Team:Lubbock TTU/Team

Meet The Team!

LAUREN ESCOBEDO '22

President

Lauren is a Senior CISER scholar and a member of the Honors College at Texas Tech pursuing a degree in Biochemistry with three minors: Biology, Health Professions, and Sociology. Within the field of synthetic biology, she enjoys learning about the new innovations of gene editing and gene circuits. She loves volunteering for health organizations and beating everyone on the team in Mario Kart. Lauren also enjoys washing her car and watching movies.

MANINI PENIKALAPATI '23

Vice President/ Mathematical Modeler

Manini is a Junior CISER scholar and a member of the Honors College at Texas Tech studying Microbiology with minors in Chemistry and Gender Studies. Within her various fields of study, she enjoys learning about diagnostics and modeling biological systems. You can usually find her doing after school STEM programs with local middle schools with Widening Horizons and messing up nano drop results in the lab. When she's not busy, Manini enjoys visiting local coffee shops and buying novels she doesn't get around to reading.

ANNIE WOH '23

Secretary/ Outreach Specialist

Annie is a Junior CISER scholar and a member of the Honors College at Texas Tech studying Biochemistry with a minor in Biology. Within her fields of study, she enjoys reading up on new developments in the world and thinking about how she can play a part in them. You can usually find her sitting in front of her laptop planning events for the sisters of Lambda Delta Psi and drinking coffee so she can be nice to her friends. In the rare event she’s not busy with school work, she enjoys catching up on her never ending list of Korean dramas and animes, and reading books.

PAULA GARCIA '24

Wet Lab Manager/ Wiki developer

Paula is a Junior CISER scholar majoring in Biochemistry with a minor in Physics. She hopes to find a research career where she can implement physics, chemistry, and synthetic biology into improving the environment's current state in pollution. Outside of iGEM, she is a member of Alpha Delta Pi sorority, serving as the Property Manager, Planting Committee Leader, and Lodge Decor Committee Leader. In her spare time, she finds joy in creating art on canvas, paper, and on skin with her tattoo skills as well as exploring new places with friends and thinking to herself.

SYLVIA HERNANDEZ '24

Treasurer

Sylvia is a Junior CISER scholar studying Biochemistry with a minor in Forensic Sciences. With these, she wants to pursue a career in Forensic Pathology. You can usually find her drinking coffee in the office, going to Hispanic Student Society and West Texas-Association of Women in STEAM meetups, or trying to get ahead on her homework. When she isn't busy, she’s usually hanging out with her friends and going on spontaneous road trips!

CHRISTIAN FELL '24

Team Member

Christian is a Junior CISER scholar studying Microbiology and is minoring in Chemistry. He plans on a career in research involving synthetic biology and Microbiology. Being involved in cutting-edge research and student-led projects is an enjoyable pastime of his. In his spare time outside of school & work Christian enjoys tinkering with old electronics and enjoys getting into never-ending arguments on why he has an android.

RIGOBERTO HERNANDEZ '24

Media/ Animations Specialist

Rigoberto is a Sophomore CISER scholar studying Animal Science and Clinical Laboratory Science with a minor in Chemistry and Pre-Veterinary Science. In the future, he wants to be able to work in the field with different exotic animals conduct research. You can usually find him working with non-profit organizations such as Thirsty Project, Wild Wide Fund, and Greenpeace, sharing his story through different social media platforms. In his free time, Rigoberto likes to spend time with his friends, from watching tv shows to just having long musical car rides around his town.