Current Graduate Students

Image of David Cowman, one of Dr. Russell's graduate students, conducting fieldwork in the forests of California.

Please click here to learn about our alumni, their research experiences as graduate students, and their respective careers paths after graduating from the ENVS program at San Jose State University.

Meet the Alumni

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Jose Asuncion

Hi! My name is Jose, and I was born and raised in the Philippines.

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Christina Barry

I was born in Michigan, and raised in Minnesota. I have spent all of my life enjoying the greatoutdoors and soaking up as much sunshine as possible.

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Yumna Zia

My name is Yumna Zia and I completed my undergraduate degree at UC Berkeley in Environmental Science. Growing up in the bay, I was surrounded by nature and loved to go hiking.   

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David Benterou

I spent my childhood Summers dipping in creeks and playing among oaks and sycamores in my hometown of Livermore, California.

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Su Zaw

Born and raised in Myanmar, I experienced firsthand the challenges of environmental degradation, deforestation, and water insecurity that affect many communities across the country. 

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Jazmyn Andrews

I was born and raised in Southern California within the InlandEmpire in Riverside. I graduated from University of California,Riverside with a Bachelor’s in Science in Environmental Sciencein 2024.

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Jarette Barajas

I spent a lot of my childhood in the outdoors or soccer fieldin my hometown of San Jose, California. My mother and I wouldfrequently hike at Alum Rock Park and other parks.

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Madison Creech

I grew up in Turlock, CA and recently graduated from CaliforniaState University - Monterey Bay with a B.A. in EnvironmentalStudies with a concentration in Sustainable Communities and aMinor in Environmental Health Policy.

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Isabelle Cojocaru-Durand

I was born and raised in Montreal, Canada. I speak French at home but went to school in English.

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Claudia Damiani Fontana

I was born in Peru and moved to the Bay Area five years ago.

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Kristy Doerr

I was born and raised in the Bay Area and have always had an immense fascination with animals.

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Stephen Doyle

I was born and raised in Upland, California. Growing up, I discovered my love of the outdoors during visits to national parks, natural history museums, and aquariums.

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Diana Garcia

My name is Diana Garcia-Colmenarez, and I am joining the Environmental Studies programhere at SJSU to focus on Fire Ecology and GIS.

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Kinsara Garg

I was born in a small town in the northern part of India. I grew up as a shy teenager with a lot of dreams encaged inside as a little girl.

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Eric Goldbeck-Dimon

I grew up in San Francisco and since childhood I have relied on the greenbelt of the San Francisco peninsula as a respite from the busyness of the city.

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Anna Greene

Hi everyone! My name is Anna Greene and I am from Santa Maria, California which is on the Central Coast.

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Melissa Rosales

There are singular events in life that shed light upon a vocationalpursue. It was during my third year of Environmental Engineeringat La Salle University in Bogota, Colombia when I began tounderstand the connection between man and nature as well as myown vocation.

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Jessica Gonzalez

I was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area and I graduated from San Jose State University with a B.S.

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Landon Guzman

Hello everyone! My Name is Landon Guzman, I am from Stockton, California. For my undergraduate degree, I also studied in the bay area at SFSU, where I graduated with a degree in Environmental Studies.

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Carter Hawkins

Growing up in the Santa Cruz mountains, coastal environments were something that always existed on my radar.

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Alexander (Ash) Ivanov

Grew up in San Francisco and got my BS in Environmental Science from Portland State University. I am primarily interested in research restoration ecology especially in stream and riparian ecosystems.

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Oliver Chesley

A child of two coasts, I was born and spent my childhood inBoston, Massachusetts before moving with my family to thebay area.

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Cynthia Rice

I was born in Alaska and spent much of my childhood there and in Maine. My father was in the Coast Guard so I always lived near the ocean.

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Taylor Key

Hi! My name is Taylor and I was born and raised in Washington D.C. Ever since highschool, I’ve had a calling for environmental justice.

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Robin Maya Elson

I grew up in rural Western Massachusetts, exploring theforest with my dog. From a young age, my purpose hascentered around safeguarding and nurturing theinterconnected web of life.

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Amarani Oronia Ortega

I was born in Zacatecas, Mexico and was raised in San José, California where I had the privilege of experiencing the city’sdiverse cultures. 

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Christian Knowlton 

I was born in Riverside C.A snd currently reside in Santa Cruz.  I spent eight years in the U.S. Army with multiple deployments over seas, before returning to school and earning my B.S.

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Jose Ruiz

Having grown up in Alviso I have a loving passion for environmental conservation and restoration, particularly in water sustainability.

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Christine Lopez

Hello! My name is Christine Lopez and I have been living in the San Francisco Bay Area my whole adult life, but mainly from the East Bay.

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Tanay Pradhan

I was born and raised right here in the Bay Area and have always had a fascination with the natural world and being outside. 

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Mojgan Mahdizadeh

I was born and raised in Tehran, the capital city of Iran. While living in Iran, I was able to obtain a B.A. in Economics from Azad Tehran University.

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Lindsey Marsh

My name is Lindsey Marsh and I am a San Jose native. I didn’t go camping or hiking often growing up, but I do have fond memories of getting together with my extended family at our local parks.

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Jodice Weens

I grew up in Riverside CA and always saw my family involved innature.

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Ann McMillan

My home biome is temperate rain forest, favorite california vegetation type is coastal sage scrub, my favorite bird is the American dipper, and the greatest plant genera are Quercus and Calochortus.

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Rebecca Mina

Hello, my name is Rebecca Mina. I was born and raised in Stockton, California. I attended San Joaquin Delta College for three years and transferred to CSU East Bay where I earned my bachelor’s degree in environmental science and a minor in biology.

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Gayatri Mujumdar

I am an Indian who has had the privilege of moving across India while growing up. I relocated to a new place every 2 years, changing schools, meeting new people, adapting to different climates, and connecting with diverse religions, cultures and demographics, all of which have played a great part in shaping me and developing my career.

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Mai Nguyen

I grew up around areas of San Jose, CA for the majority of my life. Ever since my childhood years, being outdoors and exploring new places has consistently been a keen interest of mine.

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Mayra Pelagio

I grew up in rural Mexico and migrated to the U.S when I was thirteen, I studied high school in East San Jose-Yerba Buena H.S.

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Raji Rajesh

I have always been passionate about nature. It began early in my childhood with my mother teaching simple practices she implemented around our house such as growing vegetables and fruits, reusing instead of buying new things and not wasting food.

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Sanjana Ramakrishna

Hello, I’m Sanjana. I come from India which is a land of villages. I was born and brought up in-the hugefarms of my grandparents in India where agriculture is the main occupation.

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Sherilyn Reinhart

I was born in rural Elk Grove and spent my teenage years in the small gold rush town of Placerville, CA. My four siblings and I spent the majority of our childhood outside tending goats, chasing roosters, fishing in the delta and seasonally hunting deer.

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Ingrid Salazar

I was born and raised in the San Fernando Valley, which most people simply call L.A. My parents are El Salvadorian and immigrated to the U.S. as young adults.

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Anjali Sharma

I grew up in the state of Haryana, located in northern India. I have always been one of those students who always liked reading interesting facts that amazed me.

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Allison Solis 

I was born and raised in San Clemente; a sleepy beach town in Southern California. I graduated from San Jose State University with a B.S.

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Bradley (Brad) Speno

Hello, I’m Brad and I grew up in Gilroy and received my bachelors degree in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from the University of Colorado.

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DeNarae Stewart

Hi there! The name’s DeNarae. I was born and raised in Riverside County, CA and moved toSan Jose 5 years ago to get my BS.

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Michelle Mandly

 I grew up in equal parts on Cape Cod, Massachusetts and Virginia Beach, Virginia.

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Yankit (Sam) Suen

I was born and raised in Hong Kong, China. When I was in secondary school in Hong Kong, I had the opportunity to conduct field research in various locations, which made me strongly appreciate the environment. 

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Melanie Kramer

I was born and raised in El Paso, Texas, where I grew up hiking in the beautiful Franklin Mountains. I graduated from Texas A&M University with a bachelor’s in physics, double minoring in math and electrical engineering.

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Olivia Trevino

Hello everyone! My name is Olivia Trevino, and I am a current graduate student in the Environmental Studies Program at San Jose State University (SJSU).

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Tam Ha

I was born in Saigon, Vietnam andmoved to America when I was only 4 months old. I’m not sure why I was even born in Vietnam because it restricts mefrom running for president.

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David Vásquez Ospina

Hello, my name is David Vásquez, I was born and raised in Medellín, the second biggest city in Colombia. Since childhood, I had so much contact with nature because of my parents’ passion for being in the countryside.

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Mitchell Victoria

My Name is Mitchell Victoria and I am about to begin graduate school after taking a short break during the pandemic. I graduated from UC Santa Cruz with a Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Studies.

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Dawnelle Wynne

After listening to many radio programs and reading articles that have sounded the alarm that immediate action is needed to reduce the human-caused degradation of the environment.

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Olivia Fragiacomo

I just finished undergrad at University ofCalifornia, Santa Cruz in Environmental Studies. I had a concentration in Conservation Science and Policy with a minor in Spanish Studies.

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Danielle (Abby) Espinosa-Gonzalez Bellolio

Hi! My name is Abby Espinosa-Gonzalez Bellolio I am from Des Moines, Iowa.

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Jiacheng (Jason) Zheng

My name is Jiacheng Zheng. I was born in Shanghai, China. I obtained my bachelor’sdegree of a double major biology and chemistry from the University of South Alabama in Dec 2022.

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Zhiyi (Lucy) Zhou

At the age of 15, I took a leap of faith and left my home country, arriving in the United States alone. My decision to seek new opportunities. With unwavering courage, I embarked on a path that would change my life forever.