From academics to real-world impact, explore stories from our community that highlight the people and experiences making 17³Ô¹Ï a place of opportunity, discovery, and success.
Liliana Madrid Larrañaga Student Biochemistry Public Health Liliana Madrid Larrañaga ’26 navigated her transition into college by finding opportunities to connect with her academic and personal interests, serving as a valuable resource to her peers, and taking steps toward her dream career working in women’s healthcare.
Peter Vartanian Student Diplomacy & World Affairs Comparative Studies in Literature & Culture Supported by 17³Ô¹Ï through grants and faculty mentorship, Peter Vartanian ’25 is traveling the globe conducting research on the geopolitics of the global transition to green energy, among other topics.
Alana Pizarro ’22 Alumni Biology Alana Pizarro joined a fieldwork expedition to Isla Guadalupe, a wind-swept island off the coast of Baja California. The researchers were studying the Guadalupe Island Junco, a small sparrow with unique evolutionary characteristics and a delicate existence.
Will McMillan Student Diplomacy & World Affairs During his gap year, Diplomacy & World Affairs major Will McMillan ’27 traveled to Ukraine for a month to volunteer on behalf of the war effort. He has been gathering stories to help generate more support back at home for Ukraine, which has been at war with Russia since early 2022.
Nikki Seymour Faculty Geology Meet Nikki Seymour of geology, whose research explores how deformation related to plate tectonic motion is accommodated in the middle to upper crust, the interactions between magmatism and deformation, and effects of sediment subduction at convergent plate boundaries.
Syeda ShahBano Ijaz Faculty Diplomacy & World Affairs Meet Syeda ShahBano Ijaz of Diplomacy & World Affairs, a scholar of the political economy of development, with a regional focus on South Asia. Her research, teaching, and public scholarship is situated at the cusp of international and comparative politics.
Alexandria Pivovaroff Faculty Biology Meet Alexandria Pivovaroff of biology, a global change biologist who specializes in plant water relations, hydraulics, and functional traits to understand how forests are responding to changes in the environment.
Teddy Max Pozo Faculty Computer Science Meet Teddy Max Pozo of computer science, a multimedia writer and artist. Their art practice combines conductive materials with clay sculptures and original game designs to create unique game arcade machine and console installations.
Vivian Wenli Lin Faculty Media Arts & Culture Meet Vivian Wenli Lin of Media Arts & Culture, a media artist and educator with a background in psychology, documentary film, video art, and interactive installation whose research interests focus on issues of representation, gender, migration, and the Asian diaspora.
Min Joo Lee Faculty Asian Studies Meet Min Joo Lee of Asian studies, whose research focuses on the transnational popularity of Korean popular culture, gender and race politics in Korea, and feminist media theory.
Karla Peña Faculty Urban & Environmental Policy Meet Karla Peña of Urban & Environmental Policy, whose teaching and research involves developmental sociology and natural resources and environment.
Zachary Silver Faculty Psychology Meet Zachary Silver of psychology, whose research and teaching interests involve how animals learn from and about humans.
