Tina Nguyen currently resides in East Hartford, Connecticut where she graduated from East Hartford High School, but she has lived in California, Texas, and Massachusetts as well. Together she feels that these places make up “home”. She will be majoring in physiology and neurobiology at UConn but is also interested in human rights and environmental problems. Tina has volunteered in the geriatric and nursing units at Hartford Hospital and also enjoys badminton and dancing to release stress.
Maritza Montanez is from Ansonia, Connecticut, where she graduated from Ansonia High School as salutatorian, captain of the girls’ tennis team, and Director of Conferences for the Human Relations Club. A biology major, Maritza is a member of the Combined Program in Medicine. She has volunteered over 150 hours at her local hospital, where she also participated in a Mini-Medical School program. In 2007, she was selected as a semifinalist in the Young Epidemiology Scholars Competition for her research project entitled “Obesity in Adolescents as a Result of a Sedentary Lifestyle.”
Sarah Chambers is from West Hartford, Connecticut where she recently graduated from Northwest Catholic High School. She is entering UConn as a pre-pharmacy major. Sarah enjoys drawing in her spare time and also volunteers at the West Hartford Health and Rehab Center where she works with the elderly. She has a part time job working in the “Whole Body” department, specializing in natural supplements and body care.
Ana Cerda was born in the Dominican Republic but relocated to New Haven, Connecticut when she was three years old. She is a recent graduate of Hill Regional Career Magnet High School and is a member of UConn’s Combined Program in Medicine with a major in English. She has participated in several programs through Yale University’s Partnership Program of Anatomy and Physiology that have given her the opportunity to do such things as work with medical students on cadavers, listen to presentations about medical and health issues, and hear lectures by medical professionals. She is also the proud new sister to her nine year old adopted brother.
Daniel Camacho is from Waterbury, Connecticut but was born in Colombia. He was the salutatorian of his graduating class at Sacred Heart High School and was also captain of the boys’ tennis team, which advanced to the final rounds of the state tournament under his leadership. As a member of the Combined Program in Dental Medicine, he will be majoring in biology at UConn. Daniel has already taken advantage of the opportunity to do a summer internship at the Community Health Programs Dental Center in 2008.
John Zyzo is from Southbury, Connecticut. As a graduate of Pomperaug Regional High School, John was co-captain of the golf team, which was the best team in the entire state his senior year. He will be a Physiology and Neurobiology major in the fall, though that won’t be the first time he’s had a learning experience at UConn. He spent six weeks this summer in the Pre-College Enrichment Program researching the effect of streptococcus on infective endocarditis with Dr. Lee Aggison and Dr. Ruth Washington. John has also interned at Waterbury Hospital, shadowing physician assistants, medical doctors, and nurses.
Leonela Villegas is from Colchester, Connecticut, though both of her parents are from Peru and she makes annual trips to Lima to visit family. She has also traveled to the Amazon, Machu Picchu, and Cancun. She is a proud graduate of Bacon Academy High School where she performed with the dance team and volunteered at Youth United for Survival. At UConn she will be majoring in Biomedical Engineering with a concentration in pre-medicine.
Michael Tassavor loves flying, whether it’s traveling, playing Flight Simulator, or simply watching planes take-off and land. He hopes to get a private flying license one day. In the meantime, the student from Rocky Hill, Connecticut will focus on medicine. Michael is a graduate of Rocky Hill High School and the Greater Hartford Academy of Math and Science and is part of the Combined Program in Medicine at UConn. He has attended the National Youth Leadership Forum on Medicine, and has shadowed an ophthalmologist volunteering in Iran. Mike was a participant in the Health Professions Partnership Initiative programming.
Neal Stewart is a graduate of Frank Scott Bunnell High School and is from Stratford, Connecticut, but he’s also a world traveler, having visited 14 different countries! He will be majoring in Physiology and Neurobiology with a focus on pre-dental studies at UConn. His experiences in the health fields include volunteering at a nursing home, assisting with Red Cross blood drives both as a donor as well as a volunteer, and working at clinics for AIDS testing and support.
Phoebe Menacherry is a graduate of Hill Regional Career High School and is from Orange, Connecticut. She will be a Physiology and Neurobiology major at UConn, but has already spent a semester taking courses at the University of New Haven. Phoebe has also had the opportunity to attend a weekly lab at Yale School of Medicine in which she learned about the human body via cadavers. She has spent time volunteering at the Hospital of St. Raphael’s Short Term Surgery Unit and the Health Professions Recruitment and Exposure Program.