Graduate Affiliates 2024-2025

For general information about the Yale University Graduate Affiliate Program, click HERE.

Colton Basar

Colton Basar is a first-year PhD student in Materials Science with the Yale Nanoprobe Group. He is originally from the Cleveland, OH, area. Colton graduated from Yale last year with a BS in Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science. During his time at Yale he served as president of the Ezra Stiles College Council, and worked as a house aide in Ezra Stiles and as a ULA for materials science lab. At Yale, his favorite activities are working in the machine shop, 3D printing whatever he thinks of, and playing any and all intramural sports. He is very excited to stay connected with the Ezra Stiles community and continue to host events for the college. GFM and come to ESCC!

Bessie Bauman

Bessie Bauman is a second-year Yale Law student. Bessie studied Economics at Yale (class of 2021) as a proud member of Ezra Stiles. While in college, Bessie served as a Head of College Aide, College Council President, and First-year Counselor.

Bessie grew up in Olathe, Kansas and spent time in Denver, Colorado before attending law school. She is interested in labor, tax, and administrative law, with an emphasis on improving economic opportunity for all communities. Outside of school, you’ll find Bessie walking her dog up East Rock, enjoying a fun drink at Fussy Coffee, or baking.

Bessie is thrilled to be back in New Haven and is happy to discuss applying to law school, navigating higher education from a FGLI background, public service, or anything else.

Oswaldo Chinchilla

Oswaldo Chinchilla is a first-year PhD student in Architecture, with a focus on additive manufacturing in soil-based construction. He identifies as an artificer, builder, and carpenter. Oswaldo earned his B.A. in 2020 from the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) and his M.Arch from Yale University in 2024. Since Fall 2021, he has worked with Gray Organschi Architecture, focusing on timber structures and 6-axis robotic manufacturing. He has also served as a visiting critic and admissions committee member at RISD for several years. His work has been exhibited at the Gelman Gallery at RISD, the North Gallery at Yale, and TEDx New Haven. Oswaldo is excited to share his passion for making and tinkering with the Stiles community.

Patrick Demkowicz

Patrick is from Farmington, CT. He was a Stiles first year counselor and graduated from Yale College in 2018 with a degree in biomedical engineering. After working at a biotech startup, he returned to Yale to study medicine (Class of 2025). In his free time, Patrick enjoys exploring the outdoors, SCUBA diving, and learning new crafts like pottery.

Soraya Fereydooni

Soraya Fereydooni is a student in the Yale MD program (Class of 2025). She was born and raised in Iran and moved to the US when she was 18 where she attended Stanford. She graduated in 2020 with a bachelor’s in Biology and a minor in science communication. Her research interests include big database analysis and informatics research in the field of palliative care and otolaryngology. Outside of school, you’ll find her dancing with the Yale tango club and camping. Feel free to come to her with any questions about medicine, data science, and any other fun topics.

Mauricio Gonzalez Sanchez 

Mauricio is a second-year Yale Law student. Originally from Torreón, Mexico, and now also from El Paso, Texas, he studied English in the Yale College (and Stiles!) class of 2022. He was most recently a Light Fellow studying Mandarin Chinese in Taipei for a year post-grad. At the law school, Mauricio is involved in the Yale Law & Policy Review, the Yale Civil Rights Project, and is generally interested in international law, human rights, and immigration law and policy. Please talk to him about your plants, pets, best coffee-making methods, creative writing, and favorite video and/or board games.

Nayeli Gonzalez-Vazquez

Nayeli is a second year student at the Yale School of Public Health getting her Master’s of Public Health in Social and Behavioral Sciences. She was born and half raised in Puerto Rico and the other half in the general South (think Alabama, Tennessee, Texas, etc.). Nayeli graduated from Yale College in 2024 with a B.A. in History of Science, Medicine, and Public Health and began her MPH during her senior year of college. Academically, Nayeli is specifically interested in maternal and child health and how social factors manifest into health outcomes. During her undergraduate years, Nayeli was a proud Stilesian – working as both a Stiles Office Aide and a First-Year Counselor. She’s ecstatic to be a part of the herd again and can’t wait to answer any public health-related questions or give any public health fun facts!

Makedah Hughes

Makedah is a PhD student in French & African American Studies. She is broadly interested in 20th/21st century Francophone and Anglophone African literature, the trans-Saharan and inter-African slave trades, and African Diaspora studies. Originally from Apopka, Florida, Makedah received her B.A. in Comparative Literature (Literary Translation) from Brown University where she was a Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellow. After graduating, Makedah lived in France for four years. She received a Master Lettres at Université Paris 8, completed a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship, and worked as an English instructor at Université Sorbonne Nouvelle.

Outside of school, Makedah loves taking walks with her dog, trying new restaurants, listening to music, and spending time in nature. Feel free to reach out to her if you have questions about studying or working abroad, pursuing a combined graduate degree, or if you need/have New Haven food recommendations!

Elias Mastakouris

Elias is a law student from Long Island, New York. He graduated from Yale College in 2020 with a BA/MA in political science and was a proud member of Ezra Stiles. Prior to law school, he served in the U.S. Army as a ranger-qualified airborne infantry officer. Please reach out to him to chat about New Haven, hiking, or anything else.

John Mollet

John Mollet is a second-year PhD student in the American Studies Department and a member of the Fort Peck Assiniboine-Nakota Sioux tribe. Raised in San Diego, California, he earned both his B.A. and M.A. in History from San Diego State University. His research centers on 20th-century Indigenous history, with a particular emphasis on Native American social movements and the experiences of American Indian veterans and soldiers.

In addition to his role as a graduate fellow, John is currently a Whitney Humanities Center Strategic Communication Fellow and a CBEY 2050 Fellow. Outside of academia, he explores his interests in music, subcultures, and graphic design through creative outlets like zine-making and screenprinting.

John is open to discussing the humanities graduate school process with anyone seeking advice.

 
Nicole Hobbs Morrison is a second-year MBA candidate at the Yale School of Management. She is originally from Branford, CT and graduated from Yale College in 2014 with a B.A. in History. She was a proud member of Ezra Stiles College, where she served as a Stiles Aide and First-Year Counselor. She also served as the President of the Yale College Democrats and the College Democrats of Connecticut. 
 
Nicole has over ten years of experience working on political campaigns and in the nonprofit sector. Most recently, she served as Co-Founder and Executive Director of EveryDistrict, a political organization fundraising for legislative candidates. 
 
Nicole is thrilled to be rejoining the Stiles community, and she is happy to talk about New Haven pizza, business school, working in the public/nonprofit sector, or anything else!

Madeline Marconi

Madeline is a Masters’ of Architecture candidate at the School of Architecture (Class of 2026). Originally from Long Island, New York, she is a proud Stilesian and completed her undergraduate education in 2022. Before returning to Yale for her Masters, she spent a year working at an architectural firm in New York City. In addition to serving as a graduate affiliate, Madeline is also a Writing Partner at the Poorvu Center for Teaching and Learning, as well as a member of the social committee at the School of Architecture. Academically, Madeline is interested in the intersections between marginalized communities and architecture, possessing a passion for designing Latinx spaces. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, baking, and trying new restaurants. Madeline is ecstatic to return to Stiles and is happy to talk to anyone interested in applying to grad school, working in industry, life at Yale, or anything else!

Daniel McQuaid

Dan is an MD/PhD student (Class of 2028) originally from Ossining, NY. He graduated from Yale in 2018 as an MCDB major and was a proud member of Ezra Stiles. Dan is broadly interested in developing novel ways to prevent and treat cancer, and aspires to be a medical oncologist in the future. Outside of the lab/hospital, Dan enjoys visiting local breweries and supporting Arsenal FC in the English Premier League. He is super excited to be rejoining the Stiles community and is happy to answer questions about medical school, living in New Haven for a very, very long time, or anything else of interest. GFM! 

Giramnah Peña-Alcántara

Giramnah Peña-Alcántara is Dominican-American and grew up in Massachusetts, Illinois and New York City. She is a Ph.D. student in the Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program. She holds a bachelor of Science in Biological Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and master’s degree in Global Affairs from Tsinghua University in Beijing, China as a Schwarzman Scholars. She is also a NSF Graduate Student Fellow and a Gruber Fellow. Giramnah has conducted research with the Ting Laboratory at Tsinghua University researching mirror-image gene transcription and reverse transcription. More recently, she worked with the Horvitz Laboratory at MIT where she explored how C. elegans can be used to elucidate the connection between neurodegeneration and the lipid metabolism. While at Yale, Giramnah looks forward to further elucidating the gut-brain axis. Outside of research, Giramnah is a passionate advocate for her community and for increasing diversity in STEM. She volunteered with U.S. Congressman Espaillat, New York City Council Member Rodrigues, BoSTEM, the Leadership Training Institute, and MISTI Teaching Labs. She also loves embroidery, baking, and skydiving!

Leland Stange

Leland is a PhD student in political theory from Tulsa, Oklahoma. He works on ancient and modern thought, with a particular emphasis on the relationship between beauty and democracy. A proud Stilesian, he graduated from Yale College in 2019, majoring in Humanities and Philosophy. Between then and now, he studied Classics (Greek and Chinese) at Clare College, Cambridge and supervised undergraduates in the history of political thought. He loves radio, newspapers, talking to strangers, and paper-folding.

Nnamdi Udeh

Nnamdi Udeh graduated from Yale College in 2014 with a BS in Molecular Biology. He graduated with his MD from the University of Virginia School of Medicine in 2018. He is currently pursuing an Executive MBA at the Yale School of Management. He previously was a Resident Physician in Diagnostic Radiology at the University of Pennsylvania Health System and he is currently a Clinical Fellow in Emergency Radiology at Yale New Haven Hospital. He is an avid baker, calisthenics enthusiast, and proud cat father.

Bilige “Billy” Yang (杨毕力格)

Billy is a PhD student in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science (Class of 2025). His research is on soft robotics— compliant material innovations which can revolutionize how we interact with machines. Billy grew up in Inner Mongolia, China and studied at Swarthmore College for a B.S. in Engineering. In his free time, he loves rock climbing, cycling, and skiing. Feel free to reach out to him if you have any questions about graduate school, engineering, China, or anything else! He is excited to meet you all!