BSEL Undergraduate Social Impact Scholars Program

Aahana Chowdhuri is a senior from San Jose, California studying Business Administration (Business Analytics) and minoring in Foundations of Data Science. Alongside being involved in Los Angeles Community Impact, Descent Magazine, and Marshall Peer Career Advising, she is currently conducting research with the Marshall Global Honors Research Program to identify and formulate plastic tracking methods in Indonesia. She wants to pursue the intersections of business strategy, data science, and environmental sustainability in her career; on a personal level, she believes in the transformative power of creative writing for self-development.

Aaron Teklu is a rising senior here at USC, where he is pursuing a major in Social Sciences with an emphasis in Economics, with a minor in Blockchain. He is deeply passionate about the convergence of finance and social impact and ultimately, he wants to be the CEO of his own company that spearheads financial inclusion and equality in Ethiopia.

Alisha Merchant is a rising senior studying Cinema and Media Studies with a double minor in Health Innovation and Social Justice and Advocacy. She has served on the executive board of Spark SC, a USC-based entrepreneurship nonprofit, and the Asian Pacific Cinema Association. Her ultimate goal is to navigate solutions at the intersection of film, medicine, and social impact.

Andrew Udov is a rising senior at USC studying Human Biology and pursuing his master's degree in Entrepreneurship and Innovation. On campus, he works as a student EMT, serves as the President of the Southern California Undergraduate Research Journal, and conducts prostate cancer research at CSI-Cancer under Dr. Peter Kuhn. His interest in healthcare access and health education drew him to co-found Praxis Health Empowerment, a health equity 501(c)(3) nonprofit, where he serves as the Executive Director.

Anish Kushalapa is an Economics/Math student from Dubai. He is passionate about finding solutions to pressing social, environmental, and economic issues through leveraging technologically powered solutions and innovative thinking.

Elina Khoshnevis is a rising junior at USC, studying Business with a minor in Entrepreneurship, deeply committed and passionate about integrating ethical principles within diverse business sectors. With a profound dedication to ethical innovation, Elina is deeply committed to revolutionizing the fashion industry by pioneering sustainable and ethical business models. In addition to her entrepreneurial endeavors, Elina also serves on the executive board of USC's Persian Student Organization, where she initiated a professional development panel series, bringing together Persian professionals from various fields to engage with and inspire the USC community. Beyond her business and academic pursuits, Elina loves to immerse herself in the art and fashion scene in Los Angeles.

Hanna Cardona is a rising junior from Queens, New York, majoring in Business Administration. Combining her passions for social impact and consulting, she aspires to utilize her career to grow nonprofits targeting disparities within the public school system. As the daughter of Colombian immigrants, she is committed to fostering diversity within business and breaking down barriers to entry for often gate-kept careers.

Hilary Keuni is a first-generation rising senior studying Industrial and Systems Engineering. Hilary co-founded SkyGuard, a startup focused on enhancing landmine detection through machine learning and computer vision. Born in Cameroon and raised in Chicago, she is passionate about creating sustainable solutions for global challenges, optimizing processes to enhance efficiency, safety, productivity, and reducing waste to improve quality.

Kelly Kim is a senior from Cupertino, CA, majoring in Business Administration. She is passionate about creating positive change through community service and engagement as well as nonprofit work. She holds leadership positions for impact-focused organizations on campus, such as Scholars Leading Scholars, The Pad Project, Bohnett Board, Marshall Outreach Volunteer Entrepreneurs, and the USC Volunteer Center

Leo Arney is a rising junior studying Business Administration with a minor in Environmental Studies. He serves on the Advisory Committee on Investment Responsibility for USC's endowment fund and is a Hayes Barnard Sustainability Fellow. An environmental advocate, he leverages his finance background to pioneer sustainable initiatives and promote eco-conscious investments.

Matthew Kuloszewski is a rising senior from Scranton, Pennsylvania, majoring in Economics with a minor in Health Policy and a specialization in Applied Analytics. His academic and research endeavors, including his roles as a Research Assistant at Geisinger Health System and USC Price’s Center for Health Financing, Policy, and Management, focus on addressing the impacts of the opioid crisis and healthcare costs within his community. As he looks to the future, Matthew aims to pursue graduate studies at the nexus of data analytics and health policy. His ultimate goal is to utilize quantitative methods to tackle public health disparities.

Melissa Paz-Flores is a rising Junior, studying psychology and minoring in management consulting. As a first-generation student and the daughter of immigrants, she hopes to mesh her interests in immigrant justice advocacy and educational equity in higher education through a career in the educational consulting space. Currently, Melissa is expanding opportunities for undocumented students as the current Director of External Outreach for IDEAS @ USC. She also serves on the Office of Inclusion and Diversity’s Student Leadership Council. Beyond campus, Melissa continues to explore her passions by researching Latinx Immigrants’ well-being at UC Santa Cruz.

Mike McGalliard, for over three decades, has been an educator and social entrepreneur, building companies, schools, and campaigns that advance the educational achievement and well-being of children. He founded or co-founded multiple organizations, including LA Promise Fund, a leader in school reform and neighborhood empowerment in the LAUSD. As a start-up leader and team-builder, Mike has helped launch or restructure several schools and organizations (traditional, private, and charter) and served as CEO across four nonprofits. Mike has worked alongside renowned change-makers, including Jamie Oliver, Goldie Hawn, Pharrell Williams, and Common. He has designed large-scale education initiatives with global brands such as Google, Amazon, Boeing, and Disney. Mike was named Champion in LEGO’s Re-Imagine Learning Challenge and an Ashoka “Globalizer Fellow.” Mike is currently founder and CEO of The Firebrand Co., a social impact design studio based in Los Angeles.

Daryl-lynn Ropberts, as Vice President of Business Development at Visage Energy, is responsible for originating and cultivating new business opportunities as well as relationships with clients. She started and now leads the clean energy technology commercialization consulting group in the focus areas of Carbon Management (Point Source Capture, Carbon Utilization and Direct Air Capture), Microgrids, Renewable Energy, Energy Efficiency, Energy Storage, and Grid Modeling (technologies at TRL 3-7). Daryl-Lynn has 15+ years of experience within the clean energy industry. Most notably, she co-managed the first of a kind pre-FEED NGCC + CCS retrofit study within the western region involving California IOUs, NETL, and CEC. She coordinated the Technical CCS Regional Stakeholder Collaborative Initiative which included CA utilities, CPUC, CEC, and NETL culminating in the Blue Ribbon multi agency CCUS panel. She also assisted in the collaboration of the $35MM CPUC funded High Performance Computing CA Energy System for 21st Century (CES-21) Initiative Partnership with LLNL and CA IOUs for grid modeling and cyber security.  Prior to Visage Energy, she worked as a financial analyst at Moore Clayton & Company, a program manager at Vernier Networks, and an assistant product manager at Zaplet Daryl-Lynn has served on the Board of Directors for the Coalition for Clean Air (2009-2012), National Utilities Diversity Council (current), and Los Angeles African American Public Policy Institute (current). Daryl-Lynn received her Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Harvard Business School in 2004. She also received her Master of Science in Industrial Engineering in 2002 from Stanford University where her primary emphasis was Entrepreneurship. In 2000, she completed her Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering from Stanford University.