INTERNS
Our Interns are immigrant students who have recently graduated from college or are about to graduate from college. They serve a vital role in advising and mentoring other immigrant students in the Bay Area, as well as creating quality educational materials that benefit immigrant students nationwide.
2011 INTERNS
ILIANA PEREZ
Publications Editor
Iliana was born in Pachuca, Hidalgo, Mexico and immigrated to the US when she was eight years old. With the support and encouragement from her parents, family and friends, she graduated with academic and university honors from California State University, Fresno with a degree in Mathematics and minors in Economics and Business. While at Fresno State, Iliana participated in the Aztec Dance Club, Peace and Dignity Journeys, MEChA, The Hispanic Business Student Association, the Salsa Club and Associated Students Inc.. After graduation, Iliana went on to pursue a Master's Degree in Global Political Economy and Finance at the New School for Social Research in New York City. She believes that every student deserves the right to an education regardless of legal status. She hopes to return to Mexico one day to help alleviate the many socio-economic problems that exist and, in turn, create better living conditions so that people do not have to leave their home country.
2010 INTERNS
KRSNA AVILA
Legal Services Coordinator
Email: krsna@e4fc.org
Krsna is a recent graduate from the University of California, Davis where he received his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Sociology and Psychology. Arriving in the United States when he was four months old, Krsna only faintly remembers Mexico, the country where he was born. Growing up in Oakland, he was a victim of four different gun shooting incidents. His ambition to succeed academically has become a passion as well as a philosophy for self-development. In addition to serving as E4FC's Legal Services Coordinator, Krsna directs a high school mentoring program in Sacramento and is working to gain acceptance to prestigious law schools in the near future.
Read about Krsna profiled in The Contra Costa Times
BELEZA CHAN
Publications Editor
Beleza was born and raised in Brazil, and has been living in the Bay Area for almost eight years. As the daughter of Chinese immigrants in Brazil and an immigrant herself in the United States, she has witnessed the struggles and difficulties of newcomers. She has seen how cultural and language barriers prevent even the most hardworking from successfully adapting, and how broken immigration laws also prevent high-achieving students from becoming active members in society. Beleza has worked towards social justice as a teacher of at-risk youth in San Francisco, a writer with ethnic media such as AsianWeek.com and New America Media, and a community organizer. She graduated with Phi Beta Kappa and Highest Honors from UC Berkeley.
Read Beleza's essay Not Just a Latino Thing (Journal of College Admissions)
Read Beleza's Financial Aid Guide for Undocumented Students
FERMIN MENDOZA
Development Associate
Fermin was born less than two miles south of the Rio Grande in Tamaulipas, Mexico and immigrated to the United States at the age of four. A Public Policy major at Stanford University, he has advocated for undocumented youth through the Stanford Immigrant Rights Project and as an intern with Educators for Fair Consideration. He has also advocated for LGBT rights as a member of the Stanford Students for Queer Liberation and as a former volunteer in the "No on Proposition 8" Campaign.
Read Fermin profiled in The Stanford Daily
Read Fermin's The Case for Undocumented Students in Higher Education
Read Fermin's story Geography Class
INGRID HERNANDEZ
Film Production Assistant
Ingrid was born and raised in Guatemala. Since she immigrated to the United States 10 years ago, Ingrid has struggled to pursue the American dream despite the limitations and emotional challenges being an undocumented student. Through hard work and dedication, she is soon to graduate from Stanford with a bachelor's of science in Management Science and Engineering.
At Stanford, Ingrid has taken an active role in the Latino community through her involvement in many student organizations including the Stanford Society of Chicano/Latino Engineers & Scientists, Ballet Folklorico de Stanford, El Guiding Concilio and the Central American Student Association. This upcoming year, she hopes to use her role as chair of MEChA (Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan) to address her passion for social justice, specifically education and immigration issues.
In the future, Ingrid wishes to pursue a Masters in Business Administration and fulfill her lifelong goal of becoming an entrepreneur and starting a socially responsible technology business.
Read Ingrid's story Letter to Myself Before Leaving
Read Ingrid's story Things I'll Never Say
KAREN HERNANDEZ
Publications Editor
Karen was born in Guatemala and came to the U.S. when she was eleven years old. Because of the many struggles she experienced due to poverty in her home country, Karen has always been interested in raising awareness about social issues. She recently graduated from Santa Clara University with a Bachelors of Science in Economics. At Santa Clara she worked with the Multicultural Center as the Advocacy Program Coordinator where she programmed different events to educate students on such issues as racism, poverty, immigration, and genocide. She was also a research assistant for professors in the Sociology and Economics departments. Karen co-founded a program called Leaders of Tomorrow, which mentors undocumented high school students in East Palo Alto. In the near future she plans to pursue a degree in Public Policy & Management. Just as she was given the opportunity to obtain an education, Karen hopes to give back to her community in as many ways as possible.
Read Karen's Guide for Parents of Undocumented Students
Read Karen's story Orange Tree
Read Karen's poem My America
Back to Our Team
|