Alumni Profile
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Applying the science of social impact
UC Santa Cruz alumna Jennifer Rigney uses her Ph.D. in Psychology to support mission-based organizations in making effective, data-based decisions about their programs. She has helped advance the ocean conservation goals of the Monterey Bay Aquarium and now supports early childhood development as the director of evaluation and learning for First Five Monterey County.
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Humanizing every client
One year after graduation, Guneet Hora (College Nine ’23, intensive psychology, legal studies) works as a paralegal at the Office of the Federal Public Defender in the Western District of Virginia.
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A passion for change
One year after graduation, Nailah Smith (Stevenson ’23, cognitive science) works in the African American Studies and Chicana and Chicano Studies Departments at San José State University and is pursuing a Masters in Science.
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Life Beyond the Redwoods: Seeyade Gizachew shares insights one year after UCSC graduation
A health justice coordinator for RYSE Youth Center in Richmond, California, and a graduate student at UC Berkeley, Seeyade Gizachew (Stevenson ’22, community studies and psychology) is passionate about mentoring, education, and cultivating safe spaces.
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Keeping the stoke fresh
Alumnus David Schulkin, who has taught surfing to UC Santa Cruz students for more than two decades, is ‘all about joy and about passing on the joy of surfing.’
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The power of research
Wilfrido Hernández Flores discovered social science research in the Culture and Achievement Collaborative, and it changed his life
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The healing power of yoga
Powerful Netflix documentary ‘I Am Maris’ explores student Maris Degener’s fall into anorexia, her discovery of yoga as a healing tool, and her eventual recovery.
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Gov. Newsom appoints UCSC alumna Kris Perry to key post
California Gov. Gavin Newsom has appointed UC Santa Cruz alumna Kris Perry, a nationally recognized advocate for children, to a key post in his new administration.
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UC Santa Cruz honors alumni: bestselling author Hector Tobar and historian Virginia Espino
Award-winning journalist and author Héctor Tobar and filmmaker Virginia Espino are the 2018 recipients of the Social Sciences Division’s Distinguished Alumni Award.
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Campus environment led alumna to pursue architecture
Urban designer and planner Barbara Maloney (Stevenson, ’71, psychology) said working in higher education is “endlessly interesting,” involving not only issues like sustainability and town-gown relations but also transportation and new ways of learning.
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Prop. 8 plaintiff Kris Perry receives Distinguished Social Sciences Alumni Award
“You only win your civil rights by fighting for them,” says alumna Kris Perry, who will be honored at a reception on Friday, April 28.
