Democracy Camp in Berkeley

Jessica Josette Lin Tupas

2023 Democracy Camp Berkeley Fellow
Class of 2026

Growing up moving homes often, Jessica maintained her education regardless of the distance. She saw the importance her parents’ placed on quality education, translating their practices into her own beliefs, further confirmed during her time at high school. Through high school, she opened her eyes to a multitude of the vast global issues that seem impossible to solve. The destruction of the environment and social injustice especially concerned Jessica, inspiring a drive to support social welfare and the conservation of nature. She hopes to explore how education, housing, public...

Rocio Lopez Martinez

2020 Democracy Camp Berkeley Fellow
Class of 2021

Anely Lopez

Class of 2029
2026 Democracy Camp in Berkeley

A TAAP Scholar and recipient of the Mrs. Genevieve E. McEnerney Endowment Fund, Anely Cortez Lopez is a first-generation Latina student at UC Berkeley, majoring in Legal Studies and Ethnic Studies. Raised in Los Angeles, she is the proud daughter of immigrants from the Mexican states of Oaxaca and Nayarit. Growing up in under-resourced school systems and navigating higher education as a first-generation student have shaped her commitment to educational access and community advocacy.

Anely has been deeply involved in youth leadership and public service throughout her academic...

Christopher Blu Lopez

Class of 2026
2025 Democracy Camp in Berkeley

Christopher Blu is a first-generation transfer student from San Jose, CA. He is majoring in Political Science with a specialization in American Politics and minoring in Political Economy. Adopted at the age of 1 and raised primarily by his grandmother, his experiences of being a low-income and former foster youth have encouraged him to uplift communities, emphasizing the importance of equal opportunity and visibility.
Before transferring, he attended De Anza College. During his time, he was a senator for his student government, lobbied with assembly members and legislators in...

Guadalupe Garcia Lopez

Class of 2026
2025 Democracy Camp in Berkeley

Guadalupe Garcia Lopez (he/him) is a first-generation transfer student majoring in Political Science with a specialization in Empirical Analysis and Quantitative Methods, and minoring in Data Science. At UC Berkeley, he is a Regents’ and Chancellor’s Scholar and a Yardi Scholar, dedicated to merging his interests in policy and technology to drive social change and create a more equitable society. Growing up in a mixed-status family, Guadalupe witnessed the constant struggles of his undocumented community. This experience shaped his passion for addressing systemic inequities affecting his...

Jasmine Lozano

Class of 2024
2024 Democracy Camp in Berkeley

Jasmine Lozano (she/her)

Raised in the San Joaquin Central Valley, Jasmine is passionate about advocating for others, herself, and her community through academic, social, and legislative forums. She is a political science and ethnic studies double major with a race and the law minor, which have catered to and refined her passions for social justice, advocacy, community development, civic engagement, intellectual evolution, and educational and professional prosperity.

As her passion for social justice and public service is strongly embedded in her...

Diana Maravillo

Class of 2027
2026 Democracy Camp in Berkeley

I am Diana Maravillo, majoring in Educational Sciences with a minor in Public Policy. My academic interest are rooted in understanding how educational systems and public policies intersect to either reproduce or dismantle inequality. I am deeply committed to advocating for students who lack guidance, representation, or awareness to many educational pathways available to them.

My hometown of Salinas, California, is predominantly Hispanic agricultural community shaped by labor of migrant farmworkers and their families, including my own. Growing up in a town...

Benicio Mares

Class of 2027
2026 Democracy Camp in Berkeley

Benicio Alexander Mares is a Mexican-American first-generation student attending the University of California, Berkeley with a major in sociology and a minor in education. Hailing from Tulare, CA, Benicio carries a great attachment to California's Central Valley. His experience growing up in a tight-knit low-income community has led to a development of a passion for educational and economic equity across the state's most overlooked regions.

At Berkeley, Benicio has actively pursued these goals by involving himself in various on- and off-campus organizations. Benicio works as...

Griselda Vega Martinez

2020 Democracy Camp Berkeley Fellow
Class of 2022

Kaylin McWhorter

Class of 2029
2026 Democracy Camp in Berkeley

Kaylin McWhorter is a student at the University of California, Berkeley, majoring in Political Economy with a minor in African American Studies. Her academic interests center on the intersections of law, policy, economics, and race, with a particular focus on how structural inequities shape access, power, and opportunity.

Her commitment to advocacy is deeply informed by lived experience and a desire to create systems that are more just and representative. At Berkeley, Kaylin is involved with the NAACP and other civic engagement efforts that prioritize community empowerment,...