Aldeb Perera (he/him/his):
Chapter President
Aldeb Perera is a PhD candidate in the Neurobiology Department. He uses fruit flies to uncover the neurons and pathways responsible for sensing sleep need and effecting recovery sleep. A Belizean native, Aldeb was raised in Central America and moved to the United States in 2013, where he became a first-generation college graduate after receiving his B.S. in Biochemistry from the University of Illinois at Chicago. He also studies classical piano at the Bienen School of Music at Northwestern. He is particularly interested in music by 20th century Latinx composers. In his free time, Aldeb likes to try new foods and play video games with friends and family.
Melissa Fajardo (she/her):
Chapter Vice President
Melissa Fajardo is a Neuroscience PhD Candidate in the NUIN Program at Northwestern University. Her birthplace is Miami, FL and she received a B.S. in Biological Sciences and a B.A. in Psychology from Florida International University. She is currently studying neural mechanisms behind human movement and their disruptions after injury or disease using human and computational approaches. Melissa is of Salvadorean/Guatemalan descent and is a first generation student. Outside of academia, she is also involved in teaching computer programming skills to high-school aged females and nonbinary folks and enjoys spending time tending to her indoor garden and weightlifting.
Citlayi Villaseñor (she/her):
Chapter Treasurer
Citlayi is a fourth year PhD student in the Interdisciplinary Biological Sciences (IBiS) program. She was raised in Escondido, California and earned her bachelor’s degree from San Diego State University studying biochemistry. Her dad’s side of the family is from Degollado, Mexico while her mom’s side of the family is from Los Angeles, California and Sinaloa, Mexico. She is researching in Dr. Neha Kamat’s laboratory in the department of Biomedical Engineering. Citlayi uses biophysical techniques to study lipid membrane properties and how these properties affect alpha-helical membrane protein folding. She is a first-generation doctoral degree student who loves being immersed in nature and music when she’s done in lab for the day.
Karla Medina (she/hers/ella):
Professional Development Chair
Karla Medina is a third-year PhD student in the Interdisciplinary Biological Sciences Program in the lab of Dr. Vadim Backman. She studies the chromatin dynamics of cancer stem cells to characterize how structure and conformation relate to ensemble gene expression using a combination of molecular modeling, genomic sequencing, and nanoscale microscopy methods. A proud Mexican American and Californian; she was born and raised in San Diego, CA, and earned her bachelor’s degree from Cal State San Marcos and a master’s from San Francisco State University both in Molecular and Cellular Biology. In her free time, she likes to explore the vibrant city of Chicago, thrift-flip with her sewing machine, and cook a variety of different Mexican dishes.
Chloe Lenker (she/her/hers):
Outreach Chair
Chloe Lenker is a M.S. student in the Biomedical Engineering Department at Northwestern University. She grew up in Frederick, MD but part of her family is from Puerto Rico. She received her B.S. degree in Materials Science with a double major in Biomedical Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University. Her research focuses on improving the stability of aptamer-based biosensors so they can be used in long-term, clinical applications. In her free time, she enjoys running, reading, and baking.
Jocelyne Chaves (she/her/hers):
Communications & Social Media Chair
Jocelyne is from Chicago and completed her undergraduate at DePaul University. She is pursuing a Master of Public Health (MPH) and works in Feinberg’s Center for Community health on perinatal mental health and child health outcomes research. Her family is from Puebla, Mexico and she enjoys running on the lakefront.
Karla Soriano (she/her/hers):
Secretary/Administrative Assistant
Karla is currently working as a research tech at the Smith Lab in the Pharmacology department. She uses in vitro and in vivo model to study the participation of ion channels during development of the cerebral cortex, and how specific mutations give rise to neurodevelopmental disorders or brain malformations. Karla was born and raised in Mexico City, where she obtained her B.S. degree in Biomedical Research. Her intention is to start her Ph.D. studies next fall. Besides science, Karla is very passionate about cooking, trying new food and learning new recipes, as well as going out dancing Latin music.
Annmarie Dominguez (she/her/hers):
Archivist & Webmaster
Annmarie Dominguez is a Ph.D. Candidate in the Driskill Graduate Program for Life Sciences (DGP), within the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University. She grew up in Los Angeles, CA and received a B.S. in Chemistry from the University of California, Santa Cruz. Her current doctoral research is focused on elucidating how vascular endothelial cells sense and interpret hemodynamic forces (such as shear stress, which is caused by physiological blood flow) at the molecular level. She is a first-generation student and the proud daughter of Salvadorean-American immigrants. In her free time, she enjoys listening to podcasts, cooking and sleeping with her calico cat Pepper.
Dr. Toni Gutierrez (she/hers):
Chapter Co-Advisor
Dr. Toni Gutierrez is the Assistant Director of the Driskill Graduate Program in Life Sciences at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine and has served as a chapter advisor to NU SACNAS since 2014. Toni grew up on Texas-Mexico border in Laredo, Texas and received her BS at St. Mary’s University in San Antonio. Toni completed her graduate work at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas where she studied B cell function and terminal differentiation in a murine model of lupus. Toni has family roots in the South Texas region and Michoacán, Mexico. Since moving to Chicago in 2012, Toni enjoys as many cozy and grand music venues as she can manage and loves to share recommendations!
Dr. Marcelo Vinces (he/him/his):
Chapter Co-Advisor
Dr. Marcelo Vinces is a Weinberg College Academic Adviser and Associate Professor of Instruction in Biology at Northwestern University and has served as a chapter adviser since 2020. He is also on the leadership team for Northwestern’s HHMI Inclusive Excellence grant. His research background is in molecular biology of fungi and evolution of gene expression. He advises several other undergraduate and graduate student groups, including Advancing the Undocumented Community and GoSTEM. He grew up in New York City in an immigrant family from Ecuador, was formerly undocumented, and navigated university as a low-income student. Besides biology, his other great love is learning languages.
