During her time at UMD, Briana Garcia observed what she called “a vibrant religious community” advocating for change. She also saw a need.

As a presidential fellow for UMD’s Student Government Association, the government and politics major spearheaded an initiative to boost religious counseling services and collaborated with chaplains and the University Counseling Center to integrate resources from religious organizations into its website.

Meanwhile, as an intern for the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society in Silver Spring, Md., she conducted intakes with asylum seekers and refugees and informed them of their rights and resources.

“My proximity with this community has led me to reflect on my aspirations to serve those seeking a better life, just as my family has also sought a better life in America,” said Garcia, whose parents emigrated from Mexico before she was born.

Garcia also shone in the classroom, writing literature reviews and expanding methodologies as a researcher for UMD’s Interdisciplinary Laboratory for Computational Social Science, among other research roles.

“Ms. Garcia is a brilliant young scholar—thoughtful, creative, and exceptionally skilled in data analysis,” said Ernesto Calvo, professor of government and politics and director of the lab.

Off campus, Garcia interned for Maryland Sen. Michael A. Jackson and volunteered as an election judge for the Calvert County Board of Elections.

This fall she will begin a doctoral program in political science at the University of Michigan.

View the original article by John Tucker, published in Maryland Today, to see the full list of finalists