Student Experience
Creativity and community: Student Rebecca Oregel shares impact of scholarship support on her UCSC journey
As the recipient of the Alumni Association Scholarship and Eric Thomas Memorial Award, Rebecca Oregel reflects on how that support has fueled her journey as a first-generation student, artist, and community leader at UC Santa Cruz.
Rebecca Oregel (Merrill ’26, global and community health) received the Alumni Association Scholarship throughout her time at UC Santa Cruz and received the Eric Thomas Memorial Award in her final year.
Rebecca Oregel (Merrill ’26, global and community health) grew up in Southern California. Looking for a path to step outside of the familiar, she chose to attend UC Santa Cruz. During her time at the university, Oregel mentored high school students, contributed to student-led publications, and found her voice as a radio host and community builder. She will graduate from UC Santa Cruz this spring with a B.A. in global and community health.
Imperative to her time at UCSC was the Alumni Association Scholarship, which supports high achieving students for their entire duration at the university. Oregel received the scholarship throughout her four years at UC Santa Cruz and in addition, was awarded the Eric Thomas Memorial Award this year.
“Being the first in my family to graduate from university, receiving this kind of support means a great deal because it helps lighten some of the pressures that come with pursuing higher education,” Oregel said. “At the same time, it feels like a meaningful affirmation that the work I am doing matters and that people are rooting for my success.”
Established in 2004, the Eric Thomas Memorial Award is given to one Alumni Association Scholarship recipient each year, who best reflects the spirit of Eric Thomas, a beloved former UCSC Alumni Association President.
Eric offered a helping hand to whoever needed one. He was a leader who embraced and symbolized a major piece of the UCSC experience: making the world a better place one small act at a time, and having a good time doing it.
“I feel deeply honored to receive support connected to Eric Thomas’s legacy and ethos at UCSC,” Oregel said. “This scholarship makes me feel seen and heard in a way that motivates me to keep pursuing my ambitions with even more purpose.”
After graduating, Oregel plans to pursue a master’s degree in public health and wants to continue exploring work in health policy and research. She says she is interested in using public health as a tool to better understand structural inequities and to help create more informed, community-centered solutions.
Interning with the UC Santa Cruz Institute of the Arts and Sciences, pursuing a certificate through Visualizing Abolition, and involvement in student-led organizations helped shape Oregel’s passion and long-term goals.
As an intern at the Institute of the Arts and Sciences (IAS), Rebecca Oregel supported high school students from Santa Cruz and Watsonville in the institution’s Art for All Teen Program focused on creative expression and college access for underrepresented communities. The role felt deeply personal, as Rebecca connected with students navigating questions of belonging that mirrored her own experiences as a first-generation student.
One moment that stands out involved an initially withdrawn student who, through Rebecca’s patient and consistent check-ins, gradually opened up and became one of the most engaged voices in the program.
In addition to her work with the Art for All Program, Oregel supports student programming, event coordination, and exhibition tours at IAS.
Oregel is also a member of student-run organizations TWANAS and KZSC. TWANAS, The Communities of People of Color Student Press, is an art and literary magazine rooted in social justice. At KZSC, the campus’s student-run radio station, Oregel hosts her own weekly music programming show and occasionally live mix at station events.
“My involvement in TWANAS, KZSC and the IAS has allowed me to explore the intersection of creativity, activism, and communication, which has become deeply meaningful to me and my experience at UCSC.”
Oregel emphasizes that the support she has received through scholarships and community has been transformative in her journey at UC Santa Cruz.
“I am incredibly grateful for this recognition and for the opportunity to be part of a community that continues to support students in such meaningful ways. Receiving this scholarship motivates me to keep growing, stay involved, and continue building a future rooted in curiosity and purpose.”