Graduate Affiliates

The Affiliated Graduate Student Program supports the research of advanced graduate students at UC Berkeley.

We hope that through an affiliation with CLACS, graduate students can further their research and develop relationships with colleagues across departments and disciplines.

Overview:

Graduate Affiliates have access to the following:

24/7 access to meeting and work space
Private or semi-private office space at CLACS (if needed)
Printer and other tech
Periodic meetings to discuss research
A small stipend for research expenses

Application Process:

To apply to be a CLACS Graduate Affiliate in 2025-26, please send an email to clacs@berkeley.edu. Include your name, school or program, and what stage of or year in the program you have reached, along with a short description of your project. Include whether you already have a dedicated space for work, and if you NEED office space at CLACS (need for office space will not impact eligibility for affiliation). If you request office space at CLACS, please mention how you plan to use the space. Application due date: May 15, 2025.

Derek Allen

Ph.D. Student

Department of Spanish and Portuguese

Derek Allen is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese at UC Berkeley in the Luso-Brazilian Literature and Culture track with a Designated Emphasis in Film Studies. He received his M.A. in Portuguese from Indiana University in 2020, and his B.A. in Portuguese from...Read more about Derek Allen

Leo Dunsker

Ph.D. Student

English Department

Program for Critical Theory

Leo Dunsker is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of English and the Program for Critical Theory. His dissertation project is about the reinvention of the epic poem by modern Anglophone Caribbean writers as a vehicle for narrating supposedly unnarratable histories. He co-organizes the...Read more about Leo Dunsker

Adriana Gonzales

Ph.D. Student

Energy and Resources Group

Adriana Gonzales is a 2nd year Master’s/Ph.D. student in the Energy and Resources Group department. She is interested in investigating energy, disaster, and climate change adaptation in the Caribbean from an ecological and humanistic lens. She is particularly interested in understanding...Read more about Adriana Gonzales

Cristina Mendez

Ph.D. Student

Graduate School of Education

Cristina S. Méndez (she/ella) is a Chicana educator, scholar, and poet. She is currently a doctoral candidate in the School of Education at the University of California, Berkeley and is also a member of the designated emphasis in Indigenous Language Revitalization. Her research focuses...Read more about Cristina Mendez

Rafael Meza Duriez

Ph.D. Student

Graduate School of Education

Rafa Meza Duriez, a Nicaraguan educator and writer, is a former Fulbright Scholar. Rafa's exploration of literacy and language practices from rural zones in Central America allows him to analyze the pedagogical value that service offers to teachers' reflective work, as understood by the...Read more about Rafael Meza Duriez

Sydney Noel Moss

Ph.D. Student

Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management

Sydney Noel Moss is a second-year Ph.D. student in the Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management (ESPM). Grounded in organizing experiences in the U.S. and participatory action research with Indigenous communities in Ecuador, Colombia, and Peru, she hopes to...Read more about Sydney Noel Moss

Sandra Oseguera Sotomayor

Ph.D. Student

Department of Anthropology

Sandra Oseguera (she/her/ella) is currently a Ph.D. candidate in Anthropology at the University of California, Berkeley, where she examines long-term human-environmental interactions. Her dissertation focuses on long-term traditional agricultural practices among the Indigenous Zapotec people in...Read more about Sandra Oseguera Sotomayor

Rodney Padovani

Ph.D. Student

Musicology

Rodney Padovani is a choral composer, a professional choral singer as a tenor, and musicologist from San Juan, Puerto Rico. His research interests are late 20^th and 21^st century Puerto Rican music and visual arts. His main research project is about the...Read more about Rodney Padovani

Emily Fjaellen Thompson

Ph.D. Student

Department of Anthropology

Emily Fjaellen Thompson is a Ph.D. Candidate in socio-cultural anthropology. Her dissertation considers the use and lives of images, particularly unpublished photographs, in the wake of the Peruvian internal armed conflict. As a Fulbright DDRA-Hays Fellow in Peru, she focused...Read more about Emily Fjaellen Thompson

Michelle Zaragoza

Ph.D. Student

School of Social Welfare

Michelle Zaragoza, LCSW (she/ella), is a Ph.D. student in Social Welfare at the University of California, Berkeley. Centering on well-being among Latinx and immigrant communities, her research interests lie at the intersection of immigration and mental health. Her current work employs arts...Read more about Michelle Zaragoza