THE PLACE TO BE Mark Payumo , MAS ’ 18 , ( center ) relied on connections made through his local alumni club upon a recent move to a new city .
2007
Tracy McMullen , PhD , wrote Haunthenticity : Musical Replay and the Fear of the Real , published by Wesleyan University Press . McMullen is a saxophonist , composer and associate professor of American vernacular music at Bowdoin College in Brunswick , Maine .
2008
Nicola Hedge , MPIA , is a climate advisor for the Natural Resources Defense Council in the Office of Climate Change , Sustainability and Resiliency in Honolulu , Hawaii .
Mayce Makani , Roosevelt , married Andrew Hevia on July 5 , 2019 , in El Cajon , Calif . Makani is a Spanish teacher at Immaculate Heart High School in Los Angeles .
Manda Riehl , MA , PhD ’ 08 , is an associate professor of mathematics at Rose- Hulman Institute of Technology in Terre Haute , Indiana . She was recognized by the Council on Undergraduate Research ’ s Mathematics and Computer Sciences Division for outstanding mentoring of undergraduate researchers .
Nydia Monica Rodriquez , Roosevelt , an academic advisor in the Department of Ethnic Studies at UC San Diego , says , “ I absolutely love the Ethnic Studies community and enjoy the positive impact I ’ m making on students ."
On Belonging
BY MARK PAYUMO , MAS ’ 18
MY RECENT MOVE TO SILICON VALLEY was like jumping out of an airplane for the first time — something I remember well from my service days as an airborne paratrooper . My wife and I decided to follow her job offer , which kicked off my career search in a new city where we knew no one . About a week into our move , I started paying attention to the emails I ’ d get from UCSD , which led me to the Alumni website and , ultimately , my local alumni club .
I soon met up with the club ’ s outgoing president , Brian Baumgartner ’ 09 , at a coffee shop in Sunnyvale . It turns out he had met another alumnus from my graduate program at the School of Global Policy and Strategy just a few months prior . In the same gracious and helpful way that Brian pointed this alumnus to the right resources and advice on where to lease a home , he provided valuable insights on how I could best position myself and my qualifications in the high-energy technology industry of Silicon Valley .
In the days after , Brian sent introductory emails and messages on LinkedIn to his professional connections and other alumni in the local area . Because of this , I soon met a seasoned 30-year veteran of the Valley who looked into my résumé and gave me career advice that allowed me to land interviews with a hiring manager at Facebook and other technology companies . Add to that the alumni friends I ’ ve made at the happy hour events , including the new club president , Sonam Mehta ’ 10 — just one of the many awesome people I ’ ve met in my short time here .
Ultimately , I ’ ve been so inspired by the incredible talent I ’ ve met here that I am now pushing through with the startup I ’ ve been working on since 2017 . This decision is equally due to the fresh sense of optimism and energy that ’ s come from connecting with my fellow alumni . A good learning point in this experience is that being a UC San Diego alumnus is about belonging — and belonging can mean a lot for people , just as it did for me , a somewhat reserved , deep-thinking intellectual , second-language English speaker and first-generation American . Belonging means a lot ; in fact , it means everything .
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