Sophia Barriga, Chapter 386 – Mayfield Senior School
Adviser Ann Pibel
Principal Kate Morin
A CSF member for every semester of high school, Sophia has devoted much of her time in Mayfield Senior School’s chapter as a peer tutor. In other clubs on campus, Sophia has served as the Campus Ministry Council Member Co-Head, Vice President of the Spanish Honors Society, and the Latina’s Unidas Club Co-Head, all for the past four years. During her high school career, Sophia has also found time to cheer, dance, work as both a camp counselor and lifeguard, plus so much more. If that wasn’t enough, she has also been an active girl scout since kindergarten.
After graduating, Sophia will be attending either The University of Michigan, UC San Diego, or Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. She plans to major in biology and become a pre-med student with a goal of working as a dermatologist.
When I asked her to tell me something that her friends would say about her, she said they would say she was “extra”. If her friends were loud, she would be “extra loud, if silly, she would be extra silly…
Alana Kendall Cho, Chapter 1138 – Palos Verdes Peninsula High School
Adviser Betsy Okamoto
Principal Brent Kuykendall
Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District
Serving as this year’s CSF president at Palos Verdes Peninsula High School, Alana has been a member all four years. She also currently serves as the Key Club president since 2021 where many community services were conducted such as shoe drives, school supply drives, diaper drives, writing letters to senior citizens, leukemia patients and finally hosting an annual Christmas party for underprivileged youth.
Alana is also the founder and current vice president of Girls in STEM on campus. This is obviously her biggest passion as she has even become a published author with a book called Yuna Soars With STEM, a children’s picture book that follows a journey of female empowerment in STEM. Proceeds from this book go back into her organization. Available on Kindle today. Buy it!
Looking ahead to college, Alana has applied to numerous CSU’s and UC’s, including UCLA, and has also applied to Brown and Yale. Public Health will be her focus as she works towards becoming a surgeon.
Guilty pleasures include binge watching Gilmore Girls and practicing the art of glass blowing.
Allison Clunis, Chapter 106 – Simi Valley High School
Adviser Shauna Poutre
Principal JC Baxter
Simi Valley Unified School District
CSF at Simi Valley High School is where you will find Allison as this year’s current vice president in an active chapter involved in such activities as Snap raise fundraiser, peer tutoring, various restaurant nights, and hosting the induction ceremony for both CVSF and the National Honor Society. She is also the current president of the senior class, Vice president of NHS, Student choreographer for the dance team, and current treasurer for the Art Beat club, plus much more.
Her future plans are to enroll at either San Diego State, Cal Lutheran, or the University of Las Vegas, where she would like to utilize her skills to major in hospitality and work as an event planner.
In her limited down time, you might find her in the kitchen baking something delicious. Wow, event planning, baking. I think we can use your skills here in CSF!
Fiona Hemstreet, Chapter 890 – Village Christian High School
Adviser Marc Sercomb
Principal Doug Berry
Village Christian High School
Village Christian School in Burbank is where Fiona is a four-year member of her school’s CSF chapter. Two events that she is proud of have been the stress ball fundraiser and the encouraging Post it notes campaign. In other activities and clubs on campus, Fiona is the current editor in chief of yearbook, the Founder and President of Just Do Something Club, and the Treasurer of the Girls Who Code Club both since 2021. Fiona too has been a Girl Scout since 2009. Volunteering is much of who she is, serving her time with Aviva Family and Children’s Services, and the Ronald McDonald House. In sports, Fiona has been the Team captain and MVP twice for both softball and volleyball.
Her dream college is Northeastern University, but she has also applied for the University of Michigan, and the University of Colorado at Boulder. She is considering a major in either Social Justice or science.
When she was little, Fiona loved turtles. And now, partly as a joke, but partly from this childhood love, friends and family buy her turtle figurines, pins, pictures etc. If it has a turtle on it, it’s perfect for Fiona!
Swarada Kulkarni, Chapter 1299 – West Ranch High School
Adviser Laura Solarez
Principal Robert Fisher
William S Hart Union High School District
President this year, and vice president last year of the CSF chapter at West Ranch High School, Swarada has been a member all four years of high school. She has led this chapter in many service opportunities from Project Linus blanket making, Cards for Assisted Living Homes, toy drives, food drives, and so much more. In addition to CSF, Swarada is also the Speech and Debate Club captain /president, an Honors team member of her school’s Academic Decathlon team, president of her school’s National Art Honors Society, and the Founder & CEO – of the Bridge to Hope Foundation a Nonprofit Organization that has Recruited 50 students globally and led committees; to assist underprivileged areas with fundraising; masks and sanitizer to 10K people in 3 Indian villages. Celebrating her cultural heritage, Swarada is a Dragonboat competitive paddler and classical Indian singer.
Her future college plans include either USC or UC Berkeley where she plans to major in neuroscience and molecular biology.
An interesting fact about Swarada, she has been a vegetarian since birth.
Weber Lin, Chapter 434 – Arcadia High School
Adviser Matthew Wong
Principal Angela Dillman Arcadia Unified School District
At Arcadia High School, Weber has been a CSF member for all four years. Creating a major community service initiative, Weber organized, produced and distributed 3D printed PPE for frontline workers during the 2020 COVID epidemic. As the Project Founder/Fundraiser/PR Officer/Manager, he crowd-funded and raised over $5,000.00, printed and distributed over 3100 pieces of PPE worldwide. In sports, Weber is the current cross country team captain. Musically, Weber is 1st clarinetist, and the Gig Coordinator for the Music Makes Miracles club on campus. Outside of school, involved with scouting, Weber has obtained the prestigious rank of Eagle Scout.
With plans to attend either MIT, Harvard, Yale or Princeton, Weber plans to major in bioengineering and enter the career field of bio printing, which as he explained to me is like 3d printing using human cells to create organs.
If later you hear strange sounds, it just might be Weber playing the bagpipes.
Celeste Esmalia Morales, Chapter 639 – Duarte High School
Adviser Nathalie Umana
Principal Luis Haro
Duarte Unified School District
Serving as last year’s vice president and this year’s current president of Duarte High school’s CSF chapter, Celeste has led numerous service projects such as Girls love mail, blankets for pups, sock drives, food drives and the Panda Express fundraiser. She has also been the vice president of her class for the past three years. In Key club, her volunteer heart thrives in such activities as Steps for a cause, Children’s Book Sales, Kid-Fit 5k Run, Junior Olympics Track Meet
And the Cesar Chavez Day of Service. In basketball, Celeste has served as team captain for the past three years, and is currently the team captain for volleyball. Her plans for post high school is to attend either the University of Laverne or UC Irvine where she has planned to major in public health with the career goal of becoming a registered nurse.
Liana Lily Pagarian, Chapter 634 – Ulysses S Grant High School
Adviser Erin Suess
Principal Rebecca McMurrin
Los Angeles Unified School District
This year’s current CSF president at Ulysses S. Grant High School, Liana has been an active member all four years of high school. In her chapter she has participated in such activities as Hope of the Valley Food Drive, clothes drives, animal shelter food drives, letters to the homeless living in shelters plus so much more. In addition to CSF, Liana is also the founder and president of the Women in STEM club, as well as the current vice president of the associated student body. Liana is also the founder and CEO of the nonprofit group Opportunities for All. A member of her school’s Academic Decathlon team, Liana is the current president/ team captain.
Having applied to more than 17 colleges, Liana has her sights set on Stanford, UC San Diego, Cal Lutheran or CSU Long Beach. She plans to major in either biology or neuroscience with goals of becoming a veterinarian or a neurosurgeon, or maybe both?
In her quiet time, Liana enjoys crocheting.
Ashlyn Ro, Chapter 106 Simi Valley High School
Adviser Shauna Poutre
Principal JC Baxter
Simi Valley Unified School District
Serving as this year’s CSF president at Simi Valley High School, Ashlyn has been involved in many activities such as Puzzles For the Troops, Holiday Cards Snap raise fundraiser, peer tutoring, and various restaurant nights, including Panda Express, Carl’s Junior, and Mod Pizza. In addition to CSFG Ashlyn is the ArtBeat Club Co-Founder, National Honor Society President, The Joyful Noise Project Co-President, the HOSA Future Health Professionals President, and finally the Women in STEM club President, among many others. Outside of school Ashlyn serves as Chair of the Simi Valley Youth Council this year, as the vice chair last year and a member of the council since 8th grade.
Ashlyn plans to major in either biology or molecular biology and hopes to attend UCLA, Claremont McKenna, Stanford or Pepperdine. While not exactly on a specific career, Ashlyn knows her future will be in the medical field.
Ashlyn is also a Piano Soloist for the Thousand Oaks Philharmonic and offers private piano lessons. Perhaps this is why in her spare time, she and her sisters enjoy composing songs.
Jolene Roohan, Chapter 701 – Bishop Montgomery High School
Adviser John Hong
Principal James Garza
Archdiocese of Los Angeles
Officer positions were not offered to CSF students at Bishop Montgomery High School, but that didn’t stop Jolene from being a member all four years of high school and serving her time as a peer tutor. Outside of CSF, Jolene is the President and Founder of Asian Pacific Islander Student Association, and Co-president of the class of 2023 since her freshman year. Outside of school Jolene has had the opportunity to serve on Congressman Ted Lieu’s Youth Advisory Council from 2020-2022. She was also involved with the UCLA Pre-Medical Summer Scholars Program where she amassed 80 hours where she participated and trained other high schoolers in basic medical skills such as suturing, scrubbing, robotic surgery, and other medical simulations. In addition to all of this, Jolene has worked as a Physical Therapy Intern with more than 100 hours of time spent.
All of this effort is leading her to Boston College in the Fall to major in Biology, then to med school to one day work in the surgical technology field.
During her brief moments of relaxing, you might find her binge watching the Office, or in the kitchen baking, a skill she acquired during those long months of quarantine.
