From academics to real-world impact, explore stories from our community that highlight the people and experiences making ºÚÁÏÇ鱨վ a place of opportunity, discovery, and success.
Marissa Chan ’17 Alumni Urban & Environmental Policy Public Health Marissa Chan has aspired to be an environmental epidemiologist since she was 17. Committed to fighting environmental injustices that disproportionately affect some communities, she’s on her way to Harvard for graduate training.
Morgan Bennett-Smith ’17 Alumni Marine Biology Morgan Bennett-Smith is currently a master’s student at the Red Sea Research Center, and his studies of coral reef ecology and how reef organisms adapt have taken him (and his camera) all over the world.
Lynn He Student Chemistry Art & Art History Coming to ºÚÁÏÇ鱨վ with plans to pursue chemical engineering, the liberal arts took Lynn He in unexpected directions. Her classes and professors helped her discover new passions and blend them with existing ones, forging a path she says better reflects who she is.
Margi Rusmore Faculty Geology Structural geologist Margi Rusmore was recently named the inaugural Gibby Professor of Science at Occidental. She blends a passion for teaching and research with a love for the outdoors and an abiding curiosity about how our planet works.
Lande Ajose ’87 Alumni Diplomacy & World Affairs Armed with a briefcase full of challenges facing the nation’s largest higher education system, Lande Ajose brings new energy to Sacramento.
Jacques Lesure Student Education Designing his own interdisciplinary major, Resistive Education in Theory, Research and Policy, Jacques Lesure is passionate about ensuring positive life outcomes for youth through equitable education systems.
Manjun Hao Student Diplomacy & World Affairs Urban & Environmental Policy A Diplomacy & World Affairs major from China, Manjun Hao is motivated to support and celebrate international identities on campus.
Anna Palmer Student Sociology Critical Theory & Social Justice Anna Palmer has devoted her college career to mentorship, supporting social justice and her research on Afro-Carribbean motherhood.
Rahsaan Middleton Student Biology Rahsaan Middleton has worked to build community on campus through his involvement with the Muslim Student Association.
Besher Ashouri ’18 Alumni Cognitive Science A cognitive science major at ºÚÁÏÇ鱨վ, Besher Ashouri is a now a student at Stanford University School of Medicine.
Sara Packer ’18 Alumni Mathematics A mathematics major with a sociology minor, Sara Packer is fascinated by customer buying behavior in her work as an Inventory Planning Analyst for Banana Republic.
Vivian Vuong ’18 Alumni Diplomacy & World Affairs Vivian Vuong majored in Diplomacy & World Affairs with an economics minor, which helped lead her to her current job as a Tax Trainee in the Business Process Solutions division at Deloitte Vietnam.
