gems-2020

My name is Victoria Haggerty and I am a second-year student at UCF. I am majoring in Physics with a specialization in Astronomy and minoring in Mathematics. I graduated from South Plantation High School in South Florida where I participated in the Environmental Science Magnet Program.  My favorite class at UCF has either been Calculus…

Hi everyone! My name is Unika Mirza and I am a Biomedical Sciences major and a Cultural Anthropology minor at UCF! I am also going into my senior year. I graduated from Plantation High School in Plantation, FL. Some of my favorite classes at UCF has been immunology (which I conveniently ended up taking during the COVID-19…

Hey all! My name is Sasha and I am a junior majoring in Environmental Engineering and minoring in Math here at UCF. I am originally from Russia and I moved straight to Orlando when I was 16 and graduated from Freedom High School. I am very excited to be GEMS mentor again this year and…

Hello there! My name is Rebecca Vollmann and I am a senior majoring in Mechanical Engineering. I love working on cars, dogs, cooking, baking, watching Netflix or Disney+, exercising, going to the beach, and spending time with friends. I’ve done research with the U.S Navy and worked in gas turbines and energy production with Mitsubishi,…

Hello! My name is Meredith Schooley, and I am a sophomore majoring in Civil Engineering with a minor in Mathematics. I am from Orlando and graduated from Freedom High School class of 2019. Being in EXCEL my freshman year has led me to a lot of scholarly opportunities, friendships, and other STEM organizations. My GEMS…

Hey! I am Lisa Colon and I’m a junior majoring in Chemistry. I was born in Puerto Rico, but I have lived in central Florida for most of my life, so I have had a lifelong connection to this area. I will look forward to showing all the little fun spots all over UCF and…

My name is Lannika Johnson and I am a junior majoring in Chemistry with a Biochemistry track, and I am also minoring in Biomedical Sciences and English Linguistics. I graduated in 2018 from Flanagan High School in Broward County, FL. My favorite class so far has been Biology, mainly because it allowed to apply the things I…

Hi! My name is Kamille Hayes. I am a sophomore majoring in Pre-Health Biology, and I am also in the Burnett Honors College here at UCF. I’m from Melbourne, Florida, and I graduated from Heritage High School. My favorite class at UCF so far was Honors Fundamentals of Oral Communication with Dr. Christine Hanlon. She…

Hello, my name is Jennifer Akinpelu and I am excited to be your GEMS mentor! I am currently a civil engineering major and I’m going into my second year at UCF. Outside of school, I love to write, travel, and do anything that allows me to be as creative as possible. I’m very outspoken and friendly. I basically…

Hi, I’m Jazmine, and I’m an upcoming senior studying Industrial Engineering with minors in International Engineering and Engineering Leadership. I am so happy to become a GEMS mentor so I can help guide and help any new students coming into UCF. It can be a difficult transition to some, so I want to help anyone to…

My name is Gabriela Gagno and I am a Biomedical Sciences major. This will be my third year at UCF and my first year as a GEMS Mentor. I graduated from Jupiter High School in Jupiter, Florida in 2018. My favorite class at UCF was Microbiology Lab. I found myself getting really excited for the days I had lab…

Hi! My name is Cristina Maldonado but you can call me Cristy. I am a Computer Engineer major. I am currently in my second year at UCF. I graduated from South Dade Senior High School in 2019. My favorite class so far is Calculus I with Piotr Mikusinski. Although the experience was tough, it really…

My name is Katie Trombetti and I am a sophomore with a Biology major on the Pre-Health track. I graduated from Coral Glades High School in 2019. One of my favorite classes so far has been Biology 1. This class is really showed me that I had a real interest in the genetics side of biology.…

My name is Camille Reynolds-Levy and I am a Biomedical Sciences major. I am preparing to go into my second year at UCF and graduated from University High School in Orlando, Florida. My favorite class so far is Chemistry 1B with Professor Beazeley because she was really relatable and funny. I know it seems strange…

My name is Brittney Gray and I am a fourth year UCF student and a third year GEMS mentor. I am a forensic science major with a focus on the biochemistry track, and I am also working to obtain a certificate in crime scene investigation. I went to Middleton high school in Tampa, Florida. One of…

My name is Bree Donley and I’m a Forensic Science major and Chemistry minor. This will be my third year at UCF. I graduated from Western High School in 2018 which is in Davie, FL. One of my favorite classes at UCF was Intro to Forensic Science. Every week we had a speaker from a…

Hey there! My name is Annabelle Levin and I am a junior majoring in Biology. I graduated from Dr. Phillips High School here in Orlando, so if you are new to this area (or not) I would love to help you find all of the best corners of this beautiful city. My favorite class thus far has been…

My name is Anabelle Manriquez. I am a senior in Civil Engineering focusing on structural and construction, as well as a minor in Engineering Leadership. I will be doing my third year as a GEMS mentor. I went to Tampa Bay Technical High School in Tampa, Florida. I have a love for nature and the…

Hi! I’m Alyssa Simpson and I am a sophomore at UCF studying environmental engineering. I am from the central Florida area and graduated from Oviedo High School. I am very excited to be your mentor through your first year at UCF. I’ll give you all the love and support that I got from this program.…

My name is Alexandra Westfield and I’m a sophomore majoring in Environmental Engineering. I’m from Northern Kentucky and I came to UCF because I loved the campus and how exciting the Orlando area is! I really enjoy chemistry and math and I have lots of passion trying to improve the quality of the environment, which…