2019 Fluegelman Bunnell Fellows

On June 29, the Fluegelman Bunnell Fund held its annual award luncheon at Kingston 11 in Oakland, where we gave HP Envy laptops to some inspiring college-bound Bay Area students. Here’s a look at this year’s fellows, what they’ve accomplished so far in their communities, where they’re headed next, and what they plan to do over the long haul.

Michelle Alcantar

A graduate of James Lick High School in San Jose, Michelle is headed to the University of California, Riverside. She has been an intern for the Statewide Strategy Team of Californians for Justice, championing strong relationships between students and teachers. She plans to earn a degree in public policy and then seek a career that involves grassroots organizing that helps communities.

Lauren Hana Carroll Delaney

Lauren will be attending Brown University after graduating from Mt. Diablo High School in Concord. She has volunteered at Glide Memorial Church with her family. Her plan is to earn a master’s degree in computer science and business administration and seek a career at a large company. 

Zalma Gallardo

Zelma, a graduate of Middle College High School in San Pablo, will be attending the University of California, Berkeley. She has taught guitar to at-risk kids at St. Marks Catholic Church in Richmond, and was chair of her school’s newsletter committee. Her goal is to earn a PhD in mathematics and apply that education to develop new medical devices and prosthetics.

Assata Elon Gui’Chard

After graduating from Gateway High School in San Francisco, Assata will be attending Spelman College in Atlanta. As an intern at UCSF’s Women’s Health Center, she helped plan a health and leadership summit for over 250 girls. She plans to earn a bachelor’s degree in health science and then head to medical school, then become a neonatal doctor at a hospital in an economically diverse community.

O’Philia Le

O’Philia, who graduated from Alameda Science and Technology Institute, is headed to Pitzer College in Claremont, CA. Her volunteer activities have included serving on the board of directors for the MOSAIC Project, as student president for her school’s Parent Teacher Student Association, and as a teacher’s assistant at the Oakland Zoo. After earning a bachelor’s degree, her plan is to attend Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and then become a pediatrician at a hospital in California.

Alexandra Del Carmen Merino

A graduate of Nea Community Learning Center in Alameda, Alexandra will attend San Francisco State University. She created a Senior Panel at her school to provide help with organization, academics, and conflict resolution for freshmen and sophomores. She plans to serve low-income communities as a dentist after earning a degree from the Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry at the University of the Pacific.

Arlet Guadalupe Miranda

Arlet graduated from James Lick High School in San Jose and will be attending the University of California, Berkeley. She has been a cofounder and vice president of  a robotics club at her school and a member of its environmental club. After earning a computer science degree, she plans to seek a career in computing and inspire others from backgrounds similar to hers.

Morgan Kam

Morgan, a graduate of Cupertino High School, is bound for San Jose State University. She has volunteered for the Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition and S.E.S. Portuguese Hall in Santa Clara, as well as tutoring in-need students through a program called Terra Nova. She plans to become a social science teacher for middle and high school students.

Kameya Turner

Kameya will be attending California State University, Sacramento after graduating from Oakland High School. Her volunteer activities include the Martin Luther King Jr. Freedom Center, Youthbridge, H.EA.L., and United Black Students of Oakland. She intends to pursue a medical career.2018 Fluegelman Bunnell Fellows

2018 Fluegelman Bunnell Fellows

On June 16, this year's Fluegelman Bunnell fellows were guests of honor at a luncheon at Oakland's Kingston 11, where they received HP Envy x360 laptops. Here's a look at their inspiring achievements in high school and even more ambitious plans for college and beyond.

Erick Alvarez

Erick attended Madison Park Academy in Oakland and will be a student at the University of California, Berkeley, this fall. As a volunteer in the Anti-Illegal Dumping Campaign, he has educated everyone from middle school students to business owners in the interest of community beautification. He plans to study cognitive science, would love to work at Google, and once in the workforce plans to work with STEM programs for young people in East Oakland.

Angelah Asiimwe

Oakland Technical High School graduate Angelah is headed to California State University, East Bay. She has tutored 9th graders in biology and volunteered with the Prisoners Literacy Project, which donates books to inmates. After becoming a doctor, she plans to become an advocate for health in her community.

Barry Brand

Barry will be attending Xavier University in New Orleans after graduating from Oakland Technical High. As president of his school's Red Cross Club, he  organized blood drives, raised donations for orphanages, and helped coordinate the school's emergency plans. He plans to study medicine and, as a doctor with Doctors Without Borders, would like to serve communities in countries which might otherwise go without medical treatment.

Jasmin Galvan-Gandara

A graduate of Metwest High School in Oakland, Jasmin will be attending the University of California, Davis. She has assisted doctors and nurses in the CHAMPS program and, as part of Genesys Works, served as part of PG&E's disaster recovery team. She intends to pursue a career in medical technology after majoring in computer science and minoring in biomedical engineering.

Emily Hou

After graduating from Berkeley High School, Emily will be staying in Berkeley as a University of California freshman. During high school, she served as a math tutor, working in an English as a Second Language program. She has also worked to reduce tobacco use in her high school and plans a career in public health and medicine which will let her continue this effort.

Renelle Malone

Renelle graduated from Skyline High School in Oakland and is bound for Arizona State University in Tempe. In high school, she was senior class president, varsity cheer captain, journalism distribution manager, and black student union advisor; she also served as assistant director of a summer youth program which she had once participated in. Her plans include becoming a lawyer and educating her community about the justice system.

Chikaodili Obiorah

Chikaodili will be attending the University of California, Merced after graduating from Alameda High School. He's tutored kids in math at Alameda community centers, volunteered as head of officials for a Special Olympics basketball tournement, and was part of the first Alameda High basketball team to reach the division II state finals. He plans to become an engineer.

Edgar Oseguera

Edgar, a graduate of Oakland's Madison Park Academy, is one of five Fluegelman Bunnell fellows who will attend the University of California at Berkeley. In his internship at the Lawrence Hall of Science, he was part of a team which created an augmented-reality experience.  He plans to major in anthropology and minor in marketing, with a long-term goal of establishing a nonprofit which will help students from underserved communities get into college.

Cheavly Phat

Another graduate of Oakland Technical High School, Cheavly will be attending the University of California at Berkeley this fall. As a Brain Child volunteer at the Apollo Education Center, she has tutored students in math. She loves science and sees several ways she could channel that passion: as a pediatrician or family doctor, or through work in molecular cell biology.

Muskaa Zamani

Muskaa will attend the University of California at Berkeley this fall after graduating from Tennyson High School in Hayward. She wrote a book of poetry, earned $5,000 by selling copies, and donated the proceeds to fund a girls' school in Afghanistan. She will study public health and plans to use her education to serve struggling and homeless people, as well as help build schools and hospitals in the Middle East.

Fellow Updates

2015 Fluegelman Bunnell fellow Melanie J. Pascual, who is attending Middlebury College, writes:

I was in Portland, Oregon for the annual write/speak/code conference where I'm learning how to get into technical writing, open source coding, and speaking at conferences. My sophomore year at Middlebury College was amazing, I really liked the classes I took and met so many new people. I'm still a computer science & psychology double major and am involved in the women in cs club and women's rugby team. This year, I got to attend various events such as HackPrinceton, HackMIT, Grace Hopper, Pearl Hacks, and Harvard WeCode. I also won the Google Women Techmakers scholarship and the BOLD Women's Leadership scholarship. This summer, I interned as a full stack software engineer at a women's health tech startup, DotLab and taught middle school girls how to code video games with Girls Make Games. I traveled to participate in different tech programs at companies like Google, Twitter, and Square. I'm very excited for the upcoming school year!

News from 2013 fellow Carmen K. Zheng:

"It felt almost too surreal graduating from UC Berkeley this past May. After four years, I finally did it! I walked across the stage twice with a dual degree in Business Administration and Media Studies. My work at the UC Berkeley Office of Communications & Public Affairs since freshman year and research through the Haas School of Business paid off when I received my admission into graduate school. Last week, I packed my life into a suitcase and brought my beloved MacBook Pro to New York City, where I will be pursuing a Master of Science in Strategic Communication at Columbia University. Born and raised in Oakland with the UC Berkeley campus a mere 20-minute drive from my family home, this is my first big move away from the Bay Area -- and I can't be more excited for what's to come as I tackle my next challenge in the media capital of the world. Here's to new beginnings in the city that never sleeps! :)

2017 Fluegelman Bunnell Fellows

On June 24, the ten Fluegelman Bunnell fellows for 2017 gathered at Kingston 11 restaurant in Oakland, where they met each other and accepted the MacBook Pro laptops they'll take to college. Here's a look at what they've accomplished so far and their plans for college and beyond.

Photos by Kola Shobo. Not pictured: Ruqia Mohammad.

Michael Bell

Michael will be attending Morehouse University in Atlanta. At Castlemont High School in Oakland, he was team captain of the varsity basketball and football teams. He's also participated in the Teens on Target program by presenting a violence-prevention curriculum to middle-school students. He's considering a career in computer science or accounting. 

Henndel Benavidez

Henndel will be attending San Francisco State University. An immigrant from Mexico, he attended Mission High School in San Francisco, where he was active in Club Olé, an organization which shares the cultural traditions of Latin American countries. Henndel has also participated in Jóvenes en Éxtasis at the Mission Neighborhood Health Center as one of 10 students selected as peer educators. After graduating from college, he plans to support programs such as the ones that have made it possible for him to pursue higher education.

Casadora Boone

Casadora attended Oakland Technical High School and is headed to the University of California, Irvine. An AP biology course inspired her to create a presentation about preventing diabetes, which she has given to health and biology classes at her school; she plans to become a scientific researcher to continue this effort. She is a member of the Oakland Symphony Youth Orchestra and was co-president of her school's Black Student Union.

Symone Monet Nelson

Symone will enter Howard University in Washington D.C. after attending Liberty High School in Brentwood. She was class president and a student athletic trainer, and attended Summer Math and Science Honors Academy (SMASH) for three years at UC Berkeley.  She plans to study sports medicine, attend medical school, and become an orthopedic surgeon.

Chibuzor Obiorah

Headed for the University of California, Berkeley, Chibuzor attended Alameda High School after coming to the Bay Area from Nigeria. He has worked for the Alameda Recreation and Park Department, where he helped organize a haunted house for children as part of a volunteer effort. Along with his rugby team, he also distributed food to the homeless. He plans to study architecture, with the goal of founding his own construction company.

Kachi Onyeador

Kachi went to Middle College High School in San Pablo, where she was the leader of the Black Student Union, focused on improving test results and reducing school violence. Her volunteer work has included the Clothes Closet Event, Cleaning the Bay, and creating cards for Children's Hospital. She plans to pursue dual degrees in computer science and political science, and then apply technological innovation to farming with the aim of ending malnutrition in countries such as Nigeria.

Jocelin Robles

Now on her way to the University of California, Berkeley, Jocelin attended Aspire Lionel Wilson College Prep Academy. She was Bay Area Urban Debate's volunteer student of the year in recognition of the 50-plus hours she put into managing debate teams for middle-school students during 2015-2016.  Her long-term goal is to work for the city of Oakland in a position that will let her help people, while continuing to volunteer in areas relating to issues such as bullying, racism, and gender inequality.

Diana Rodriguez Cortes

Diana, who attended Oakland's Lighthouse Community Charter School, is bound for the University of California, Davis. She was a student council vice president and founded the school's anime club. She plans to study film and creative writing with a long-term goal of becoming a film director. She also intends to use her education to find to find ways to give back to the community of Oakland, whose diversity and culture has shaped her in ways she's grateful for.

Karina Salcedo

From Life Academy High School in Oakland, Karina will be headed to the University of California, San Diego. She volunteered at Street Level Health, a clinic which primarily serves immigrants, where her responsibilities included translation. The experience inspired her career goal of becoming a pediatrician. Karina also volunteered at the Cesar Chavez Library and with Reading Partners, where she read to elementary school students.