Matsui Center Cal-in-Sacramento Fellows

2025 Cal-in-Sac Fellows

Celina Buncayo

Class of 2026
2025 Jo Freeman Women in Politics Fellow
2025 Cal-in-Sacramento

Celina Buncayo (She/Her)

Celina Buncayo is a first-generation Filipina immigrant and student at UC Berkeley majoring in Political Science. Celina is on the pre-law track to become an immigration attorney and public servant. Celina has conducted several qualitative research projects on issues affecting the youth and the Filipino American population. She is excited to pursue further research on public policy affecting women’s health this summer through the Jo Freeman Fellowship. Through research and community organizing, Celina...

Cristal Amezcua

Class of 2025
2025 Cal-in-Sacramento
2025 Diversity & Entrepreneurship Fellow
2024 Democracy Camp in Berkeley

Cristal Amezcua (she/her)

Cristal is a first-generation Latine student at UC Berkeley, majoring in Political Science. She was raised in the California Central Valley and attended College of the Sequoias in Visalia, California prior to transferring to Cal. She is the daughter of Mexican immigrants from the states of Michoacan and Zacatecas. Her identity of being a Latina and an unconventional college student is what makes her passionate about advocating for educational equity and immigration reform policy.

In Summer 2024, Cristal had the...

Valeria Pasillas

Class of 2026
2025 Cal-in-Sacramento

Valeria is a first-generation Mexican-American student at UC Berkeley, majoring in Political Science with a double minor in Education and Public Policy. Proudly raised in Fresno, California, in the heart of the Central Valley, she is the eldest of five children and the daughter of immigrant farmworkers. Valeria’s passion lies at the intersection of politics, education, and advocating for young, low-income students.

During the summer of 2024, Valeria interned at Bay Area Legal Aid in Richmond, where she served as a paralegal student intern. Bay Area Legal Aid provides critical...

Tyler Remillo

Class of 2026
2025 Cal-in-Sacramento

Tyler Remillo (She/her)

Tyler Remillo is a Political Science undergraduate student at the University of California, Berkeley. With internship experience at the state and federal government, Tyler is passionate about exploring a career in public service to change lives and transform communities.

A proud product of the California Community College system, Tyler believes in the value of an education. Tyler recently celebrated her 1 year at the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Student Achievement Program housed at...

Angelo Raga

Class of 2025
2025 Cal-in-Sacramento
2024 Democracy Camp in Berkeley

Angelo Raga (he/him)

Angelo Raga is an aspiring public servant and a fourth-year student majoring in political science. Growing up with friends disadvantaged by race and class and surrounded by talk of such increasingly prominent political issues as a rising cost of living and political polarization, he has long been interested in public service as a way to fight these issues. To those ends, he has previously worked as an intern for the Asian Pacific American Public Affairs Association and the Placer County Public Defender's Office. He also...

Shanti Dorado

Class of 2026
2025 Cal-in-Sacramento

Shanti Dorado (She/her)

Shanti Dorado is a passionate third-year student at UC Berkeley with a major in Sociology. As a low-income, first-generation student from Riverside County, she is deeply involved on campus as a Peer Advisor for Cal Student Central, Academic Chair for Hermanas Unidas, Internal Team Engagement Intern for the Chicanx & Latinx Student Development Office, and NAVCAL student fellow. Skilled in event planning, data management, and advocacy, she engages with her communities by creating events and programming for Latinx...

Catherine Huang

Class of 2027
2025 Cal-in-Sacramento
2025 Jo Freeman Women in Politics Fellow

Catherine is a first-generation Taiwanese-American student at UC Berkeley, majoring in Political Economy with minors in Data Science and Public Policy. Catherine’s interest in public service, particularly in advocating for children and families navigating legal challenges, stems from her personal experiences coming from a struggling, low-income, single-parent, immigrant household that has experienced domestic violence, sexual assault, and divorce. Witnessing the emotional and financial toll on her family, she became determined to assist others in similar situations.

Aside from...

Sabrina Avenido

Class of 2026
2025 Cal-in-Sacramento

Sabrina Avenido (She/her)

Growing up helping her mother's small business cleaning operation rooms in between patients and taking her grandmother's blood sugar each morning before school, Sabrina has always embodied passion for healing her community. The famous saying, "No history, no self. Know history, know self.", motivated her to major in Asian American and Asian Diaspora Studies and minor in Public Policy as a first-generation Pinay American student at UC Berkeley to understand the history and evolving needs of her community.

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Rona Lasam

Class of 2026
2025 Cal-in-Sacramento
2025 Diversity & Entrepreneurship Fellow

Rona Marie Siniguian Lasam (She/They)

Rona Lasam is a junior at the University of California, Berkeley, majoring in Political Economy with plans to minor in Data Science. A first-generation immigrant from the Philippines and a queer, low-income student from Van Nuys, California, Rona’s academic and professional journey is deeply rooted in a commitment to advocating for marginalized communities. Their unwavering passion for social justice is shaped by personal experiences growing up in a community where resilience outweighed...