Fellows

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Meet the Mexico Center's Mellon Humanities Pathways Program Fellows!

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Cohort 9

Annah Sanchez

Mellon Fellow, 2024-2025

My research interests from this past semester have shaped the overall perspective I would like to engage with Art, Art History, Anthropology and Fashion Studies in such a way that connects with the theme of “Latinos in a Changing World” - An education that encompasses art, history, geopolitics, and anthropology would empower me to engage with the world in the face of rising fascism, climate change, and genocide. I feel connected to others through shared histories of human expression in the face of oppressive structures such as colonialism, capitalism, and racism.

Daniela Paniagua

Mellon Fellow, 2024-2025

IP-History and Anthropology major, IP-Spanish and Latin American Studies minor

Eric Lane

Mellon Fellows, 2024-2025

Hello there, my name is Eric Lane. I am currently an undergraduate student at the University of Texas at San Antonio, working towards my bachelor’s in history. I feel an incredible passion when it comes to studying history, as I believe it is an important element of understanding our modern world and ourselves. Previously, I have worked in other outlets of historical methods, such as consistently volunteering at the Holocaust Memorial Museum of San Antonio, as well as having interned at the museum in Spring 2023. While I find many areas of study incredibly fascinating and love to learn outside my focus zones, my primary research interests are; Jewish Studies, Israel Studies, Jewish History in the Americas, Mexican American History, United States History, the origins, history, and monitoring of contemporary antisemitism, Latino/a Jewish intersectionality, as well ethnic collective identity formation, such as Jewish peoplehood and Zionism. I am incredibly honored to be a Mellon Fellow. I am excited for the opportunity to further my research skills and prepare myself for a future in academia while learning from incredible mentors and working with my cohort fellows.

Hailey Aguilar

Fellow 2024-2025

My name is Hailey Aguilar and I am a undergraduate student majoring in History. My research interests focus on the interactions between ethnic groups and settlement patterns. I want to explore the lasting impacts of historical events on identity, community, and conflict. In the future, I hope to work in the preservation of historical narratives and educate on historical themes to emphasize the importance of historical context in addressing today’s challenges. I hope to contribute to our society by promoting research and understanding through research and preservation.

Jessica Gonzales

Mellon Fellow, 2024-2025

My research focuses on the intersection of social, cultural, and political history, with a particular emphasis on the experiences of people of color, especially during the World Wars and the early twentieth century. I am particularly interested in examining how these historical events have shaped the experience of marginalized groups, including but not limited to, African Americans, Latinos, and women.

Khayla Tovar

Mellon Fellow, 2024-2025

Hello, my name is Khayla Tovar and I am a Psychology major on the Pre-Physician Assistant track. I have a strong interest in specializing in Neurosurgery, Neurology, Plastic Surgery, and/or Cardiology in the future. My passion for medicine has been a driving force since childhood, and I have recently developed a keen interest in research. As someone who embraces a variety of interests, I am excited about the potential that the Mellon Fellowship offers. I aim to delve into research fields related to neuroimmunology, HIV/AIDS, STIs, and Latino Health. I believe that gaining invaluable knowledge and experience in these areas will help me become a well-rounded healthcare professional, ultimately benefit my patients in the future.

Kira Sutter

Mellon Fellows, 2024-2025

My major focuses on Ancient Mediterranean Studies with a Minor in Textile Conservation, Distribution of Islamic Culture through Conquest, Influence of Colonization on Indigenous Cultures and the Influence of Gendered Division of Labor on Production Styles

Lana Omar

Mellon Fellow, 2024-2025

Hello, my name is Lana Omar. I graduated from Earl Warren High School in 2021 and continued my education at Northwest Vista before transferring to UTSA as a junior. Now I’m currently a senior and majoring in History. My research interest focuses on the genocide, occupation, and oppression that Palestinians face due to Zionism. As a Palestinian, it’s my goal to better understand my history and explore how these issues have shaped the experiences of my people and the broader geopolitical landscape. Additionally, I want to connect my research to the experiences of Mexicans and Mexican Americans, noting how these groups have been oppressed, and how this violence continues today, even after generations.

Tristan White

Mellon Fellow, 2024-2025

My research focuses on the neo-colonialism in South America and more topics related to the 20th-century socio-cultural history of the Americas. Through the narratives of individual lives and civilizational epics and by means of education and a full well-rounded understanding of our present condition will I be able to thoroughly focus on a variety of academic areas of History, Philosophy, and Anthropology. My goal is to become a professor of Humanities and be socially involved in leading academic conversations of social functions that will hopefully lead me to Graduate School.

Cohort 8, 2023-2024

Nidal Wadi

Fellow 2023-2024

Nidal Wadi is currently a Junior who transferred to UTSA after completing an Associate of Arts degree program in the Lone Star College System. Nidal is now pursuing a BA in History with a Social Studies Concentration, working part-time in the Department of History as a Student Assistant, and serving as the President of the UTSA History Club. Nidal’s primary research interests include the history of social and political reform movements, women and gender studies, and human migration. “I am so grateful for this opportunity, and I cannot wait to expand upon my own studies alongside this excellent cohort of humanities students!”

Elisa Castro

Fellow, 2023-2024

Focusing on the understanding of societies and cultures and the persistence in how Anthropology and History share a desire to interpret patterns in societies and compare to separate the universal from the particular.

Brisa Escobedo

Fellow, 2023-2024

Dominique Gonzalez

Fellow, 2023-2024

Focusing on the great economic change on an era of historic transition and how the U.S. undergone a profound transformation during the first half of the nineteenth century and how the economy shifted from small individual operations to the factory system with the continuous processing and interchangeable component as a standardized product.

Marisel Kraus

Fellow, 2023-224

Marisel is currently a Senior at UTSA. She is a 1st-Generation student majoring in Multidisciplinary Studies with focus areas in Business, Art History & Criticism, and Women's, Gender, & Sexuality Studies. After graduating in May 2024, she plans to pursue a master's degree in Curriculum Development. At UTSA, she joined a hopeful group of students, interested in forming an organization for non-traditional students.

Jasmine Lopez

Fellow, 2023-2024

Undergraduate student studying Anthropology with a double minor in archaeological practices and geography and environmental sustainability. Interning at various internship sites, her topics include a broad public sector of heritage conservations including the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, the National Parks Service, and the Center for Archaeological Research.

Julietta Lujan

Fellow, 2023-2024

Arynei Nance

Fellow, 2023-2024

As a Political Science major, interested in learning more about humanities as it relates to the politics affecting social injustice and to implement the rights and equality that is deserved focusing on a diverse group (a triple minority (Black, Native and a woman) and the need to acquire more about the history on culture and other heritages.

Michael Paredes

Fellow, 2023-2024

Focusing on the issues of identity and education as it relates to the programs provided to Hispanic/Latino students in the public-school districts and to focus my efforts on research aimed at analyzing education pertaining to Chicanos.

Diana Perez

Fellow, 2023-2024

Undergraduate student studying Behavioral Neuroscience with a focus on human behavior try to understand society's’ patterns and trends as they relate to our daily lives.

Angelina Rodriguez

Fellow, 2023-2024

Focusing on the structural and historical context of the life, history, language and culture in social justice as it relates to Mexican American Studies and History and her experience as a mariachi performer helped her to find a passion for the Mexican culture and its qualities.

Natalia Sosa

Fellow, 2023-2024

Pursuing the use of knowledge of philosophy, anthropology, psychology, and economics to obtain a clear understanding of the complexity required to implement the skills, knowledge, and tools across several disciplines to enable the accurate inquiries and its visionaries to contribute to the welfare of humanity.

Cohort 7, 2022-2023

Giselle Galindo

Fellow, 2022-2023

Research Interests

My research interest revolves around art accessibility to BIPOC communities, especially the Latino/a/x community. I want to explore the historical, political, and artistic lens surrounding art development within our barrios and how it is necessary to help low-income, queer, and BIPOC individuals of all ages. This encompasses other topics surrounding the arts and the importance it brings to identity, culture, and resistance. Through my identities, my research can extend immensely into many worlds which is very exciting as an artist and activist who wants to pursue education and run a nonprofit!

Kianna Castillo

Fellow, 2022-2023

Research Interests

Research focus on underrepresented female latina/o important figures left out of historical events – Underrepresented Female Minorities

Sara Torrentera

Fellow, 2022-2023

Research Interests

My research interests center around the history of the county of Atascosa. The area in south Texas is rich with a diverse history and is underrepresented. I will be researching the prominent Mexican American/ Mexican communities who assisted in the development of Atascosa county.

Karla Luna

Fellow, 2022-2023

Research Interests

My research interest is in immigration and the psychological effects it has on people migrating to this country; more specifically the process of acculturation, assimilation, and identity. I want to reach out to first-generation immigrants to talk about their journey leaving their home country, their experience in the United States, and how connected they feel to their home country. If possible I want to talk to those affected by the family separation policy at the border and the psychological consequences of this policy.

Journee Rodriguez

Fellow, 2022-2023

Research Interests

My research interests are studying the economic status and education status of Chicano families who reside in the West side of San Antonio, more specifically multigenerational relationships between mother and daughter and how their circumstances differ. I am also interested in reaching the number of fluent Spanish speakers in Chicano families starting with grandparents to grandchildren, asking about the teaching methods and willingness to share the language.

Justin Ibanez

Fellow, 2022-2023

Research Interests

My research interests are centered around cultural retention and analyzation, taking a look into how Mexican/Mexican American communities, domestically and abroad, have deliberately or intrinsically retained their culture over time through traditions, gastronomy, language, etc. This research could range from investigating how indigenous communities have carried on their traditions over the generations, or the ways that Mexican American immigrants in the United States, through assimilation, may have adapted their traditions in their new homes. With this I hope to be able to share a look into the ways that Mexican culture continues to be retained from pre-Hispanic times to now, the 21st century