Ismael Abdullah Hernandez
Ismael Abdullah Hernandez is a first-generation college student in the Smittcamp Family Honors College program at Fresno State where he is pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Biology and a minor in Physical Science. He was born and raised in Fresno, where his parents immigrated to many years ago. Both of his parents work hard to support their children’s pursuit of education. As a way to give back to his parents, Ismael spends most of his time working and running the family business. When he is not working, he dedicates his time to giving back to his community by volunteering many hours as a Smittcamp Scholar. Ismael is also involved with Club Sport Kendo and the Health Professional Pathways program at Fresno State.
Jason Avalos
Jason Avalos is a first-generation student at UC Merced, majoring in biology with a human emphasis. Originally from Fresno, where he often volunteers at local events, he also volunteers with the UC Merced community engagement center working with community shelters and park clean-ups. Projects that Jason has been involved with include the beautification of the UC Merced Vernal pools by collecting and disposing of garbage to preserve the habitats of local wildlife. For Earth Day, Jason participated in the maintenance of the grounds at Lake Yosemite by planting Ash trees and gathering/ discarding garbage and foreign objects. Jason’s interactions with the community have led him to continue his outreach by pursuing a career as a physician.
Cristian De La Torre
Cristian De La Torre is a first-generation Fresno State student. He takes great pride in having the opportunity his parents have given him and dreams of aiding them in the future. He just finished his third year of college and is looking forward to his senior year. As a Biology major, Cristian is working hard to attend medical school and become a family physician. Growing up in Fresno County, Cristian hopes to return to his community by volunteering and taking leadership roles. Cristian strides to become the best version of himself and yearns to provide the Fresno community, and his future patients with the best healthcare access and services.
Imanol Fernandez
Imanol Fernandez is currently a senior at Fresno State University, majoring in kinesiology and minoring in biology. He is a first-generation, full-time college student and the first aspiring doctor ever in his family. Imanol was born and raised in the little town of Manteca. The middle child in a big family, Imanol developed a fondness for wanting to help others and mentor them in all aspects, from a person’s health to their personal life. This inspired him to work with physicians at the Community Regional Medical Center as either a physician’s assistant or physical therapist. He volunteers most of his time with underrepresented groups and loves to be in hospitals helping as best as he can.
Eduardo Garcia
Eduardo Garcia is a second-generation Latino at Fresno State majoring in biology. He was born in Fresno to two hard-working immigrant parents. As a member of the 2022 cohort of the Smittcamp Family Honors College, he takes honors courses and volunteers for his local community. He volunteered at Washington Union, a district that suffers from food insecurity, to educate students about proper nutrition practices. His interest in medicine stems from his involvement in the Biomedical program at Edison High School where he explored human anatomy and learned the disparities that afflict his community, especially in the healthcare system. Eduardo aspires to be a physician to serve underrepresented communities in the Central Valley.
Naomi Garcia
Naomi Garcia is a Fresno native who is majoring in biology at Fresno State and is currently a junior. She has volunteered in several Adventist Health hospitals where she confirmed her interest in Cardiothoracic surgery. On campus, Naomi explored her favorite subject as a Chem 1A SI Leader and served underrepresented student populations as the Chair of the Diversity and Inclusion Committee in the FSU Student Union Board of Directors. Currently, her ambitions revolve around investigating the Central Valley’s ecological profile in Dr. Kalyani Maitra’s algae research lab. In learning about these challenges, she hopes to expand her insights into the environmental determinants of health as a future provider.
Cristiana Gonzalez
Cristiana Gonzalez is a first-generation college student who was born and raised in the Central Valley. She is going into her senior year at Fresno State as a Biology major and Psychology minor. Cristiana worked as an SI Leader on campus and currently volunteers as a Peer Mentor for the College of Science and Mathematics. She also volunteers at the Community Regional Medical Center as a Rounding Volunteer. Her long-term goal is to serve in the Central Valley as a Psychiatrist. Cristiana was raised to always give back to the community and plans to continue that throughout her career. She hopes to someday be able to specifically help those who have little to no access to mental health services.
Julia Pacheco
Julia Pacheco is a proud Mexican-American who was born and raised in Fresno and is currently a Fresno State senior, majoring in biology with a Spanish minor. Her dream of becoming a physician started at a young age as she witnessed the health disparities her grandparents experienced as they battled chronic diseases; they were members of an underrepresented minority group. Her desire to serve in an underserved community further increased as she spent a year working as a Community Health Worker during COVID-19. She helped administer prevention education and other resources to underserved communities in both rural and urban Fresno County. Julia hopes to one day serve the Central Valley as a physician and to further, give back to her community by providing health equity and compassionate care for all.
John Pacheco Susoeff
Johnny Pacheco Susoeff is a Fresno native who has lived his entire life in the Central Valley. He transferred from Clovis Community College to Fresno State where he is majoring in Kinesiology (Exercise Science). Outside of his academic studies, he is a STEM tutor at Clovis Community College and a member of the Medical Spanish club at Fresno State, where he and others practice how to communicate with Spanish-speaking patients. He has also been a part of Clovis Community’s summer program, Summer at S.E.A., where he has helped Latinx and low-income high school students explore their interests within the STEM field. Johnny’s
goal is to become a physician and work in sports medicine, serving underrepresented communities and populations.
Katharine Rodriguez Puga
Katherine Rodriguez Puga is a full-time student at UC Merced pursuing a BA in Biology with
an emphasis in Human Biology. She is a first-generation Mexican-American and aspires to become a family physician. Katharine was born and raised in the Central Valley and currently lives in Kingsburg. She hopes to specialize in family medicine. One of her aspirations is to obtain her MD and return to the Central Valley to serve underserved communities and to expand the opportunity of obtaining quality healthcare, especially for those with little to no access to care. Her goal is to break barriers, lessen the healthcare gap, and provide high-quality care to her patients in the Central Valley.
Macy Silva
Macy Silva is a Fresno native starting her senior year at Fresno State and majoring in Biology. She is inspired to work in the medical field after seeing the compassion and kindness given to patients by her own pediatrician and orthopedic doctor. She looks forward to displaying those same characteristics as an orthopedic surgeon with a specialty in sports medicine. Macy is well aware of the inequality and unfairness in the healthcare system shown to many
communities in the Central Valley. She hopes to help combat these health disparities by returning to the Central Valley and providing quality healthcare as an orthopedic surgeon. Macy is thrilled to join the Aspiring Physicians Program and hopes to meet others who share her views and goals.