Current Scholars

Hadia Amin is a student at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, majoring in Cell and Molecular Biology. She is interested in genetics, epigenetics, and understanding how cellular processes influence human health and disease. As a McNair Scholar, she is in the process of developing her research project. Hadia is an active member of the Biological Science Society and enjoys sculpting, painting, and reading in her free time. She aspires to pursue a career in medicine, with a focus on improving healthcare access and outcomes for under-served communities.

Kaela Murray is an undergraduate student at John Jay College of Criminal Justice and a proud McNair Scholar. She is majoring in Anthropology with a minor in Africana Studies. Her academic interests include the African diaspora, Black identity formation, youth studies, and culturally responsive education. As a McNair Scholar, Kaela’s research examines the cultural disconnect between outdated school curricula and the lived cultural experiences of African American High School students. Grounded in educational and applied anthropology, her work explores how curriculum relevance, representation, and cultural alignment impact student engagement, identity development, and educational outcomes. Kaela has been recognized by John Jay for her academic achievement in both her major and minor and has presented her research at the John Jay Research & Creativity Expo. In addition to her involvement in the McNair Program, she is engaged in academic research initiatives at the college and works with middle school students, where she enjoys designing and teaching interactive activities that foster curiosity, cultural awareness, and critical thinking. Outside of academics, she enjoys creative writing, curating music playlists, and scrapbooking. Kaela plans to pursue a PhD in Anthropology with a concentration in urban culture and education. Her long-term goals include continuing to educate and mentor youth at the Middle School and High School levels, while contributing to scholarships that advance culturally responsive education and educational equity for marginalized communities.

Avani Singh is a third year undergraduate student, enrolled in a dual degree program for Forensic Psychology BA and Forensic Mental Health Counseling MA. As a feminist, she is the founder and president of the United Women's Alliance, a student organization that advocates to end gender-based violence, provides a safe space for women at John Jay, and uplifts women to become the most resilient versions of themselves. An advocate to end sexual violence, she is apart of the Collegiate Changemakers Fellowship with the New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault. She is also a recipient of the New York Giants Fellowship, with her placement site at the Brooklyn Justice Initiatives. As an aspiring clinical psychologist, she is actively gaining research experience through the Ronald E. McNair Baccalaureate Program and the John Jay Honors Program. Avani is passionate about advocating to end child maltreatment and prevent youth from becoming involved in the criminal legal system, and hopes to rehabilitate juvenile offenders and conduct research on the cycles of violence throughout her career.

Gabriel Elias Martinez Romero is a first-generation college student from Queens, New York City, and a proud scholar of Macaulay Honors College at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. Majoring in Forensic Science with a concentration in Toxicology, Gabriel is deeply committed to research and mentorship within STEM. His early curiosity about the natural world, sparked by shows like Wild Kratts, has since evolved into a focused passion for the sciences. Gabriel joined the Program for Research Initiatives in Science and Math (PRISM) as a Junior Scholar during his freshman year. He soon began working in the lab of Dr. Elise Champeil, studying DELS-15, a novel derivative of the chemotherapeutic drug mitomycin C. This research, which involves the synthesis of oligonucleotides containing DNA adducts, introduced him to the world of drug-DNA interactions and further solidified his interest in the biomedical field. 

In the summer of 2024, Gabriel was selected for the Leadership Alliance Summer Research Early Identification Program (SR-EIP), where he conducted research at Brown University under the mentorship of Dr. Yang Zhou. His work involved characterizing Group 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s) in live mouse models, studying the ILC2s' immune response in lung tissue to various drugs. He presented his findings at the Leadership Alliance National Symposium (LANS) in Connecticut and the Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minoritized Scientists (ABRCMS) in Pittsburgh.

After his summer internship, he continued to work under the guidance of Dr. Elise Champeil and has since co-authored two publications and presented his research at the American Chemical Society (ACS) National Meeting in San Diego in 2025. Beyond research, he is a peer mentor for PRISM and a College Assistant for the Macaulay Honors College Chemistry Department, where he tutors underclassmen in general chemistry and supports academic excellence among fellow students. Gabriel’s long-term goals include pursuing a Ph.D. in biochemistry with a potential M.D to contribute to therapeutic development and improve health outcomes.