As Spring 2026 wraps up at SFSU, we want to celebrate and congratulate the wonderful senior undergraduate Biology students who collaborated with SEPAL and the inaugural Scientist Spotlights Partnership Program in Fall 2025.
Featured below are just a few of our graduating leaders (representing the new SEPAL & Scientist Spotlights graduation stoles): Justine Cosino, Alyssa Cortez, and Nathalie Aquino!
Congratulations to all our graduates!
Greetings from the University of San Francisco (USF) campus!
As part of a collaborative grant with USF, SEPAL Program Coordinator Lucy Luong and Collaborator Michael Stevenson co-developed and co-instructed an inaugural LEADS course and partnership program in USF’s Department of Chemistry in Spring 2026. SEPAL and Scientist Spotlights Initiative engaged USF undergraduate student LEADerS as change agents in chemistry curriculum, who authored 24 new chemistry Scientist Spotlights to be used in USF Chemistry courses in Fall 2026.
LEADerS shared their experiences in a poster presentation at USF’s CARD: Creative Activity and Research Day and celebrated their pioneering efforts together during the final LEADS class!
Congratulations to the USF Spring 2026 LEADerS, LEADS Faculty Partners, Michael, and Lucy!
Recent SFSU BS Biology Alumnus and SEPAL collaborator Zahur-Saleh Subedar has just matched for his residency with Loma Linda University in the Family Medicine Program.
Congratulations, Zahur!
Maurina Aranda, a SEPAL Postdoc alumnus, was recently awarded the Paul-Simon Outstanding Teacher-Scholar Award, which recognizes a faculty member at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) successful integration of their research into their teaching. In her application, she shared the work she was involved in at SEPAL – funded by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute
– with Scientist Spotlights.
Click here to read the article that spotlights Maurina’s honor.
Congratulations and way to go, Maurina!
Congratulations to Elleanor Pangilinan, Kimberly Tanner, and Tatiane Russo-Tait on their new Special Issue publication in CBE-Life Sciences Education!
Their study centers the voices and experiences of biology faculty of color and explores how they bring their social identities into their professional work. The data shared come from Elleanor’s M.S. research at SEPAL…
To learn more about this, you can read “Investigating How Biology Faculty of Color Integrate Their Social Identities into Their Teaching and Mentoring” here.
SFSU BA Biology (2019) and SEPAL PALS Alumnus, Quintton McCahey, has a new position as a Senior Clinical Specialist at Abbott Inc. This new professional accomplishment follows his 2023 completion of an MBA in Global Business at Dominican University of California.
Congratulations, Quintton!
SEPAL Postdoc Alumnus, Andrea Burton, has been offered and accepted a new position as a Assistant Teaching Professor in marine biology at the University of Washington…
Congratulations, Andrea!
Maurina Aranda, a SEPAL Postdoc alumnus, was awarded Promotion and Tenure to Associate Professor at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE). Maurina will not only continue to teach biology to her many students at SIUE but also continue forth her research efforts on student learning in biology.
Congratulations, Maurina, on your professional achievement!
SEPAL Program Coordinator Lucy Luong was recently approved Co-Principal Investigator status on SEPAL’s NSF IUSE Grant – Assessing the Impact of Engaging Students as Active Change Agents in Chemistry Curriculum Reform Using Scientist Spotlights. She will apply what she has learned working with SEPAL programs in SFSU Biology and The Scientist Spotlights Initiative to engage undergraduate students as change agents in Chemistry with collaborators at University of San Francisco.
Congratulations, Lucy!
Paul Nagami, a SFSU Biology and SEPAL research group MS alumnus, has earned his tenure as a biology instructor at Mission College. Paul will continue to share his knowledge on science education with his many students and fellow faculty at Mission College.
Congratulations, Paul, on your professional achievement!
©2026 SEPAL is made possible through funds from the National Institutes of Health Science Education Partnership Award (NCRRSEPAR25RR024307-01), National Science Foundation GK-12 Grant (DGE0337949), PFSMETE Start-Up Grant (DGE-0136879), SFSU Center for Math and Science Education, SFSU Institute for Civic and Community Engagement and through in-kind support from the SFSU Department of Biology and College of Science and Engineering.
