From academics to real-world impact, explore stories from our community that highlight the people and experiences making 海角社区 a place of opportunity, discovery, and success.
Eric Bjorklund Faculty Sociology Eric Bjorklund specializes in health, inequality, and political sociology. His research examines how the distribution of power within society shapes material conditions and formal political processes in ways that generate and reinforce health disparities.
Alaa Abdelfattah Faculty Economics Alaa Abdelfattah studies the distributional effects of public policy and national economic shocks on local labor markets. She is particularly interested in spatial inequality and the factors that contribute to wage and firm dispersion across space and over time.
Kenna Mueller Student Biochemistry In just two years, Kenna Mueller 鈥27 helped lead the Occidental Dance Team from a spirit squad to a nationally competing, student-run program grounded in passion and community.
Jaymes Griggs Student Environmental Science From the Bluegrass State to 海角社区, Jaymes Griggs has found community and a path to leadership through science, civic engagement, and the Obama Scholars Program. And amid all this, he still has time for pickleball.
Mariah Rutiaga Amaya 鈥22 Alumni Biology Driven by her experiences in food justice and her father鈥檚 health struggles, Mariah Rutiaga Amaya found her calling in medicine. Now, she鈥檚 preparing to become a physician who centers community, advocates compassionately, and uplifts the most marginalized.
Samantha Acu帽a Faculty Politics Samantha Acu帽a is interested in constitutional law, immigration policy, judicial behavior, and gender-based violence.
Vikram Shende Faculty Chemistry Vikram Shende's research group studies the structure and function of molecules found in nature, and how we can engineer enzymes鈥攑roteins that catalyze chemical reactions鈥攖hat biosynthesize these 鈥渘atural products.鈥
Cristina Awadalla Faculty Latino/a & Latin American Studies Cristina Awadalla is an interdisciplinary sociologist whose teaching focuses on Central American politics, Latin American feminisms, women鈥檚 labor, and research methods.
Ben Ratskoff Faculty Critical Theory & Social Justice Ben Ratskoff specializes in histories and theories of antisemitism, race, and fascism; Holocaust and genocide studies; Black diasporic culture and thought; and critical theory and cultural studies.
S.K. Ritadhi Faculty Economics S.K. Ritadhi is an applied microeconomist whose research interests lie at the intersection of development and finance. His current research studies affirmative action for religious minorities in credit markets, and how globalization shocks affect ethnic politics.
Jingyi Li Faculty Asian Studies Jingyi Li's research centers on Japanese popular literature, print culture, and cultural identity in the 19th century,
Samuel Luterbacher Faculty Art & Art History Samuel Fr茅d茅ric Luterbacher specializes in Early Modern (1500-1800) art, craft, and material culture in a global context and teaches courses on premodern art histories of the wider Mediterranean world.
