Who we are. |
Meet our 2022 Cohort
This year 14 Community college student research interns representing 8 different community colleges across the greater Los Angeles area joined us in collecting ecological data for the National Ecological Observation Network in the Sierra Nevada National Forest!
2021 Cohort |
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2020 Cohort
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Our Team
Amanda N. Robin Founder & Director HI! I am a PhD student in the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department at UCLA. I study how wild squirrels decide which nuts to eat and which to save for for the future. My academic journey has been a curvy road that started with five years at Santa Monica Community College where I began in 7th grade level math. It takes a village to make it through every level of academia and I would not have made it this far without the support system of counsellors and teachers I found while in community college and the opportunity to participate in research. It is my goal to give back to those rising up through academia after me by creating research opportunities and life long relationships between mentors and mentees. |
Eva Horna Lowell Assistant Director Hello, my name is Eva! I am a graduate student who is really interested in how microbes and animals interact with each other. I want to learn more about the relationship between microbes and social organisms that live in collective societies. Hence, I use harvester ants as my study system! I never thought that I would end up in academia doing scientific research. Yet here I am, due to the support of some amazing mentors I had during my education. It is my goal to provide opportunities to all those who wish to explore and study the wonders science has to offer us. I want to help break down the vision that research and academia is a tall white ivory tower. Basically, I want to try and make the world of science a more inclusive and engaging space, that celebrates and encourages all forms of diversity! |
Sean O'Fallon Graduate Mentor & Programming Committee Member Hello! My name is Sean, and I’m a graduate student in the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology program at UCLA. My research focuses on nest architecture and collective behavior in social insects, so my fieldwork usually involves finding harvester ant colonies and following their workers around! Getting involved in lab-based and field research as an undergraduate opened my eyes to the possibilities of a career in research, so I’m passionate about facilitating hands-on research experiences for early-career scientists. I know from experience that a good mentor can help provide the confidence and encouragement needed to start a scientific career, and it’s my goal to demystify the research process to help inspire the next generation of scientists! 
Katherine Benitez
2020-2021 Former Undergraduate Student Mentor & Director of Undergraduate Mentors Hey everyone! My name is Katherine! I’m a senior at UCLA majoring in Molecular, Cell, Developmental Biology (MCDB). I attended Santa Monica College for 3 years before transferring. I really cherish my time at community college because it allowed me to experiment with different fields of science and confirm my interest in scientific research. I currently volunteer in a lab studying the sex differences in lipid metabolism using mice. After graduating, my ambition is to enter a Ph.D program in Biochemistry, Molecular and Structural Biology at UCLA. I’m always super eager to help out my fellow community college stemmies in navigating the whole transfer process and undergraduate research experience! That being said, it’s my absolute pleasure to be here at CCFBA working with you all as a diverse, collective family of ambitious scientists. 
Vivien Enriquez
2020-2021 Former Graduate Student Mentor & Programming Committee Member Hello, my name is Vivien! I am a PhD student in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at UCLA. Ever wonder how wild animals survive in the city? Ever wonder if microscopic bacteria within the digestive system might help? I study these exact questions using a common bird species across Southern California. As an undergraduate student, I thought science was only for the students who had really really strong quantitative skills. I wanted to study biology, but I felt like I didn't have the skills needed to succeed, so I graduated with a different major. However, with the support of encouraging mentors, I began to collect science-based research experiences across different fields and slowly began to learn that science is about so much more than quantitative analysis. It takes curiosity, passion, and community. I hope to inspire future scientists to see the same and to make STEM fields more inclusive for all. 
Emily Lessig
2018-2019 Co-Founder Former Vice President Graduate Research Mentor Hi, my name is Emily and I was a master’s student at UCLA in the Nonacs Lab studying the foraging behavior and path choice of Argentine ants. I have had an unconventional experience in academia and if it weren’t for my teachers and mentors along the way, I would not be the researcher I am today. Therefore, I think it is incredibly important to promote educational equality in STEM and to create research opportunities for students that allow them to achieve their educational aspirations. Currently, I am pursuing my PhD at UT-Austin studying the social behavior of cichlid fish. |
Eric Caldera 2020-2021 Former Graduate Research Mentor & Director of Marine Science Pathways & Laboratory Genetics Hi my name is Eric Caldera! I’m an NSF postdoc and “jack of all trades.” My current research interests span microbial symbiosis, evolutionary/population genetics, and marine science. My Ph.D. research at the University of Wisconsin – Madison focused on coevolution among fungal and bacterial symbionts of fungus-farming ants in neotropical rainforests. While currently focused on microbes, I’ve also worked with invasive fire ants, argentine ants, and threespine stickleback. My teaching experience includes Microbial Ecology, Evolution & Diversity (UW-Madison) and Introductory Biology, Advances in Microbiology (California State University – Fullerton). I received my B.S. (Biology) from the University of Texas at Austin and attended San Antonio Community College. 
Cynthia Frausto
2019-2020 Former Vice President Undergraduate Research Mentor Hi! My name is Cynthia I was an undergraduate at UCLA majoring in Anthropology and minoring in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. I am passionate about helping community college students because I was one myself! Through research opportunities at the community college level I have been able to get myself into a prestigious university and I am currently assisting in research about the feeding and caching behaviors of squirrels. 
Michelle Olavarrieta
2018-2019 Former Program Director Undergraduate Research Mentor Hello! My name is Michelle and I was a UCLA undergraduate student studying Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics. I spent five years at Santa Monica Community College where I found the support within many of my mentors in the STEM program. With the help of my mentors I was able to obtain many research and networking opportunities! I would like to pay it forward and be a mentor to students who are navigating community college and pursuing higher education and research interests. I also want to help students not only in their research, but in transferring to a four year university such as UCLA and navigating those institutions as transfer students. My research focuses on the dark-eyed junco bird species at UCLA to better understand behavioral evolution in the urban and rural environments. |
