Undergraduate Student Alum
Wesley Alejandro
Class of 2021, Biology Major
Wesley was a Human Biology major at UC Merced, class of 2021. Wesley first entered research as an assistant at the Translational Research Center, where he has studied public health issues such as childhood traumas, nicotine and drug use, and immigrant vaccination rates. In Dr. Kranzfelder's lab for biology education, Wesley was able to study the relationships between the COVID-19 pandemic and remote teaching. After graduating, Wesley hopes to continue research that focuses on marginalized communities.
Undergraduate Research Opportunities Center (UROC) Symposium Abstract
Graduate Student Alumni
Cristine Donham
PhD, Quantitative and Systems Biology (2016-2021)
Cristine Donham received a B.S. in Microbiology with a minor in Chemistry and Certificate in Biotechnology with an emphasis in Stem Cell Research from California State University, Long Beach, a master's in QSB from UC Merced, and a doctorate in 2021. Her research interests include the development of the immune system in dysregulated environments as well as metacognition, instructor discourse, and studying the effects of emergency remote transitioning on instructors. Her teaching interests are wide, but my favorite class to work with is Bio 1 because it is such an important foundational course. She is currently a postdoctoral research associate at the University of Georgia Athens.
Jourjina Alkhouri
PhD, Quantitative and Systems Biology (2017-2021)
Jourjina Alkhouri's work focused on Microbial Evolution and Antibiotic Resistance. Although she's passionate about her bench work, she takes special interest in undergraduate education and conducted education research, studying Instructor Discourse Move patterns at UCM. She is currently a Professor of Biology in the Merced Community College District.
