Alumni

Meysi Ramon Francisco

Undergraduate Researcher
BIMI Team

Growing up in a low-income unincorporated community, resource accessibility, mutual aid, and education reform-centered work have always been a passion of mine. My personal experiences as an undocumented Latina in South Central Los Angeles have pushed me to pursue the knowledge needed to understand, address and actively participate in the amelioration of critical social problems. My hobbies center on finding extensions of creativity and innovation; specifically, using writing as a tool to bridge cultural diasporas together.

Therese Nicole Franklin

Graduate Student Researcher

Therese earned her bachelor’s degree in History from UCLA, her MPA from USC’s Price School of Public Policy, and she is currently finishing up her second Master’s degree in Global Studies at Cal. Therese has worked in humanitarian and refugee policy and programs for international NGOs such as Save the Children and International Rescue Committee and she has also spent time working at the US Mission to the United National headquarters in Switzerland as a Refugee and Migration Affairs Fellow for the US Department of State. Her professional experiences have influenced her current gradate...

Rebecca C. Franklin

PhD Candidate, University of California, San Diego

Rebecca Franklin is a PhD Candidate in sociology at the University of California, San Diego. She received her B.A. from Oberlin College in Latin American Studies and History and her M.A. from American University in Latin American Studies and International Relations, the first portion of which was completed as a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar at the Autonomous University of Puebla, Mexico. Her primary research interests are in race, gender, migration, and the workforce. She has taught undergraduate courses in Social Inequality and Racial and Ethnic Relations in the United States.

Luis Hassan Gallardo

BIMI Fellow

My name is Luis Hassan Gallardo, and I'm an undergraduate-DACA student at UC Berkeley, majoring in political science and ethnic studies. After graduation, I hope to continue my research to explore how salient identities like race, ethnicity, sexuality, and gender intersect in migration policy, advocacy, and law.

Featured Works:

Venezuelan Immigrants in the United States: https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/venezuelan-immigrants-united-sta...

Erandi Garcia

Undergraduate Researcher
BIMI Team

Erandi Garcia is a third-year student double majoring in Spanish and Sociology. Her current research includes investigating the erasure of language when migrating to a different country. This research is important to her because language is the main thing that has allowed her to keep her Mexican identity within the United States and communicate with her family.

Mehnaz Grewal

Undergraduate Researcher

Mehnaz is a 3rd year student studying Political Science with a minor in Public Policy. She is from Elk Grove, California, where she developed a profound appreciation for the rich culture of the Punjabi migrant community in Northern California. Mehnaz also serves as a Senator in the Associated Students of California, representing the Middle Eastern, Muslim, Sikh, and South Asian student community. When she’s not involved in Punjabi-Sikh and MEMSSA community advocacy, Mehnaz loves to take film photos, ride her bike, and try new coffee shops and cafes. Some of Mehnaz’s policy interests are...

Mehnaz Grewal

Undergraduate Researcher
BIMI Team

Mehnaz is a 3rd year student studying Political Science with a minor in Public Policy. She is from Elk Grove, California, where she developed a profound appreciation for the rich culture of the Punjabi migrant community in Northern California. Mehnaz also serves as a Senator in the Associated Students of California, representing the Middle Eastern, Muslim, Sikh, and South Asian student community. When she’s not involved in Punjabi-Sikh and MEMSSA community advocacy, Mehnaz loves to take film photos, ride her bike, and try new coffee shops and cafes. Some of Mehnaz’s policy interests...

Jiban Gurung

Undergraduate Researcher
BIMI Team

I was born and raised in a small village in Nepal. I am a first-generation college student. I have a diploma in Civil Engineering from Tribhuvan University, Nepal. I am a third-year transfer student and currently pursuing a Bachelor of Architecture degree at UC Berkeley. My dream is to become an American architect. I desire to participate in projects focusing on social justice, equity, and access to quality spaces and services in underserved and under-resourced communities.

My research interests include undocumented students...

Alein Y. Haro

Ph.D Student, Health Policy

Alein Y. Haro, MPH, is a doctoral student in Health Policy - Population Health Sciences at UC Berkeley. Alein’s research examines the association between policies and health disparities among immigrant communities and minorities in the US. Her work seeks to clarify the individual, institutional, and structural mechanisms that link health and social policy changes to health care access and health outcomes. She is also a research fellow with the California Initiative for Health Equity and Action (Cal-IHEA), where she acts as a liaison between UC and CSU faculty and the policy-making...

Arabi Hassan

BIMI Collegium Fellow 2018-2019

Arabi Hassan has an undergraduate degree in Sociology from UC Berkeley and during her time at UC Berkeley worked as a researcher at the Human Rights Investigations Lab. Her experience as an immigrant has taught her the importance of developing effective policies and programs that will ensure immigrant communities have the resources they need to thrive. Arabi Hassan was a Collegium Fellow in the 2018-2019 Collegium Fellowship at BIMI.