2022 – 2023 OSU SACNAS Leadership
President: Alejandra Martinez-Mendez
Alejandra’s email: martinez-mendez.1@osu.edu
Vice President: Ale Zaleta Lastra
Secretary & Communications Chair: Natalia Patritti Cram
Natalia’s email: patritticram.2@osu.edu
Treasurer: Allison Chartrand
Allison Chartrand is a 6th year Ph.D. candidate in the School of Earth Sciences and the current Treasurer of the Ohio State SACNAS Chapter. She studies glacier dynamics at the Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center, focusing on using remote sensing to investigate the evolution of basal features in the floating ice shelves surrounding Antarctica. She is originally from upstate New York and enjoys playing French horn, running, and doing frozen and liquid watersports whenever she can.
Allison’s email: chartrand.8@osu.edu Twitter:@IceShelvesAndAC
Graduate Recruitment Chair and Outreach Chair: Iresha Jayasinghe
Iresha Jayasinghe (she/her/hers) is a Ph.D. student in Environmental Social Sciences with a graduate minor in Public Policy and Management. I am an international student from Sri Lanka, and I graduated from Illinois State University with a master’s in Conservation Biology. My research is focused on understanding how international students in the US connect with nature and how to improve their engagement with the environment. My hobbies include traveling, listening to music, watching Korean dramas, photography, and spending time with cats.
Undergraduate Recruitment Chair: Chris Kalman
Chris is a second year undergraduate student majoring in Environmental Science with a minor in philosophy on the Pre-Law track. Currently, he is the undergraduate recruitment chair of the SACNAS Chapter here at OSU. In his past, he gained research experience in social sciences looking at Native American representation in national parks and currently works for the stream ecology research lab while pursuing his thesis regarding native and nonnative crayfish. He was born in southern California but grew up near Columbus and enjoys listening to music, going to the gym, and being in nature.
National Liaison: Ashani Hangawatte
Ashani is a second-year student in the Environment and Natural Resources, Doctor of Philosophy program. Prior to enrolling in the graduate program, she has worked on a couple of research projects on fish ecology, captive sloth bear behavior, marine mammal genetic diversity and urban wild feline ecology and diseases in Sri Lanka. Her passion is to learn disease ecology in order to apply the knowledge to Wildlife Conservation. Her PhD research is focused on nasal mite infestations in Southern Sea Otters. In her free time she loves to spend time on animal welfare, traveling, hiking and SCUBA diving.
Meet our 2021 – 2022 OSU SACNAS Leadership
President
Vice President
Secretary
Alexandra Martinez-Mendez
Treasurer
Communications Chair
Recruitment Chair
Meet our 2020 – 2021 OSU SACNAS Leadership
President
Priscila M. Rodriguez Garcia is a Ph.D. Candidate in the Molecular Genetics Department. She is a member of Dr. Paul Herman’s lab where they study the regulation of cellular organelles that lack a membrane using baker’s yeast as a model organism. Priscila is from Puerto Rico and enjoys playing video games and exploring Columbus with her dog, Gonzalo.
Priscila’s email: rodriguezgarcia.2@osu.edu Twitter: @priscila_marie
Vice-President
Allison Chartrand is a 4th year Ph.D. candidate in the School of Earth Sciences and the current Vice President of the Ohio State SACNAS Chapter. She studies glacier dynamics at the Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center, focusing on using remote sensing to investigate the evolution of basal features in the floating ice shelves surrounding Antarctica. She is originally from upstate New York and enjoys playing French horn, running, and doing frozen and liquid watersports whenever she can.
Allison’s email: chartrand.8@osu.edu Twitter:@IceShelvesAndAC
Treasure
Xilal Rima is a 3rd year Ph.D. candidate in the department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and is currently the treasurer of SACNAS. He is also the vice president of LLEGA (Latino\Latina Engineering Graduate Association). Xilal’s research focuses on engineering glass surfaces to encourage the communication (chisme) of cells to better comprehend cancer dormancy. Xilal is from Colorado and enjoys playing soccer, jamming out on his guitar, and dancing!
Social Media Coordinator
Elvia Lozano is currently a 4th year Biology major on the Pre-Med track. She hopes to one day become a physician scientist who focuses on family medicine and epidemiological research for minority communities. She is currently our social media chair, the Vice President Girls Of Outreach and Diversity( a Latina Sorority Interest Group), and the Undergraduate Volunteer Coordinator for La Clinica Latina. Elvia has lived most of her life in Orange County, CA but was born in Jalisco, Mexico. In her free time, Elvia likes to make embroidered wall art and watch documentaries on Netflix.
Fundraising Chair
Natalia Patritti Cram is a second year undergraduate student in the field of Anthropological Sciences and Medical Anthropology. She is interested in research and STEM education accessibility for minorities. She is currently SACANAS fundraising chair. She is also involved in other organizations which strive for inclusivity and education such as the GirlUp foundation where she is part of the Midwest Team as the Social/Event Lead. In her free time, she enjoys watching cooking shows, cooking, and spending time with her dog Orion.
Recruitment Chair
Gabo Zeballos is a 5th year Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Geography and 2020’s Ohio State SACNAS Chapter Recruitment Officer. Gabo’s research involves the use of satellite imagery and botanical field assessments to determine the impact of climate change upon high altitude ecosystems in the Andes. Gabo is also a Foreign Language and Area Studies fellow from the Centre of Latin American Studies at Ohio State University for the language Quechua, the most spoken native language in the Americas. Gabo is Bolivian. Gabo loves cooking for friends and is ashamed when he has high sickness in the mountains, which happens every time he goes back to Bolivia. Do not tell anybody, please.
Communications Chair
Ally Langley is starting her 6th year in the biological division of the Chemistry Ph.D. program. Her research focuses around the protein folding problem and understanding what factors are involved with the stability of proteins. She is currently the Communications Chair for SACNAS and a member of FOCUS (an organization for women in science), was a summer intern at Genentech, and will be finishing up her Ph.D this semester! Ally is originally from San Diego and enjoys going to hockey and football games, concerts, and exploring Columbus for new food!
Webmaster and National Liaison
Daniela Bautista-Bernardo is a second year biology major, she is the webmaster and national liaison. Daniela is from Columbus, Ohio. She is in the pre-med track in hopes of becoming a physician. The rest of her time is dedicated to spending time with her dog Bella.