Edward Flores

Edward is a doctoral candidate in Education at Claremont Graduate University. His research focuses on teacher pedagogy that supports the development of student critical consciousness in high school Ethnic Studies and its impact on students’ civic engagement practices. Before graduate school, Edward managed a Youth Leadership Development program in Los Angeles, where students and teachers collaborated on Youth Participatory Action Research projects.

Jasmine Hamm

Jasmine is a doctoral student in the School of Education at Loyola Marymount University. Her research interests focus on how underrepresented students access the hidden curriculum through mentorship, their experiences with sense of belonging, and influences on graduation persistence.

Andrea Kern

Andrea is a doctoral student at UCLA in the Department of Education. Her research interests focus on the relationship between teaching experiences, language ideologies, and classroom practices of K-12 teachers of linguistically marginalized youth. Prior to graduate school, Andrea managed educational programming around mentorship and youth development at a large non-profit in Los Angeles.

Sarah Pérez

Sarah is a doctoral student at UCLA in the Department of Education. Her research interests focus on the intersection between immigration policies, education, and place, and how they shape newcomer youth’s educational trajectories and their identities as minoritized youth. Prior to graduate school, Sarah served as a youth worker and mentor at various non-profits in Los Angeles.

Sam Speroni

Sam is a doctoral student at UCLA in the Department of Urban Planning.  He is currently studying the travel behavior decisions of families for school trips; the implications of COVID-19 and remote work on the future of transportation and public transit; and the shifting landscape of automobile use and debt in California. Prior to graduate school, Sam taught high school English and served as a school administrator for Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, and magnet programs in North Carolina.

Carolyn Wang

Carolyn is an undergraduate at UCLA in the Statistics and Public Affairs departments. At LAERI, she is conducting research on L.A. Unified schools and is part of the data management team, which cleans and documents data in the LAERI archive.

Sophia Wang

Sophia is an undergraduate student at UCLA in the Public Affairs Department. Sophia is interested in studying college readiness through high school preparatory classes and examining the educational inequalities faced by Los Angeles schools. At LAERI, she hopes to expand upon her data analysis skills and apply her statistical knowledge.