Our Mission
The goal of the Physics & Astronomy Graduate Student Council (PAGSC) is to address important issues pertaining to Physics & Astronomy graduate students at Northwestern University.
PAGSC achieves this by providing a structure to organize student efforts, receive input from the student body, and work with the Physics & Astronomy department.
Executive Board
The executive board provides a central structure to PAGSC. It provides support for the committees and serves as an interface between PAGSC and Physics and Astronomy Department.
President
Andrew Dana
Email: pagsc_president@u.northwestern.edu
The president is the organizational leader of PAGSC. The president is responsible for scheduling and running regular committee and town hall meetings, ensuring that all issues that arise are given fair attention, and seeking out students to serve on committees when necessary.
Secretary
Beryl Hovis-Afflerbach
Email: beryl@u.northwestern.edu
The secretary is responsible for managing non-financial documents associated with PAGSC, excluding documents internal to committees. This includes taking meeting minutes and maintaining the PAGSC website.
Treasurer
Austin Marga
Email: austinmarga2027@u.northwestern.edu
The treasurer is responsible for keeping track of any funds coming into or going out of PAGSC and maintaining a balanced budget.
Committees
Committees are responsible for planning and executing student efforts for a designated area of interest. Interested students may freely join a committee of their choice. The following committees have been identified by the student body as important, and should remain in place. If necessary, additional committees may be formed.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Chair: Caroline von Raesfeld
Email: carolinevr@u.northwestern.edu
Promotes an inclusive graduate student community and provides support to students or student groups that are disenfranchised, exploited, or victimized.
International Students
Chair: Yi ‘Eva’ Zhao
Email: yizhao2025@u.northwestern.edu
Develops resources for international graduate students addressing the unique issues that may arise, and encourages acceptance and involvement within the department.
Master’s Students
Chair: Tianpu Zhou
Email: tianpuzhao2022@u.northwestern.edu
Ensures awareness of policies, deadlines, and other information pertinent to Master’s student success both at Northwestern and in the future.
Mentorship
Email: pagsc_mentorship@u.northwestern.edu
Co-chair: Hardeep Singh
Email: hardeep.singh@u.northwestern.edu
Co-chair: Andrew ‘Andy’ Marszewski
Email: andrewmarszewski2029@u.northwestern.edu
Promotes graduate student success by organizing mentorship programs.
Outreach
Chair: Olivia Meredith Bitter
Email: OliviaBitter2027@u.northwestern.edu
Organizes opportunities for graduate students to share their research with and provide science education to the community.
Seminar
Chair: Danyang Chen
Email: DanyangChen2026@u.northwestern.edu
Organizes opportunities for graduate students to engage in and improve their scientific communication.
Social
Co-chair: Zhuoxuan ‘Jeff’ Xie
Email: ZhuoxuanXie2027@u.northwestern.edu
Co-chair: Alice Cai
Email: AliceCai2028@u.northwestern.edu
Establishes a greater social connectedness among graduate students and promotes well-being in the student body.
Teaching Assistants
Chair: Sharika Saraf
Email: SharikaSaraf2026@u.northwestern.edu
Investigates and improves upon the ways graduate students interface with undergraduate Physics & Astronomy education at Northwestern University.
