Meet some of our outstanding students!
Max is a senior majoring in Industrial Engineering with a minor in the Hoeft Technology and Management. He serves as the Vice President for the Mixed Student Union (MSU), the Engagement Chair for Volunteer Illini Projects (VIP), and is a general member of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), Illini Boxing, and Illini Muay Thai. Max also works as a Peer Mentor for MEP.
Fun Fact: He loves to bake, especially cheesecake, and knows three different martial arts.
Goal: Max enjoys being a mentor for others, helping them along their journey with his experiences and advice, and hopes to continue that role in his professional career.
Zach is a senior majoring in Mechanical Engineering. On campus, he sits on the High School Outreach Committee for the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE), is a MEP Peer Mentor, and is the Emails Lead for the MEP Welcome Committee.
Previously, Zach has been involved in Offroad Illini, sat on several teams and committees for SHPE, served as a C.A.R.E. tutor and PLT facilitator, and volunteered as a mentor for our early move-in program EMBARK.
Fun Fact: He’s ambidextrous and prefers his left hand for writing and his right hand for throwing.
Goal: Zach hopes to be a lifelong learner. In the near future, he plans to target language, astronomy, and music production.
Elisa is a senior majoring in Computer Science, graduating in May. She serves as the President of Black (Underrepresented) Indigenous Latinos in Tech (B[U]ILT), a general member of the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, and a MEP Peer Mentor.
On campus, Elisa contributes by writing questions for CS 374 and serving on the Culture and Community Subcommittee for Broadening Participation in Computing.
Fun Fact: She’s training for a half marathon in April, loves the color pink, and is moving to Santa Monica in June.
Goal: She aspires to reduce bias in computer algorithms, raise awareness of technology’s impact on minority communities, and develop technology that serves all communities equitably.
Within the MEP community, Adora is a member of the MEP Welcome Committee and participates in the Swimming Club. Next year, she plans to become a tutor.
Emma is a sophomore majoring in Chemical Engineering. On campus, she is the Marketing Chair for the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), a C.A.R.E. tutor, and an active member of the Illini Run Club and C^2, a support program for minority students in chemistry and chemical engineering.
Additionally, Emma is an Undergraduate Research Assistant in the Kenis Group for Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and serves on the MEP Welcome Committee.
Fun Fact: Emma is fluent in Spanish.
Goal: She hopes to inspire and uplift underrepresented students in engineering, letting them know they have a strong and supportive community in MEP.
Adora is a first-year Aerospace Engineering student. She is actively involved as a general member of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) and the Girl Gains club at the University of Illinois.
Within the MEP community, Adora is a member of the MEP Welcome Committee and participates in the Swimming Club. Next year, she plans to become a tutor.
Fun Fact: Last year, Adora competed at the state level in speech and debate!
Goal: She hopes to inspire others through her accomplishments, showing underrepresented groups that their dreams are possible.
Julius is a senior double majoring in Computer Science and Economics. On campus, he is an member of the Association of Computing Machinery (ACM), where he fundraises and leads meetings for SIGPwny. He also participates in the Cozad New Venture Challenge and is a member of NSBE.
Within the MEP community, Julius has volunteered for our early move-in program EMBARK, served as a Peer Mentor for ENG 111, and provides peer advising to students on their college experience and goals.
Fun Fact: Julius can windmill dunk a basketball and has already read four books this year!
Goal: He aspires to start a nonprofit organization dedicated to fighting poverty and wealth inequality.
Sophia is a junior majoring in Bioengineering on the Computational Systems track, with a minor in Computer Science. She serves as the External Vice President for the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) and is the founder of the Sunday Run Club for NSBE and MEP students, which will resume this upcoming semester.
Within the MEP community, Sophia is a CARE tutor, a member of the Leadership Council, and a contributor to the exam review teams for MATH 220 and 221. She also serves on the MEP Welcome Committee. Outside of her academic and community roles, Sophia works as a Software Developer on a research project at the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA).
Her goal is to serve her communities by leveraging innovation to advocate for equity in healthcare, education, and beyond. She also hopes to one day pass her driver’s exam!
Fun Fact: Sophia was born in Hokkaido, Japan, and lived there for three years!
Cain is a senior majoring in Computer Engineering and an active member of the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE).
On campus, Cain contributes as an MEP Peer Mentor, a CARE tutor, and an ECE 110 Merit Course Assistant. His leadership and dedication have earned him induction into the prestigious Knights of St. Patrick.
His goal this year is to read or listen to 20 books.
Fun Fact: Cain’s favorite dish to cook is Nashville hot chicken sandwiches!
Josseline is a senior majoring in Mechanical Engineering on a Pre-Med track. She is actively involved with the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE), Pre-Health Latino Society (PLUS), and Christians on Campus.
As a dedicated member of the MEP community, she serves as a Peer Mentor and has conducted research with the Mobility and Fall Prevention Research Laboratory.
Fun Fact: Josseline is a nationally registered Emergency Medical Technician, and her goal is to become an Emergency Medicine doctor.
Grant is a senior majoring in Civil Engineering. He leads as the President of Empowering Minorities and Building Representation Across Civil and Environmental Engineering (EMBRACE), serves as Secretary of the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE), and is the Membership Chair for the American Society of Civil Engineers. He is also actively involved with the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE).
On campus, Grant contributes as an MEP Peer Mentor, an Engineering Council Diversity Committee Member, and a leader of a swimming club for MEP students.
Fun Fact: Grant has played the saxophone for 10 years and can perform on three different types of saxophones. His goal is to support engineering students and give back to the community as much as possible before he graduates.
Ashlee is a sophomore majoring in Mechanical Engineering. She is actively involved with Illini Electric Motorsports (IEM), Illini Vex Robotics (IV), and the Native American House at UIUC. Additionally, she works as a Design Engineer at Caterpillar. Fun fact about Ashlee: She’s training for her first official half marathon in the spring with friends from InterVarsity! She loves staying active through running and rock climbing, and enjoys playing volleyball and flag football with SHPE, IEM, and IV through intramurals. Ashlee’s goal is to become a peer mentor in ENG 111 to support first-year students in their academic journeys. She also hopes to give back to the Native American House by becoming a Student Ambassador.
Fun fact about Ashlee: She’s training for her first official half marathon in the spring with friends from InterVarsity! She loves staying active through running and rock climbing, and enjoys playing volleyball and flag football with SHPE, IEM, and IV through intramurals.
Ashlee’s goal is to become a peer mentor in ENG 111 to support first-year students in their academic journeys. She also hopes to give back to the Native American House by becoming a Student Ambassador.
Gerry is a junior majoring in Bioengineering with a concentration in therapeutics and a minor in Chemistry. He serves as the High School Outreach Director for the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE) and plays C-Side Forward for the Illinois Men’s Rugby team.
On campus, Gerry is involved as an undergraduate TA for Organic Chemistry (CHEM 232), a course assistant for BIOE 206, and an Undergraduate Researcher in the Sirk Lab in the Bioengineering Department.
Fun fact about Gerry: He has traveled across the U.S. competing in both rowing and rugby and speaks Russian. His goal is to be a resource for his peers and younger students, helping to empower underrepresented students in STEM to achieve a college degree.
Benidel is a senior majoring in Civil Engineering with a minor in the Sustainability, Energy, and Environment Fellows Program. She serves as the Pre/Post Collegiate Chair of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), Co-Funding Chair of Women in Civil and Environmental Engineering (WCEE), and Secretary of Empowering Minorities and Building Representation Across Civil and Environmental Engineering (EMBRACE). Benidel is also a general member of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), a MEP Peer Mentor, and a Grainger Brand Ambassador.
Fun fact about Benidel: She speaks three languages, with French as her first! Her goal is to be a resource for her communities.
Geo is a senior majoring in Systems Engineering. His campus involvement includes being a MEP Peer Mentor, ARISE mentor, and a member of the Tech Team for the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE). Geo is also an Illini Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu team member and a Peer-Led Team (PLT) facilitator for CALC 1 through the Center for Academic Resources in Engineering (CARE).
Fun fact about Geo: He has a family cat that’s 18 years old! His goal is to become the first in his family to graduate from college.
Saliyah is a junior majoring in Civil Engineering with a minor in Art Design. She is the Secretary of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), the Marketing/Social Chair for Empowering Minorities Building Representation in Civil and Environmental Engineering (EMBRACE), and a general member of both the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) and the National Association of Colored Women’s Clubs (NACWC).
Fun fact about Saliyah: she’s also an Engineering Learning Assistant (ELA) and teaches ENG 100 to first-year students. Her goal is to make a positive social impact through her career and community service, while also promoting global stability and supporting the environment.
Ana is a senior majoring in Mechanical Engineering with a minor in Game Design. She’s involved in the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE), serves as the Membership Chair for the Themed Entertainment Association (TEA), and is also an MEP Peer Mentor.
Fun fact about Ana: she designs shirts and created this year’s shirt for our early move-in program, EMBARK. Her goal is to be a great peer mentor in our peer mentoring course, ENG 111. “I had some awesome peer mentors my freshman year, and I want to pay that forward,” she says.
