My name is Isabella Demetz, and I’m a low income and first generation college student of immigrant parents. I grew up in the Inland Empire in Southern California, but my parents are Filipino and French Canadian. I’m very grateful for the opportunities I’ve received that have allowed me to find communities for people like me at Cal. When I first came to Berkeley, I started out in the Pre-engineering program that consistently provides resources to underserved students and brings students together to support each other. Through this I gained a mentor within the Berkeley Mentorship Cohort, and for the past 3 years I’ve served as a mentor to freshman engineers. For two years I also lived in Casa Joaquin Murrieta, a leadership residential program for underrepresented undergraduates, where I became a part of a family and learned from so many diverse perspectives. As an Industrial Engineering major, Cal Nerds has allowed me to pursue my research interests in Operations and data science within UC Leads.
The program has been vital in providing valuable opportunities for my growth, organizing fun events, and creating a supportive environment where I feel secure. I would not have done research or pursued higher education without them.