In High School Jessica received Lamps of Knowledge awards for her participation in the Honors and Advanced Placement (AP) Programs, a varsity letter for her participation in soccer, music achievement awards for her participation in the audition-only Chamber Choir, and a service award for more than 50 hours of tutoring service a semester.  She also worked as the Lead English Tutor (2010-2012) for Vintage High School’s Study Buddy Program.  At San Jose State Jessica has held leadership positions (2009-2012) in the Asian Culture Club, the Humane Society Club, SynergyLit Club, and Crusher Crew. Outside of academics Jessica has interned at the Lincoln Theatre in Yountville (2013), where she promoted the theatre through marketing.  Jessica is currently treasurer of the Global Studies club (2014) and a student of the Humanities Honors program (2012-2014).

Debby Ng Junior Liberal Studies (Teacher Preparation) College of Humanities & Arts debby.ng@sjsu.edu   Sponsored by the Humanities Honors Program & College of Humanities & Arts

Phi Kappa Phi (2014), President’s Scholar (2013, 2014), and Dean’s Scholar (2012, 2013), Debby is co-founder and current treasurer of the Humanities Club at SJSU (2013-2014).  She was also a student in the Humanities Honors Program (2012-2013). A dedicated and passionate student pursuing her career in education, Debby is actively serving her commun-ity as a current Reading Partners literacy tutor at Horace Mann Elementary School, as well as a classroom volunteer.  She was also a Lowell High School JROTC cadet for four years, where she was Battalion Executive Officer (2011) and Company Commander (2010); and a four-year member of Lowell Drum Corps, Tom Leader (2011).  Debby is fluent in Cantonese and attended Chinese school for 13 years. She was recently selected in a feature story for the SJSU Honors Convocation (2014).

Samina Patel-Sharp Junior Global Studies College of Social Sciences samina.patel@sjsu.edu   Sponsored by the Associated Students

A member of Phi Theta Kappa (2011), Golden Key Society (2013), and Phi Kappa Phi (2014), Samina has also been a recipient of the Annette Horn Memorial Scholarship (2012) and the JM Long Scholarship (2012).  She is currently the Student Vice President of Phi Kappa Phi; Treasurer of Jesse Frey Community Gardens; and Founder of Willow Glen Fruitopia, an early stage nonprofit organization that provides no-cost and locally- sourced fruit to underserved communities.  Samina has also studied 16th century British history, economics, and foreign policy at the University of Oxford (UK) and has travelled extensively throughout Europe and Asia.  Professionally, she developed over 15 years of cross-functional workflow and efficiency expertise with her former employers at IBM, Reactrix Media Systems, and Ernst & Young LLP.  Upon graduation, Samina hopes to attend law school.

Gabriel Rodriguez Junior Sociology College of Social Sciences gabriel.rodriguez@sjsu.edu   Sponsored by the College of Social Sciences

Ever since he began attending San José State, Gabriel has been involved in organizations and community service.  He has worked at the Associated Student’s Cesar Chavez Commun-ity Action Center, Grace Community Center, the LGBTQ Youth Space, Californians for Justice, and the LUPE summer program.  In addition, he has been involved in Queers Thoughtfully Interrupting Prejudice (QTIP), EL PAIS, Movimiento Estudiantil Xican@de Aztlán (MEXA), and Gente Unida.  Currently, he is the Director of Intercultural Affairs for Associated Students.  He also advocates for students who are from underrepresented backgrounds – such as LGBT, disabled, and ethnic/cultural students.  All of these groups focus on how to improve the lives of people, specifically the acceptance of LGBT people or opportunities for more people to be involved in higher education. 

Hillary Schauf Sophomore Business Entrepreneuership Lucas College of Business hilary.schauf@sjsu.edu   Sponsored by the Lucas College of Business

A recipient of a President's Education Excellence Award (2010), Hillary’s diverse life has given her a multifaceted skillset.  She has prepared and served food at a local homeless shelter as part of her involvement with the California Scholarship Federation (2005-2009); and has worked as a stage manager, actor, and make-up artist for a theater group of 30+ people (2008-2010).  She has also worked as a caretaker for a child with disabilities (2011) and is currently a long-distance truck driver and customer service representative for Groovy Moving (2012-present).  A student in the Humanities Honors Program (2012-2014), Hilary received the Wobber Scholarship for academic excellence (2013).

Jose Ramil Seneris Graduate Student Aerospace Engineering Davidson College of Engineering joseramil.seneris@sjsu.edu   Sponsored by the Alumni Association

Jose Ramil is Project Lead for the Spartan Tethered Europa ExpLorer (Project STEEL), where he leads a team of students in the design, development, and fabrication of a micro-class remotely-operated underwater vehicle.  He also works as the Exo-Brake Fabricator with NASA Ames and a team of his peers on the TechEdSat series of small satellites.  Since 2012, Jose Ramil has been the Public Policy Director for the San Francisco Section of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA).  From 2011-2012, he served as the SJSU student Branch Chair of AIAA.  He is also a member of the SJSU Quidditch group.  During summer 2014, he will be working at The Tech Museum of Innovation as a member of the Maker Corps, ensuring that every child is a Maker. 

Joyce Suen Frosh Health Science College of Applied Sciences & Arts joyce.suen@sjsu.edu   Sponsored by the College of Applied Sciences & Arts & Associated Students

Joyce is currently a student in the Humanities Honors Program and intending to major in Health Science.  She is also actively involved in several community service groups. These include the Health Science Honor Society, which promotes academic excellence as well as being involved in the community through volunteer work; and Project SHINE, which is a student organization that connects students with volunteer opportunities to work with seniors.  She was first exposed to community service when she was an intern for Kaiser Permanente’s Office of Public Affairs and became passionate about community relations by working with health professionals.  In addition, Joyce would like to visit many countries so she can develop a broad understanding of different cultures and communities to become more globally well rounded.

Teklehaymanot Yilma Senior Political Science College of Social Sciences teklehaymanot.yilma@sjsu.edu   Sponsored by the Student Union

Currently a New Student Mentor at San José State and also a Development Intern at the Asante Africa Foundation, Teklehaymanot has devoted himself to campus involvement during his student career on campus.  This included service as a Resident Advisor for two years, which he spent educating up to 200 residents about the importance of global and multi-cultural competence.  It also included his service as the Publication and Sustainability Chair for the Pacific Affiliate of College and University Residence Halls in 2012.  In that role, he assisted in the overall planning and execution of the PACURH conference that hosted over 500 students from 20 universities in the Pacific region.  After studying abroad in Lille, France, TK interned for Congresswoman Anna Eshoo where he worked on fundraising, campaigning, and constituent outreach.  In 2014, he was awarded an Associated Students 55 Leadership Award for his contributions to the SJSU community.