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Alexis Atsilvsgi Zaragoza is the 2020-21 Student Regent-designate and the 2021-22 Student Regent. She is an undergraduate transfer student at the University of California, Berkeley in the department of Geography. Ms. Zaragoza is a McNair Scholar studying the rural spatial imagination for students of color in access to higher education and plans on pursuing Ph.D. programs in Democracy or Political Sociology upon graduation in 2022. Previously she studied at Modesto Junior College earning honors degrees in Geography and Political Science and certifications in Ethnic Studies and Communications. Her undergraduate honors research projects are in the areas of public education, voting rights, and democracy. Ms. Zaragoza is the previous student board member in the California Community Colleges from 2018-2020, appointed by Governor Brown. During her time on the CCC board, she served on committees addressing remedial education, ESL accommodations, and faculty diversity. She also had roles on the systemwide Cal Grant Reform workgroup and Diversity Equity and Inclusion Committee, as well as serving as a Trustee to Calbright College—the first fully online community college in the world. In 2018, she also served as a campaign organizer for now-Congressman Josh Harder (D-10). As a Chicana and citizen of the Cherokee Nation, she is passionate about the rights of Indigenous peoples, creating a better campus climate for all UC students—including undocumented students, and fostering greater diversity among students and faculty in the UC system.

Jamaal Muwwakkil M.A. is the 2020-21 Student Regent. He is a graduate student at the University of California, Santa Barbara, in the Ph.D. program where his research specializations include African American language and culture, sociocultural linguistics and political discourse. As a first-generation college student, Mr. Muwwakkil transferred from Los Angeles City College to UCLA, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in applied linguistics with college and departmental honors. While at UCLA, he completed an undergraduate thesis focused on the institutional discourse surrounding peer-to-peer file sharing. At University of California, Santa Barbara, his M.A. thesis addressed the discourse of politically conservative student groups on a UC campus. His dissertation research focuses on institutional discourses concerning diversity and inclusion at minority serving institutions. Consistently engaged in advocacy, Mr. Muwwakkil served as a peer mentor with the Center for Community College Partnerships while an undergraduate, and served as president of the Black Graduate Student Association at UC Santa Barbara. Additionally, he works with UC-HBCU Pathways Initiative and other outreach programs to aid in UC access for underrepresented students.

Devon Graves was the 2018-19 Student Regent. At the time of his appointment, he was a student at the University of California, Los Angeles, Graduate School of Education and Information Studies working towards a doctorate degree in Higher Education and Organizational Change. Mr. Graves is a proud product of the California public higher education system and is the first in his family to graduate from college. He has been heavily involved as a student leader. He has served as Attorney General for the Cal Poly Pomona Associated Students, Inc. (ASI), and served two terms as the Chair of the California State Student Association (CSSA), the recognized statewide advocacy group for the 465,000 California State University students. Mr. Graves has also served two terms as a gubernatorial appointee on the California Student Aid Commission. He also served as the primary negotiator representing student consumers in the United States Department of Education negotiated rulemaking process for the Title IV Loan Issues rule making. Mr. Graves’ research focuses on community college students’ experiences with financial aid. He is committed to the study of higher education and wants to research different financial aid programs to ensure that students have all the tools they need to understand the cost of college, take advantage of all financial aid opportunities, and select the college that best suits them. Mr. Graves received his B.A. from Cal Poly Pomona and his M.A. from UCLA.

Hayley Weddle was the 2019-20 Student Regent. During her term as a Regent, she was a student at the University of California, San Diego, working towards a doctorate degree in Education Studies: Transforming Education in a Diverse Society. She is currently the co-chair of the UC San Diego Basic Needs Committee and the UC San Diego graduate student representative to the UC systemwide Title IX Advisory Board. Previously, she served as the Chief of Staff for the UC San Diego Graduate Student Association. Ms. Weddle completed her MA in Higher Education Leadership at San Diego State University, where she developed a passion for research related to access, equity, and student success. Following her time at SDSU, she worked for several years as a staff member at UC San Diego advising the undergraduate student government. In this role, she oversaw the development of the campus’s first food pantry and currently represents UC San Diego on the system-wide Food Access and Security committee. As a doctoral student, she has extended her research to the K-12 system, focusing on efforts to improve instruction in low-performing middle schools. Ms. Weddle graduated summa cum laude from UC Santa Barbara in 2011 double majoring in Accounting and Sociology and received her master’s degree in postsecondary educational leadership from San Diego State University in 2013.

Francisco Dueñas is the Executive Director for Housing Now!, a California statewide housing justice advocacy coalition. He was previously the Director of Housing Campaigns for the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE), a position which had him serving as the leading coordinator of Housing Now! for the last two years. Prior to joining ACCE, Francisco was the Director of Diversity and Inclusion for Lambda Legal, a national LGBT Impact litigation organization, where he worked for 14 years. He has also served on the Los Angeles City Human Relations Commission. He is from South Gate, California.

Civic Leader. Professor. Political Activist. Author and Motivational Speaker. Born in a prison cell to an incarcerated mother and a father unknown, Christian D. Green has overcome many obstacles rare, atypical and uncommon to others. Christian David Green is a first generation, former foster youth, non-traditional graduate from the Antelope Valley, specifically Lancaster, California. Christian graduated spring 2016 from UCLA with a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology with a minor in African American Studies. And then Graduated with M.A. in African American Studies spring 2018. Currently serves on the US Truth Racial Healing and Transformation Coalition”

As California Affordability Program Director at The Institute for College Access & Success (TICAS), Laura Szabo-Kubitz works to eliminate equity gaps and enable all Californians to attend and succeed in college by identifying and addressing college affordability challenges across the state. Along with research, policy analysis, and advocacy, Laura leads Californians for College Affordability, a diverse coalition of more than two dozen organizations united in strengthening need-based financial aid for the state’s underserved, underrepresented students. She received her BA in English from Oberlin College, and her MA in Education Policy and Management from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

A civil rights attorney and long-time democracy reform advocate, Jonathan Mehta Stein is the Executive Director of California Common Cause. Previously, Jonathan spent four years as the head of the Voting Rights & Census Program at Asian Law Caucus, where he worked to increase access to California’s democracy for historically disenfranchised communities. Jonathan also worked as a voting rights staff attorney for the ACLU of California and was the Chair of the Oakland Public Ethics Commission. While receiving his MPP and JD from UC Berkeley, Jonathan served as the Student Regent on the UC’s Board of Regents, where he fought for access, diversity, and affordability in public higher education. Prior to graduate school, Jonathan spent four years at Mother Jones magazine as a researcher, assistant editor, blogger, and campaign correspondent during the 2008 presidential elections.