Cal-in-Sacramento

Alexis Aguilar

Class of 2022
2022 Cal-in-Sacramento
Placement: Placement Location: Sacramento, California

My name is Alexis Aguilar, I am a fourth studying Conservation and Resource studies. At the age of seven years old, my mother and I fled our hometown in Michoacán, Mexico, escaping a life flustered by organized crime and violence. Throughout the course of my life, I’ve used these experiences to frame the mantra I live by; no matter what happens, never let it affect your education. As I navigate my undergraduate career at UC Berkeley, I proceed to valorize this notion while I forge my own path...

Matthew Aini

Class of 2025
2023 Cal-in-Sacramento

Matthew Aini is a current second-year student at UC Berkeley majoring in Political Science and intended Business Administration. Hailing from the East Bay suburb of Dublin, California, regional concerns including housing, transportation, education, climate change, and affordability are areas he’s most keenly interested in solving. Currently, he serves as a member to the Dublin Planning Commission, where he deals with the land use questions and matters within the city. Additionally, he works as a policy lead in the higher education advocacy group Generation Up, with a particular...

Deborah Adepeju Alagbada

Class of 2024
2023 Cal-in-Sacramento

Deborah Alagbada is a first-generation Nigerian-American majoring in Legal Studies and Sociology with a minor in Ethnic Studies. She was raised by her immigrant parents in Watts, a low-income neighborhood primarily occupied by Black and Latinx communities. Growing up, she witnessed a lot of inequalities streaming from a lack of resources and inadequate funding. Deborah hopes to use her degree to help amplify the voices of those who have been silenced for too long. By continuing the fight against injustice for everyone facing inequalities and...

Andrea Anahi Ayala

Class of 2024
2023 Cal-in-Sacramento

Andrea Ayala is a first-generation Mexican-American student at UC Berkeley studying Rhetoric. After completing her undergraduate degree, she hopes to go to law school. Ayala's interest in public service was sparked by her experience working in student government at her previous community college and completing a fellowship with the ACLU of Northern California.

Ayala is motivated to help improve the lives of her community members that are often underrepresented and overlooked. During her time in the Cal-in-Sac program, Ayala hopes to gain additional first-hand...

Shaily Bajracharya

Class of 2023
2022 Cal-in-Sacramento
Placement: Placement Location: Sacramento, California

My name is Shaily Bajracharya. I am a third year student studying Psychology, Data Science and minoring in Education. I was born in Nepal and lived there for 14 years. I moved to the US in 2016 and faced multiple challenges transitioning to the US high school system. It was especially challenging to navigate the US college application system as a first generation, low income student of color. My experiences in my schools here and in Nepal made me inspired to work in the field of education to...

Daniel Bui

Class of 2023
2023 Schaeffer Fellowship
2022 Cal-in-Sacramento

Daniel Bui is currently a fourth year majoring in Political Science with a minor in Global Poverty and Practice. Born in Oakland to two Vietnamese refugees, he has experienced hardships faced by working-class households, communities of color and refugees in the area. With so many aspects of his life being shaped by government programs and initiatives, he holds a deep passion for exploring public policy and governance—particularly in areas regarding affordable housing, education equity, and socioeconomic mobility. Daniel hopes to one day serve and connect marginalized communities with...

Sidney Carrigan

Class of 2023
2022 Cal-in-Sacramento
Placement: Placement Location: Sacramento, California

Sidney Carrigan is a third year student completing her B.A. in Legal Studies along with minors in Disability Studies and Public Policy. Throughout her life, she has witnessed her mother struggle to comprehend the intricate legal system that governs her autistic brother’s life. Her early experiences with disability rights law and advocacy developed into a passion for alleviating the burdens of others, specifically by means of legal support. Through an internship with Harvard Law School’s Legal...

Lesly Castro

Class of 2023
2022 Cal-in-Sacramento
Placement: Placement Location: Sacramento, California

Lesly Castro is currently a student at UC Berkeley hoping to receive a degree in Legal Studies with a minor in Public Policy. She is a first-generation college student from Salinas, CA. As someone who is the daughter of immigrant parents, and as a person who has first-hand witnessed the hardships of her family and community, she feels it is important to address and bring awareness to the necessities of underrepresented communities. Lesly is most passionate about immigration, education...

Isabel Cholbi

Class of 2022
2022 Cal-in-Sacramento
Placement: Placement Location: Sacramento, California

Isabel Cholbi is a UC Berkeley senior studying Political Economy. Her interests mainly lie in labor law and policy. She would like to pursue a career in public service where she can advocate for the rights of American workers and fight to address the injustices of the US labor system. In fall 2021, Isabel spent a term abroad at the University of Barcelona, which has given her an international perspective on government and society.

Isabel has previously interned with government offices and...

Kristel Cosio

Class of 2023
2023 Cal-in-Sacramento

Kristel’s interest in medicine began as a child when her father's rare genetic disease caused blindness. His diagnosis of Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP) ignited her passion for understanding the unseen world, how small life forms impact our daily lives. At UC Berkeley’s Herbert Wertheim’s School of Optometry and Vision Science Kristel is able to work at the Puthussery & Taylor Lab where she is a research assistant on leading therapeutics for RP.

As a senior she helps run the Outreach Taskforce, an umbrella under UC Berkeley’s Suitcase Clinic that provides resources for...