GSA Officers: Fall 2022 and Spring 2023
President
Edgar Perez-Lopez
Email: eperez-lopez@ucmerced.edu
Office Hours: Friday 11:00am-12:00pm, Grad Pad (SSB 350)
Edgar Perez-Lopez is a a 5th year PhD Candidate in Mechanical Engineering. His research focus is in low temperature plasma applications in food, energy, and water systems. He served in GSA as Undocumented Affairs Officer 2021-2022 and is excited to serve the graduate student body as president. In addition to GSA involvement, Edgar has been involved in the Graduate Dean's Advisory Council on Diversity the past 3 years.
Internal Vice President
Lorenzo Booth
Email: lbooth@ucmerced.edu
Office Hours: By appointment
Lorenzo is a Ph.D candidate in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, researching path-planning strategies for robots tasked with surveying environmental fields. His background is in Environmental Engineering, where he specialized in spatial analysis and the modeling of water systems. As Internal Vice President, Lorenzo facilitates meetings of the Delegate Assembly. He aims to streamline processes and help make the operation and stewardship of the GSA simple and sustainable for future generations of graduate students.
External Vice President
Arabi Seshappan
Email: aseshappan@ucmerced.edu
Office Hours: By appointment
Academic Affairs Officer (Vacant)
Internal Communications Officer
Md. Mehdi Masud
Email: mmasud@ucmerced.edu
Office Hours: By appointment
Mehdi is a 5th year Ph.D. candidate in Physics, studying computational condensed matter physics. His research focus is on materials electronic and spectroscopic properties at extreme (high energy density) conditions – which is particularly helpful for fusion research as well as for fundamental ideas on this topic. As an Internal Communications Officer, Mehdi is working to build up strong communications withing the GSA EC members, taking meeting minutes, updating GSA website as well as performing other duties as assigned in the ‘GSA-by-laws handbook’ to make the GSA helpful for all the UC Merced graduate students.
Treasurer
Aneelman Brar
Email: abrar9@ucmerced.edu
Office Hours: By appointment
Aneelman is 5th year Ph.D. candidate in Chemistry. Her research focuses on the synthesis of organometallic complexes and employing them as catalyst for various organic transformations. As a Treasurer, she will be taking care of GSA budget for the academic year of 2022-2023. She will be the person of contact for GSO funds and GSA sponsored events.
Public Relations/Community Outreach Officer
Destina Bermejo Navarro
Email: dbermejo@ucmerced.edu
Office Hours: By appointment
Destina is a second-year Ph.D. student in Sociology, studying Latin American Indigeneity in diaspora, (im)migration and displacement, and language. Destina’s role as the Public Relations and Community Outreach Officer for the 2022-2023 academic schoolyear include: informing the graduate and professional student community in Merced of campus and local issues, overseeing the planning of events hosted by GSA, collaborating and coordinating with campus departments, and actively engaging graduate and professional student community in volunteer activities.
International Affairs Officer (Vacant)
Climate, Diversity and Equity Officer
Koto Babaguchi
Email: kbabaguchi@ucmerced.edu
Office Hours: By appointment
Koto is a fourth-year Ph.D. candidate in Chemistry. Her research area is organic and organometallic chemistry, specifically organocatalysis and transition metal catalysis. As the Climate, Diversity, and Equity officer, Koto works to foster an inclusive campus climate and serve with existing campus committees to ensure that underrepresented graduate and professional students are well. She thrives on promoting mental health access and community-serving events.
Solidarity Officer
Jarrod Brown
Email: jbrown61@ucmerced.edu
Office Hours: By appointment
Jarrod is a second-year Ph.D. student in Sociology. His research areas are race and ethnicity, sociology of education, and inequality. As the solidarity officer, Jarrod directs students to the correct UC Merced resources to resolve their problems and concerns while maintaining confidentiality. In addition, he maintains a working relationship with UC Merced’s UAW 2865 officers.
Legislative Affairs Officer (Vacant)
Social Media and Graphics Design Officer
Maia Powell
Email: mpowell2@ucmerced.edu
Office Hours: By appointment
Maia is a fifth year Ph.D. candidate in Applied Mathematics. Her research involves studying the nature of online disagreement and structural differences between different types of speech, as well as the spread of misinformation online. As the Social Media & Graphic Design Officer, she maintains social media accounts and assists necessary collaborators with graphic design needs.
Undocumented Affairs Officer
Yulissa Perez Rojas
Email: yperezrojas@ucmerced.edu
Office Hours: By appointment
Yulissa is a fourth year Ph.D. candidate in Environmental Systems, investigating soil emissions caused by episodic drying-wetting events. As the Undocumented Affairs Officer, Yulissa’s role is to assure that undocumented graduate and professional students are well-informed, fairly treated, and able to equally participate at UC Merced. In addition, to building and fostering a safe community among undocumented graduate, undergraduate, and professional students.