Grad Student Profiles

For Lianne Brito, ‘resiliency’ is her personal watchword. Overcoming obstacles has been a way of life, from growing up in Cuba to her journey as a PhD candidate in geotechnical earthquake engineering. “Growing up within this censored society, our...

Name: Alejandro Caicedo Ramirez Hometown: Barcelona, Spain Advisor: Mark Hernandez My Path to Engineering I was born in Colombia in 1988. When I was 7 years old, my parents decided to move to Barcelona (Spain) in search for a better life. This decision opened many educational doors that could otherwise...

Name: Casie Venable Hometown: Pfafftown, NC Advisors: Amy Javernick Will and Abbie Liel My Path to Engineering I am from Winston-Salem, North Carolina -- Pfafftown, if we’re being exact. Growing up I was exposed to construction fairly frequently as many members of my family were involved in the industry. Additionally,...

Name: Melissa Estep Hometown: San Ramon, CA Advisor: Joe Kasprzyk, Water Resource Engineering My Path in Engineering I grew up in the Bay Area in California, but moved to Folsom, between Sacramento and Tahoe for high school. I always had an interest in science growing up and hoped to become...

Name: Siddharth Bandari Hometown: Jodhpur, India Advisor: Matthew Hallowell , Colorado Safety Laboratory Why CU Boulder? I grew up in a small town in the northwestern state of Rajasthan in India. In many cases, where you grow up can define you but, in my case, I simply did not fit...

Name: Jenny Ramirez Hometown: Ecuador Advisor: Shideh Dashti My Path to Engineering I was born and raised in Ecuador, and since that time STEM careers started to sound interesting to me, I have always been concerned about their crucial and practical implications on society. During my senior year at college...

Name: Jay Arehart Hometown: Boulder, CO Advisor: Wil Srubar (SIMLab) My Path to Engineering Growing up locally in Boulder, I always had a strong interest in ecosystems. My fascination with the natural world was influenced by its complexity and the way it is all interconnected. Little did I know that...