College Adviser

Aceben Agustin

College Adviser - San Jose HS

Aceben (He/Him) is a Bay Area native who grew up in Santa Clara. After high school, he attended community college at De Anza. During his two years at Community College, he experienced many career changes and uncertainty. Supported and inspired by his college counselor, Aceben developed a passion for helping others and set his path to follow in his counselor's footsteps in becoming a Community College Counselor. After his two years, he transferred to UC Irvine in pursuit of accumulating work experience and a Bachelor's in Sociology. During his time at UCI, Aceben gained professional...

Alanna Le

College Adviser - Boost@Berkeley Haas

Alanna Le (she/they) is a Bay Area native, with roots in Oakland and was raised in Bay Point, California. She is a first-gen youngest daughter of Vietnamese immigrants and participated in college readiness programs that shaped her path. Outside of school, Alanna is always on the hunt for local eats and collecting cute knick knacks. Alanna earned a Bachelor of Arts in Integrative Biology, where she had the opportunity to work in various higher education roles; serving as a Berkeley Changemaker Ambassador, Boost@BerkeleyHaas DCAC/EAOP Assistant, and Residential Advisor for UC Berkeley from...

Alejandra Castro Gomez

College Adviser - Abraham Lincoln HS

Alejandra (She/Her/Ella) is a San Jose native, born and raised. She attended San Jose State University as a First Generation student, where she majored in Design Studies with a concentration in Graphic Design and a minor in Chicana/o/e Studies. During her undergrad, she was a college athlete who played on the Women's Club Lacrosse team, and was on the board for Hermanx de San Jose as a Social Media coordinator. She is currently obtaining her Master's degree at San Jose State University in High Education Leadership (cohort 4). Alejandra is passionate about supporting her community of San...

Alondra Avelar

College Adviser - Castlemont HS

Alondra (she/her) is a Bay Area native from East Oakland. She attended UCLA, where she double majored in Psychology and Chicano Studies. During her undergraduate years, she was a part of BruinCorps, a work-study tutoring job that aimed to support K-12th students in improving reading and math skills in the Los Angeles area. After college, she decided to become a college advisor in her hometown at Castlemont High School because she wanted to come back to her community and provide support and nurture confidence in students' abilities.

Anadeisi Pablo Mendoza

College Adviser - Skyline HS

Anadeisi ‭(she/her) is a Mayan Indigenous woman born in Guatemala and raised in California. She majored in Latinx Chicanx Studies at UC Berkeley after transferring from the College of Alameda in the Bay Area. During her undergraduate years at UC Berkeley, she volunteered as an English tutor at the San Quentin State Prison through the Teach in Prison program, which aimed to create a supportive community within the prison system and close the gap between incarceration and higher education. Post-grad, she wanted to continue working with underserved and underrepresented communities within the...

Anahi Garcia Gaytan

College Adviser - Gunderson HS

Anahi (She/Her/Ella) is a Bay Area native, born in Martinez, California and raised in Pittsburg, CA. She attended UC Davis, where she majored in ChicanX Studies. During her time in undergrad, she was been deeply involved in organizing and mentorship work, including serving as the Executive Chair for M.E.Ch.A at UC Davis, where she worked to empower the Chicanx/Latinx community through activism, community organizing, and cultural enrichment. She also worked as a student outreach advisor for the UC Davis Early Academic Outreach Program where she discovered her passion for mentorship,...

Casandra Song

College Adviser - Oakland HS

Casandra Song (she/her) was born in Winder, Georgia, and raised in Fresno, California, in the Central Valley. She attended the University of California, Berkeley, where she double majored in Psychology and Sociology. During her undergraduate years, she was actively involved in the Hmong Student Association at Berkeley (HSAB), where she helped plan events that fostered connection and community among Hmong students on campus. She also volunteered with HSAB’s Pursuit of Higher Education (PoHE) program, an annual overnight outreach initiative that brings Hmong high school students from across...

Christopher Lopez

College Adviser - Pittsburg HS

Christopher Lopez (he/him) is a Bay Area native, raised in Antioch, California. He attended the University of California, Davis, where he double majored in Spanish and Psychology and minored in African American and African studies. During his time in undergrad, inspired by his pride for his Mexican heritage, he formed part of Danzantes del Alma, a student retention program that aims to promote higher education and a safe space for underrepresented students through the art of Mexican folk dance. Additionally, he dedicated his free time to community service through his fraternity, Lambda...

Dania Fermín

College Adviser - San Jose HS

Dania (she/her/Ella) is from San Jose, born and raised in East SJ. She attended the College of the Holy Cross in Massachusetts, graduating with a Bachelor’s in Sociology and double-minoring in Education and Asian Studies. During her time in undergrad she led HCF1RST, the first-generation students club on campus to rais awareness about first-gen struggles and create community among students. Her time as a leader and Peer Mentor motivated her to follow a career in education in order to help more students gain access to and improve their experiences in higher education.

Diana Acosta

College Adviser - Antioch HS

Diana (she/her) is an East Bay native, raised in Pittsburg. She attended Los Medanos College before transferring to UC Berkeley where she majored in Psychology with a minor in Chicanx Latinx Studies. She worked at EOPS at Los Medanos as a Student Ambassador, helping underrepresented students receive the services that EOPS provides. At UC Berkeley, Diana worked at EOP as a Peer Academic Counselor in order to help fellow students with topics such as academic planning, financial aid, and campus life. After graduation, she became a DCAC/EAOP college advisor to help high school students feel...