Democracy Camp in DC

Gélser Zavala Garcia

Class of 2022
2022 Democracy Camp in DC
2022 Schaeffer Fellowship
Placement: Special Assistant to Mayor Libby Schaaf Placement Location:

Gélser Zavala is a rising senior majoring in Legal Studies after transferring from Laney College with a AA in Paralegal Studies and Social Sciences. He is an East Oakland born and raised native, the son of war refugees from El Salvador who migrated to California in the late 1980s. Growing up in a working class family, Gélser endured challenges in his public education with insidious systems of underfunded policies for school, gang-violence, teen pregnancy, and dropping out of...

Stacy Giu

Class of 2025
2025 Democracy Camp in DC

Stacy Giu (she/her)

Stacy is a first-generation college student and a senior studying Social Welfare and Public Policy. As a child of Vietnamese refugees, Stacy has dedicated her academic and professional pursuits to advancing children's rights and improving systems of governance that impact marginalized communities. She is a Public Policy and International Affairs (PPIA) Fellow at Princeton University and recognized with the Theodore Cohn Award for her work as an undergraduate research assistant in children's rights and public policy. Stacy is a published writer for the Public...

Amber Griffin-Royal

Class of 2024
2023 Democracy Camp in DC

Amber Griffin-Royal (she/her) is a low-income, disabled, Oakland native, fourth-year re-entry transfer majoring in African American Studies. Her time at Cal has been invaluable as she's been supported academically and creatively to pursue her interests in research, femtorship, and DJing. Some of the work she's done on campus includes being an Undergraduate Research Advocate Intern at the Library of Environmental Design, an intern at NavCal, femtoring newly accepted transfer students, a Program Coordinator for Experience Berkeley Transfer assisting community college students of color...

Alexia Guerra

Class of 2025
2023 Democracy Camp in DC

Born and raised by a mixed-status family in Los Angeles, California, Alexia Guerra is the proud daughter of Guatemalan immigrants and is the first in her family to attend college. She is a second-year double majoring in Political Science/Ethnic Studies with an intended minor in Public Policy at the University of California, Berkeley. Alexia’s on-campus involvement is centered on fighting toward social, political, and economic self-determination, liberation, and empowerment of marginalized communities. Alexia co-leads Central Americans for Empowerment (CAFE) serving Central...

Kulsoom Hasan

Class of 2023
2023 Democracy Camp in DC
2023 Schaeffer Fellowship

Kulsoom Hasan is a fourth-year undergraduate student pursuing studies within the Travers Department of Political Science and the Goldman School of Public Policy. Her passion for public service was initially forged through community engagement at the local governmental level as a voter drive organizer and grassroots campaign canvasser. From there, her foray into legislative research and policy advocacy expanded as she further explored the interdisciplinary nature of politics and government through hands-on experience.


Her passion for comparative...

Sayeda Kulsoom Hasan

Class of 2023
2023 Democracy Camp in DC

Kulsoom Hasan is a fourth-year undergraduate student pursuing studies within the Travers Department of Political Science and the Goldman School of Public Policy. Her passion for public service was initially forged through community engagement at the local governmental level as a voter drive organizer and grassroots campaign canvasser. From there, her foray into legislative research and policy advocacy expanded as she further explored the interdisciplinary nature of politics and government through hands-on experience.

Her...

Chan Venh (John) Lam

Class of 2024
2024 John Gardner Fellowship
2023 Democracy Camp in DC Student Director
2022 Democracy Camp in DC

Chan Venh (John) Lam, a first-generation Chinese-America from Sacramento, California, has embarked on a remarkable journey of resilience and advocacy. After spending 16 years incarcerated, Chan's path took a transformative turn when his sentence was commuted by Governor Brown in 2018, igniting a passion for social justice that continues to drive his advocacy efforts today.

Throughout his time behind bars, he played a pivotal role in shaping legislative change, collaborating with Human Rights Watch and the Anti-Recidivism Coalition to advocate...

Nouhamin Leoulekal

Class of 2025
2025 John Gardner Fellowship
2024 Democracy Camp in DC Student Director
2024 Democracy Camp in DC
2023 Democracy Camp in DC

Nouhamin Leoulekal, the daughter of Ethiopian immigrants, is a passionate advocate for criminal justice reform, aiming to reshape the system to better serve those historically marginalized and excluded from legal relief. She is dedicated to dismantling systemic barriers at the intersection of criminal justice and immigration, with a particular focus on expanding access to post-conviction remedies for Black and Brown communities.

At UC Berkeley, Nouhamin majored in Legal Studies with a minor in African American Studies. As a Legal Studies Honors...

Karen Esparza Lopez

Class of 2023
2022 Democracy Camp in DC

Karen Esparza Lopez is first-generation Mexican Immigrant and former foster youth studying Political Science. During her time in foster care, she witnessed extreme injustices that many foster youth face in the child welfare system. She has seen the ways in which local and federal governments have both failed at meeting the needs of their underrepresented community members in the foster care system. She hopes to resolve these issues through a career in public service. She is most passionate about resolving issues regarding child welfare, social welfare,...

Mayra Lua Reyes

Class of 2024
2024 William K. (Sandy) Muir, Jr. Leadership Award
2024 Democracy Camp in DC

Mayra Lua Reyes (she/her)

Mayra Lua Reyes ('24) is a first-generation student earning a double major in Political Science and Legal Studies and a minor in Public Policy. She was born and raised in the Central Valley (Merced, CA) and is the daughter of Mexican immigrant parents.

Mayra’s lived experiences and the knowledge she has gained at UC Berkeley have shaped her career aspirations and her interests in public service. For Mayra, public service means creating opportunities and pathways to break generational barriers and increase access to economic mobility. This includes...