Washington Fellows

Shaina Desai

2020 Washington Fellowship - Spring
Placement: National Center for Health Research

Shaina is a graduating senior at the University of California, Berkeley from Kansas City studying Public Health. While at Berkeley, she has dedicated her time to helping children through volunteering, public service, nonprofit organizations, and research. In addition, she has served as an Undergraduate Student Instructor for a public health and sustainability course and has conducted epidemiology research at multiple public health labs across the country. Shaina hopes to strengthen her public health background as a Research and...

Rosie Echeverria

Class of 2023
2023 Democracy Camp in Berkeley
2023 Cal-in-Sacramento
2022 Schaeffer Fellowship
2022 Washington Fellowship
Placement: Rep. Adam Schiff - Burbank District Office Mentor: Colleen Oinuma

Rosie Echeverria was born and raised in East Hollywood, Los Angeles in a Central American immigrant household and she is a first-generation, low-income, EOP, DSP, Latinx, and LGBTQ+ student at UC Berkeley. She went to Santa Monica College (SMC) for about two and a half years then transferred and moved to UC Berkeley in Fall 2020, toward the beginning of the covid pandemic. She is a Political Science major with a minor in Public Policy and Education.

Her...

Socorro Galindo-Hernandez

2021 Washington Fellowship - Spring
Placement: EEOC under Chief Judge Emily MacMillian Placement Location: Washington, D.C.

Socorro Galindo-Hernandez is a first-generation college student at UC Berkeley, majoring in Legal Studies. Before coming to UC Berkeley, I was interested in public service because I understood the need of helping communities flourish and develop. Growing up in Los Angeles, specifically, the Westlake/MacArthur Park area I was able to experience many impactful encounters because of the spread in homelessness and poverty. Currently I intern at the San Francisco Superior Court’s...

Nathan Jauregui

2023 Washington Fellowship - Spring
Placement: American Enterprise Institute Placement Location: Washington, D.C.

Nathan Jauregui has always had an interest in justice, the law, and policy, and turned those interests into passions at UC Berkeley. As a nontraditional transfer and deferred student, finding opportunities that pertained to these interests and could serve his communities was a top priority. During his first semester at UC Berkeley, Nathan served in the ASUC as an intern of the Policy and Legislation Department before being promoted to...

Courtney Kirkland

2020 Washington Fellowship - Spring
Placement: USAID's Bureau for Africa

Courtney is a graduating senior originally from Colfax, CA double majoring in Sociology and Society and Environment with a concentration in Global Policy. While studying abroad at the University of Ghana, she was inspired by the country’s resilience and passion for liberation and has become fascinated with how foreign policy has the power to both preserve geopolitical oppression and institutionalize peace and prosperity. Wanting to learn how policies are made and who makes them, Courtney has conducted research at Berkeley’s Center for...

Queenie Lam

2020 Washington Fellowship - Spring
Placement: Congressional Intern with Congressman Ami Bera (D-CA-7) at the U.S. House of Representatives Placement Location: Washington, D.C. Major: Political Science and Media Studies

Queenie Lam is a first-generation college student at UC Berkeley, double-majoring in Political Science and Media Studies. Her main interests lie between the intersection of politics, public policy, and marketing in how it affects the legislative process and campaign cycle. Her previous experience includes working the Secretary of State to advocate for voter education and...

Arianna Laolagi

Class of 2024
2024 Washington Fellowship - Spring
Placement: Office of Representative Dan Goldman, U.S. House of Representatives Placement Location: Washington, D.C. Arianna Valentina Laolagi, a first-generation Latine student at UC Berkeley, is a dedicated leader and change-maker for her communities. Born and raised in an Immigrant household in Burbank, California, the issues that she has grown most passionate about are the ones that have directly affected her family. After graduation, Arianna is committed to reforming the Housing Crisis and Immigration Policy, and she plans to do so through...

Cheyenne Laux

2020 Washington Fellowship - Spring
Placement: National Collections, Smithsonian Institution

Cheyenne Laux is a graduating senior at UC Berkeley majoring in Anthropology. As a junior, she transferred to Berkeley from Cabrillo College in Santa Cruz. Cheyenne's main interests within anthropology are archaeology and museum studies, with a focus in collections management and the stewardship aspect of museum collections. In the future, she plans to pursue a Master's in Museum Studies, and advocate the importance of public engagement with anthropology.

Devyn Lopez

2022 Matsui Washington Fellow

Devyn Lopez is a third-year student at UC Berkeley. She is pursuing a major in Social Welfare and a Spanish minor. Devyn was raised in the Bay Area most of her life and discovered how crucial it is to give back to her community when she moved to East San Jose. Devyn is committed to assisting communities of color and under-served populations through direct legal, educational, or social services aimed to help individuals build a sense of agency. She is genuinely passionate about ending gender-based violence and one of her ultimate aspirations is to advocate on behalf of survivors of...

Luis Lopez

2023 Washington Fellowship - Spring
Placement: Placement Location: Washington, D.C.

As a first generation student, Luis majored in Political Science at the University of California Berkeley. Raised in the small City of Vista, he was exposed to the every day struggles immigrant families faces in southern California, from unfair treatment by the justice system to blocked access to basic social programs. This put him on a career path in Law and is planning to attend law school after he graduates spring 2023. Eager to involve himself in the law field, Luis...