WAVE Council

The WAVE Council is a group of senior graduate students, postdocs, and research staff who serve as non-research mentors to WAVE Fellows over the summer.

The 2022 WAVE Council members were:

David Cagan, CCE (Inorganic Chemistry)
David was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. He attended Pasadena City College and received his AA in Natural Sciences and AS-T in Mathematics. He completed his Bachelor of Science degree at Cal State Los Angeles, where he worked with Prof. Matthias Selke on the kinetics and reactivity of singlet molecular oxygen. In the Hadt Lab, David works on understanding the mechanisms of Ni-mediated photocatalyzed cross-coupling catalysis. His research is supported by the NASEM Ford Foundation Fellowship and the NSF GRFP. In his free time, David enjoys cooking, making visual art (both science illustration and portraiture), and listening to audiobooks. He is also an advocate for increasing diversity in science and is the President of Caltech's Diversity in Chemistry Initiative. Caltech Wave Fellow 2018.
Click here to contact David

Luis Caldera, Bioengineering
Hello, my name's Luis and I just finished my first year in the bioengineering Ph.D. program! I went to UC Berkeley for my undergraduate studies, where I studied bioengineering and materials science & engineering. After graduating, I took a few years off to work in biotech over at Genentech in South San Francisco before jumping back to school. In my free time, I love to watch movies, go swimming, and find new playgrounds with my wife and toddler. Looking forward to meeting you all!
Click here to contact Luis

Ana Duarte, Physics
Hello! I am very excited to work with you this summer! I am entering my fourth year at Caltech as a physics PhD student. My research is in biophysics and centers around how living systems consume energy in order to form and maintain out-of-equilibrium structures. I am originally from Seattle and completed my undergraduate degree at the University of Washington. The summer before my senior year, I participated in a similar summer research program to WAVE and found it to be a very exciting time of growth. Everything from getting my own research project, to having support with graduate school applications, to being in a new city, to meeting like-minded peers and feeling less isolated made the experience a time I treasure. Last year, I had the honor of being on the WAVE council. It was always the highlight of my week to meet with my WAVE students and help guide them through the summer. Outside of life at Caltech, I love to dance, do pilates, paint, and play board games. I cannot wait to meet you soon and be a part of this formative summer for you!
Click here to contact Ana

Victor Garcia-Ruiz, Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics (BMB)
Click here to contact Victor

Thomas Henning, Social Decision Neuroscience
Hello, my name's Thomas and I just finished my first year in the Social Decision Neuroscience Ph.D. program, my main focus is on Neuroeconomics (Game Theory and Prediction) and Network Neuroscience. I went to Arizona State University for my undergraduate studies, where I studied Finance. After graduating, I took a few years off to work as a trader at Goldman Sachs. In my free time, I love to watch movies, play video games, and watch the NBA Looking forward to meeting you all!
Click here to contact Thomas

Isabel Hernandez Rodriguez, Chemistry

Isabel was born in Mexico and raised in Seattle, Washington. She earned her B.A. in Chemistry at Barnard College, where she conducted research under Professor Latha Venkataraman, studying electron transport in single-molecule devices. Wanting to run away from winter, she moved to California to purse a graduate degree in chemistry at Caltech. She is now a part of the Nelson Lab, where she is working on small molecule structure determination using electron diffraction. Outside of lab, Isabel enjoys cooking, being outdoors, and showing people pictures of her dog.
Click here to contact Isabel

Azmain Hossain, Applied Physics
Hello! My name is Azmain and I'm a rising second-year in applied physics in the Minnich Lab. My research is on novel nanofabrication techniques at the Kavli Nanoscience Institute. I'm a first-generation immigrant and first-generation college student. I went to community college in LA and did my B.S. in physics at UCLA. I've been involved in mentoring and tutoring roles throughout my academic journey, and I hope to be a valuable resource for you all. In my free time I like to cook, play badminton, and watch anime. Don't hesitate to reach out!
Click here to contact Azmain

Katie Ann Huy
Katie Ann was a 2020 WAVE Fellow in the Newman lab. She graduated from Fullerton community college with her AS in Chemistry and Biology, before earning her BS in Biology at Whittier College. Currently, she works as a lab technician in the Fischer lab at Caltech, studying the role of soil microbes in carbon cycling in CA ecosystems.
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José Lasalde-Ramírez, Mechanical Engineering
José A. Lasalde-Ramírez is a PhD student in the Andrew and Peggy Cherng Department of Medical Engineering at Caltech. As a Mechanical Engineering undergraduate at the University of Puerto Rico, he participated in summer research programs at Cornell University, Caltech (WAVE Fellows), Johns Hopkins University and University of Pennsylvania. José's current research involves the fabrication of wearable chemical sensors for diagnostics and management. Whenever he is not obsessing over Puerto Rican food, he is watching/playing sports and listening to Bad Bunny tunes.
Click here to contact José

Evan Nunez, Astrophysics
Whatup whatup! My name is Evan Haze Nuñez and I am a rising fourth year grad student (PhD candidate) in Astronomy/Astrophysics. I am half Black (African-American) and half Mexican, grew up in Southern California, love spending time with my family and friends, am an avid music listener (hip-hop/rap, indie alternative, instrumentals, and jazz), and generally like to keep a chill and relaxing vibe around me. My research focuses on how the matter inside and outside of galaxies evolves in the very distant (high redshift) universe (w/ Chuck Steidel and Evan Kirby). Excited to see you all this summer!
Click here to contact Evan

Jacob Parres-Gold, Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics
My name is Jacob and I'm a first-year graduate student in the biochemistry and molecular biophysics option (BMB). I'm a local to LA, and graduated from Cal State LA - outside of the lab, I like trying new restaurants, doing parkour, and snowboarding! Looking forward to seeing everyone over the summer.
Click here to contact Jacob

Alexander Ramirez, Physics
Alex Ramirez is a fall of 2021 graduate from the University of San Diego in Electrical Engineering and Physics. He participated in the WAVE program during the summer of 2019 and has been an intern at JPL since then. He will be pursuing a Ph.D. in Physics at Caltech starting the fall of 2022.
Click here to contact Alex

Isaryhia Rodriguez, Biology
Hi All, My name is Isaryhia, but you can call me Isa! I am a first year graduate student in the biology option working in the lab of Dr. Ellen Rothenberg. I got my bachelors in Science at UC Irvine in 2021. I have a passion for talking most things biology and for mentoring and supporting students interested in science in all the ways I can! I am also a proud First-Generation to college Latinx Woman in science and I'm happy to share about my experiences and personal journey in science. Pursuing a career in science is no cake walk but a huge part of success is building community so I'm happy to help you start doing that this summer!
Click here to contact Isa

Susana Torres-Londono, Applied Physics
Hi all! I am Susana Torres-Londono and I work in Harry Atwater's group on solar cell research. I went to UC Berkeley and studied physics, I am a NSF-grfp fellow and a Resnick Sustainability fellow. I will be a rising 2nd year. I am Black, latina, queer, vegan and my best-friend is a bunny (lol)!
Click here to contact Susana

Victor Zendejas Lopez, Mechanical Engineering
Hi! My name is Victor Zendejas Lopez. I'm currently a first year PhD student in the department of mechanical engineering. I grew in the Bay Area and finished my undergrad at UC Berkeley. My research interests are related to high performance computing and computational fluids dynamics. I'm also passionate about diversity equity and inclusion initiatives and have been part of several programs at Caltech and UC Berkeley aimed at enhancing the student experience.
Click here to contact Victor

Daniel Mukasa, Materials Science
Hi all! My name is Daniel Mukasa, a rising fourth year in materials science doing medical engineering research. I was raised in Riverside California and went to study physics in Oberlin Ohio before coming to Caltech. Looking forward to meeting you!
Click here to contact Daniel