John currently does research in the Caram Lab using spectroscopy to address the photophysical properties of self-assembling dyes. He recently spent a summer in the Hadt Lab at Caltech as an Amgen Scholar studying quantum decoherence in lipid membranes. He's also a veteran chemical inventory assistant at the EH&S department. John's going to take a gap year after graduating before pursuing a PhD in chemical biology. When he's not on campus, you can find him distance running with BruinRunners, watching old independent movies, or listening to shoegaze and other forms of "British people" music!

Jules is a fourth-year Biochemistry & MIMG double-major from the Bay Area and Baltimore who will be pursuing a PhD in microbiology next fall. She studies alphavirus-host interactions and the ZAP antiviral mechanism in Melody Li’s lab here at UCLA. She also plays on UCLA’s Women’s Club Rugby team and is a part of the Club Sports Executive and Physical Sciences New Student Development Committees. Outside school, you’ll find her trying new restaurants and foods, playing board games or puzzling with friends, watching and playing sports, and exploring LA!

Akash is a fourth-year studying biochemistry. He has been a part of SMACS for all four years and has loved every minute of it! Akash started as an intern his freshman year and is currently the Professional Development Chair, responsible for encouraging members to consider career goals. Alongside his studies, Akash has performed research in two academic labs: the CF Clarke Lab studying coenzyme Q, and the Palaskas Lab studying ferroptosis. He has also done an internship with Bristol Myers Squibb researching antibody generation. Akash plans to apply for PhD programs this cycle in cancer biology. Feel free to reach out to him with any questions!

Rebecca is a second-year biochemistry major with additional interests in molecular biophysics and mathematics. She works in the Chen Lab studying ribozyme activity and evolution, and hopes to eventually pursue a PhD. She loves SMACS because of the social environment, fun and rewarding service opportunities, and inspiring members. Outside of SMACS, she is involved in RSS, ASC, and CBSO, and further enjoys hiking, creative hobbies, figure skating, singing, chess, and learning new skills. When all else fails, she simply loves wandering around campus and enjoying the beauty of UCLA!

Giselle (she/her) was born in London, UK, but raised in San Diego, California. She spent two summers designing and synthesizing novel drugs in immunology for a small molecule biotech. She likes to read, explore new coffee shops and visit museums. Her favorite thing about SMACS is that its open for everyone to find a community within chemistry at UCLA.

Coco is a third-year Chemistry major who's interested in organic chemistry research. She's currently working on synthesizing and analyzing the crystal properties of photoswitch molecules in the Garcia-Garibay lab. As a transfer student, it can be difficult to find a community, so she sincerely appreciates how welcoming, passionate, and devoted everyone in SMACS is. Outside of school, you can find her in the depths of nature with her husky and chihuahua, playing video games, or cooking new recipes, all at ungodly hours. She also loves doing digital/graphic art and strives to find every chance to use art as a way to share the wonders of chemistry to students.

Tim currently does research in the Neuhauser group, focusing on method development in the area of electronic structure theory and quantum dynamics. He is also co-advised in the Caram group where he works on elucidating disorders in two-dimensional and tubular cyanine dye aggregates through computational methods. Outside of his studies, he enjoys playing video games, watching anime, and sleeping.

Lea Baskin Monk is a 4th-year biochemistry major and the SMACS treasurer. She joined SMACS as a 1st-year and have been involved ever since. Her research interests are in geroscience/age-related disease, and she is particularly interested in reproductive aging and menopause. Currently, she is a member of the Thomas Rando Lab, where she studies skeletal muscle aging. She is also the president of an outdoors club, loves to bake bread, and her favorite candy is black licorice (feel free to debate her on that opinion. Or if you agree, she’ll share).

Bedelia is currently part of the Kwon lab, which she joined in her freshman year. Her research focuses on screening reduction and oxidation reagents to help create a library of chiral phosphine organocatalysts. She is interested in pursuing a career in pharmaceutical patenting. Outside of school, she enjoys tutoring abacus, reading mysteries, and going down true crime rabbit holes.

Felisha is a first-year Biochemistry major and her research interests are in chemical processes used to design biofuels and green hydrogen that are efficient and sustainable. Outside of SMACS, you'll find her running in Westwood, enjoying a novel, or frequenting bookshops.

Chahak is a first-year MIMG major who constantly contemplates switching to biochemistry or computational biology. She did molecular genetics-related research in high school and has procrastinated on looking for a lab to join at UCLA. In her free time, she enjoys taking spontaneous naps, doom-scrolling through fan cams of cute K-pop idols, and going on solo trips for main character feels.