We are delighted to welcome six new students to our MA program this year.
Bella Adams holds a B.A. in English and Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies from the University of Florida. She is broadly interested in theories of feminism, postcoloniality, and film. For her thesis, Bella is interested in analyzing nationalist ideologies of gender, sexuality, class, and race in satirical American popular film and television.
Rae Landingin is a firstgeneration Filipinx scholar, organizer, and creative. Their research examines how alternative systems and spaces, like queer nightlife and cultural arts rooted in Black and Brown diasporic contexts, generate critical knowledge and sustain communities. Rae received their BA in Journalism and Media Studies with a minor in Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies at Rutgers University, New Brunswick in 2017, and is an alum of the Douglass Residential College.
Sharlyen Lopez’s research interests include immigration, migranthood, and reproductive politics. Before coming to UF, she received a BA in Chicana & Chicano Studies and Feminist Studies from UC Santa Barbara, where she researched racial stereotypes of women of color in popular movies. Sharlyen hopes to use her background to highlight social, cultural, and political discrimination against Latin Americans in the United States and advocate for equitable treatment across all areas of life.
Chukwuebuka Alexander Ozoani has worked as a researcher and paralegal. He obtained his bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. He hopes to use feminist epistemologies to find better explanations for suicide among gender minorities and, by extension, coping strategies for minority stressors. He is a Global Peter Drucker 2024 Gold Award winner.
Marie Vazquez earned her bachelor’s degree in Women’s Studies and Psychology from the University of Florida, where she developed a passion for understanding the intersections of mental health, identity, and resilience. Her research now focuses on examining resilience and coping strategies among LGBTQ+ individuals, with a specific interest in how these strategies foster queer joy and enhance mental well-being.
Kay Yehezkely holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of Florida. Her current research interests include gendered political socialization, critical girlhood studies, and feminist political thought. Kay hopes to explore stories that are often overlooked in her developing thesis project which focuses on the effects of gendered experiences in childhood on political beliefs in adulthood.