Current Bridges to the Ph.D. Participants

Breana Aceituno

Major: Applied Epidemiology
Mentor: Claudia Toledo-Corral Ph.D.
Research Project: Investigating how environmental pollutants correlates to the progression of cardiovascular disease in children.

Ivan Alatorre

Major: Psychology
Mentor: Stefanie Drew, Ph.D.
Research Project: Incorporating an ADHD measure to my research regarding a future-oriented way of thinking and it’s association with health behaviors as a potential moderator. 

Ethan Castanon

Major: Psychological Science
Mentor: Stefanie Drew, Ph.D.
Research Project: Investigating how cutting-edge augmented reality technology can be leveraged to investigate eye behavior and improve gait in individuals diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease.

Sofia Chavez

Major: Clinical Psychology
Mentor: Jill Quilici, Ph.D.
Research Project: TBD

Rafael Estrada

Major: Microbiology
Mentor: Cristian Ruiz-Rueda
Research Project: TBD 

Ronald Gutierrez

Major: Psychology
Mentor: Stefanie Drew, Ph.D.
Research Project: Investigating the effects of visualized neurofeedback elements from an electroencephalogram (EEG) in a guided mindfulness meditation through Virtual Reality (VR) to reduce anxiety.

Sacha Medjo-Akono

Major: Biology, Ecology and Evolution
Mentor: Casey terHorst, Ph.D.
Research Project: Investigating the effects of pollution due to urbanization on native California Buckwheat

Seth Sangalang


Major: Clinical Research - Department of Psychology
Mentor: Jill Razani, Ph.D.
Research Project: Examining the psychometric properties of an adapted measure of acculturation for Hispanic/Latino individuals.

Jovaun Williams

Major: Biology
Mentor: Rachel Mackelprang Ph.D.
Research Project: Investigating the effects of commercial pollination practices on bees’ microbiome