A year after the conclusion of their internship, we are excited to celebrate the many successes of the 2019 Transfer-to-Excellence cohort. All 2019 interns are enrolled in science or engineering academic programs and working towards a Bachelor’s degree. They are pursuing exciting opportunities, including ongoing engagement in research, preparing academic papers for publication, completing industry internships, and creating new programs to diversify STEM. The interns have received ongoing mentorship over the past year through the TTE online mentoring program.

We are proud of you all, TTE Interns!

• Jared Brown has transferred from Los Angeles Piece College to the University of California, Los Angeles to study Mechanical Engineering. He is active in the UCLA Samueli Center for Excellence in Engineering and Diversity.
• Jose Camacho Jr. has transferred from Los Angeles Trade Technical College to the University of California, San Diego to study Electrical Engineering.
• Alexander Castillo has transferred from San Joaquin Delta College to the University of California, Berkeley to study Mechanical Engineering. Alex spent Summer 2020 interning with the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and recently served as the Mechanical Design Lead on the invention of a smart handwashing station.
• Megan Garcia has transferred from Irvine Valley College to the University of California, Irvine to study Biology. Megan is a participant of the Minority Science Program at UC Irvine, funded by the BRIDGES NIH research grant. She is also conducting research on antibiotic resistant bacteria in the lab or Dr. Mota-Bravos. She will present this work at the ABRCMS 2020 conference in November.
• Victoria Helm has transferred from Cuesta College to Stanford University to study Chemistry and Computer Science. During Summer 2020, Victoria completed a research internship at Yale University, working with Professor Alex Kwan on systems neuroscience.
• Ted Daniel Llera has transferred from Los Angeles Valley College to the University of California, Berkeley to study Molecular & Cell Biology. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, Ted resumed his work with the Innovative Genomics Institute. The Institute is led by Nobel Prize winner Jennifer Doudna and currently focuses on research into new COVID-19 diagnostics and therapies.
• Cesar Martinez has transferred from Cabrillo College to California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo to study Mechanical Engineering.
• Saifuddin Mohammed has transferred from Foothill College to the University of California, Berkeley to study Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences. He received the award for best engineering poster presentation at the 2019 SACNAS Diversity in STEM conference and has completed a research internship at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
• Christal Nevarez is enrolled at Skyline College where she studies Environmental Engineering. Since participating in TTE REU, Christal has completed an internship with Strategic Energy Innovations and launched a peer mentoring program at her college. In August 2019, she was awarded the Marie. A. Calderilla Scholarship from the Silicon Valley Community Foundation.
• Alisa Peshina has transferred from San Diego Miramar College to the University of California, Berkeley to study Bioengineering. She is a member of the inaugural cohort of the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) Grand Challenges Scholars Program.
• Harutyun Rehanyan has transferred from Los Angeles Valley College to the University of California, Berkeley to study Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences. After participating in TTE REU, Harut completed a research internship at California State University, Northridge and a software engineering internship with NASA’s JPL Propulsion Laboratory. He spent Summer 2020, researching at Carnegie Mellon University’s Institute for Software Research.
• Dao Dai Vi (David) Tran has transferred from Orange Coast College to the University of California, Berkeley to study Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences. After participating in TTE REU, David completed a software engineering internship with NASA’s JPL Propulsion Laboratory and a research internship at the University of Maryland in machine learning and artificial intelligence. He is currently publishing his first research paper.
• Thuy (Tony) Vo has transferred from Cosumnes River College to the University of California, Berkeley to study Chemistry. He has been continuing his research with Professor Zettl’s group and is working on Density-functional Theory calculation. He hopes to publish a paper on ZrSe2 nanoribbons in 2020.
• Xingli Yu has transferred from the College of Alameda to the University of California, Berkeley to study Bioengineering. She is currently working as a Research Assistant at Berkeley Lab where she studies acute and chronic toxicity of 4 new fluorine-free surfactant formulations on soil invertebrates to determine the relative environmental toxicity of candidate firefighting foams alternatives.
• Alejandra Zapata has transferred from Bakersfield College to California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo to study Electrical Engineering. She received the 2019-2021 Dwight David Eisenhower Transportation Fellowship and conducted a local research project to explore the possibilities of developing sustainable transportation in Kern County.

The diverse research interests of our transferring students highlight the importance of connecting academic coursework with practical, high-impact industry applications. To further support these transitions, the TTE program recently launched a supplemental seminar series focusing on applied computer science and software architecture. These workshops are designed by alumni and visiting tech professionals who want to equip incoming university students with hands-on experience in managing complex digital infrastructures.

During the pilot workshop on database management, visiting software engineers tasked students with modeling backend systems capable of handling rapid, concurrent user actions. To illustrate these stress-testing principles, the instructors had the cohort analyze live server optimization techniques utilized by the best poker sites alongside global financial trading platforms. By dissecting how these specific high-traffic networks maintain security and latency during peak usage, the students gained a clearer understanding of the demands placed on modern commercial databases.

These interactive, skill-building sessions complement the traditional laboratory research our interns are already conducting across the state. As the technology sector continues to evolve, providing community college transfers with early exposure to advanced engineering challenges ensures they remain highly competitive in both their university studies and their future careers.

The Transfer-to-Excellence program will be accepting applications for our 2021 cohort this Winter. The application opens November 4!