HOPE & Wellness Interns

Angelica Upham

I am a 5th year student at California State University San Marcos who is graduating in the spring of 2018 with a Bachelors in Sociology. I hope to become an asset to helping those suffering from mental illness within my career. I am passionate about helping individuals come to an understanding that mental health does not discriminate. I believe that with a little bit of education and communication, together we can annihilate the various stigmas of mental illness!  

Jessica Tolentino

Jessica Tolentino is a senior majoring in psychology and is expected to graduate this Spring 2018. She loves to learn about health in general, but more specifically, psychological disorders. Jessica is very passionate about helping others and reducing the stigma of mental illnesses. In her free time, she loves to go to the gym or decorate and organize her planner.

Kylie  Kutina

Content hereKylie, soon to be a graduate of CSUSM, was raised on an avocado orchard in Ramona, CA. She attended Ramona High School where she participated in cheerleading, NJROTC and was a competitive gymnast. Upon graduation she was accepted into CSUSM where she became a member of Delta Zeta and now holds the “Pink goes green” chair, helping her sorority be more sustainable and environmentally conscious. Kylie will graduate as a member of the Gamma Sigma Alpha honor society this May with a degree in Human Development-Health Sciences, and wishes to continue her education here at CSUSM getting a masters in public health. Kylie is a kind young lady with positive outlook on life and a great sense of humor. She has an open mind and is willing to help anyone in need.

Kylie Przymus

Kylie grew up in Minnesota, but loves calling San Diego her permanent home now. She is a senior and will graduate in may with a degree in Human Development. She hopes to enter into a Master of Social Work program after graduation, but is open and ready to whatever life throws at her. She has the travel bug and wants to experience every country in Central and South America in order to further her passion in Spanish. She loves coffee and has found it necessary in order to succeed in college. She would consider herself a people person and values healthy relationships. Kylie will be interning and working specifically with sexual education in order to spread awareness and provide hope and resources. She has first hand experienced the challenges that college and life can bring you and has found the importance of having a place like the H.O.P.E. and Wellness Center to help you navigate through life.

Makayla Peterson

 

My name is Makayla Peterson. I am a 5th year student and graduating this Spring with a Bachelors in Kinesiology with a concentration of Health Science. Outside of school, I am a Certified Nurses Assistant and enjoy listening to music. I wanted to become a Peer Educator for the Hope and Wellness center because I am strongly passionate about building a support system for individuals. This internship will allow me to help my fellow peers in providing the proper avenues for all issues of personal health and well-being as well as bringing awareness to health literacy among young adults. 

Megan Young

My name is Megan Young. I am a working toward a baccalaureate in Psychology with an emphasis towards mental and physical health. I have had epilepsy since I was 3 years of age, which is the underlying reason I am interested in the well-being of others as well as myself. Due to many hardships in my life, ranging from sexual violence to mental and physical health issues, I feel I could be a great advocate for both; although I feel I could be an advocate for both, my primary interest is in mental health. Mental health has been my primary interest because of my trials and tribulations with epilepsy in tandem with depression and anxiety, which can be emotionally and physically debilitating. I believe being a peer educator would provide a voice for fellow students who have experienced some form of mental and physical health difficulties that feel they cannot share, as well as information on how to cope with what they feel, and helping students understand that they are not alone.

Tina Dinh

Tina is a fourth year student who is looking forward to graduating in the spring with a Bachelor's in Human Development. She believes that having good physical health and strong mental health is essential to being a successful college student and she hopes she can help her fellow Cougars in reaching their full potential through education and support. After graduation, Tina will take a gap year to work and travel while preparing for nursing school. When she is not studying or working with her fellow peer educators at the H.O.P.E. and Wellness Center, Tina can be found eating tacos, hiking in LA county, watching movies with her boyfriend or catching up with her mom. 

Valerie Mbonu

I’m Valerie. I am graduating this May with a degree in Human Development. I’m originally from the Bay Area and came down to Southern California for school. I would definitely like to stay down here because I love being so close to the beach. I enjoy hanging out with friends, cooking and baking new recipes, and doing fun, spontaneous things. I am a member of Apha Xi Delta and I love all the fundraising we do for our philanthropy, Autism Speaks. After I graduate, I would like to pursue another degree in Nursing.  

Veronica Alvarez 

My name is Veronica Alvarez I was born in San Diego and lived there for about 8 years before I moved to Hemet. I am a first generation college student, which makes me extremely proud. I have a family who has always been very supportive of my decisions. I am majoring in Human Development and minoring in Spanish. I work on campus and I am a part of the Greek community. I will be graduating this spring and receiving my bachelors. The thought of graduating in only a few months brings me feelings or excitement, accomplishment and it also saddens me because of all the wonderful people I have met. My experience at CSUSM has been very stressful at times, but extremely rewarding. I will forever cherish everything I have learned and all of the friendships I made. I wanted to become a peer educator because mental health and health in general is very important. I want to spread awareness and make a difference in a person’s life. I believe that in order for a person to be successful they need to have good mental, physical, emotional, social and spiritual health. As a peer educator I hope to steer my peers in the right direction and be someone they can come to.