures together to one. She will proudly bring her identity to the science field. Her aspiration is to engage in Holistic/Natural remedies and community-based research and to pursue an advanced degree for a pediatric/primary doctor career.

Mireya Arreguin is an undergraduate student pursuing a B.S. in biology with an emphasis in Physiology. From San Fernando Valley, California, Mireya was raised surrounded with a majority population of Latinos. Her current research interest is finding an effective way to inform and find new efficient medications, so that minority families with children who have asthma understand the importance of these disparities more in depth. On her path and dedication to science she is hoping to be able to become an inspiration for people of color and an advocate for all communities just like hers. She is an aspiring medical doctor and advocate for underprivileged children and families. With the opportunity to be a part of the SF BUILD she hopes to be able to expand her knowledge as a scientist and be able to establish and discover more resources to directly help out underprivileged communities in need.

Leyvi Campos is a Biology major with a concentration in Physiology. Leyvi comes from a diverse community in Pittsburg, California. Which has allowed her to explore the possibility of being a scientist. Leyvi’s research interest consist of better understanding how cancer affects the human body and understanding how the environment they live in affects their health. Through her research she hopes to gain knowledge to give back to her community and help them increase their health with the help of SF Build.

Samantha Christie is a Biology major with a Physiology concentration also pursuing a chemistry minor. Originating from Los Angeles, Samantha moved around frequently so houses would change, her environment would change, but her love for biology never changed. Her research interest is studying embryology and conducting research for understanding abnormalities in the development of the embryo from a fertilized egg. Given the resources provided by SF BUILD, Samantha hopes to apply the skills she has already attained in previous years to put towards discovering more about science and further advance her knowledge. In the future, Samantha will apply to PhD programs, and aims to use her research and knowledge to help advance health in communities around the world.

Daneshia Cloyd is a student at San Francisco State University studying Computer Science with a minor in Health Education. Born and raised in Oakland, California, a diverse city, she has had an opportunity to work with children in her community teaching STEM concepts through NSBE (National Society of Black Engineers). She has an interest in health disparities in minorities, environmental science, computer science, and stem cells. Coming from a diverse place such as the Bay Area she is aware of health disparities and lack of resources that are present in her community and want to help those in her community be great and feel great through science and education. This inspires her to pursue her PhD. in Bioengineering.

Midley Michaud is a biology major with a concentration in physiology. Midley has a minor in chemistry. She is originally from Haiti where she was born and raised. Growing up she has seen and experienced health disparities within her own community. Having this exposure has motivated her to become someone who could help reduce health inequalities in many different communities. She‘s interested in biomedical research or in any research that would benefit and help the community around her. With the help of the Build program, Midley hopes to gain more knowledge in scientific research as well as more skills as a scientist. In the future, Midley aims to become a Medical Doctor to help diminished health disparities in her community and around the world.

Emilyn Nunez is pursuing a B.S degree in Biochemistry with a minor in Health Education. She’s expected to graduate in Spring 2021.Her goal is to help reduce health disparities and improve the mental health of Latinos diagnosed with HIV/AIDS. In her research, she wants to open the dialog of many intersectionality issue that strictly affect the mental health