The Pomona Prehealth Liaisons are a dynamic student-led group that serves the Pomona Prehealth community. Our Liaisons serve as mentors and community builders for students on the Prehealth track. The Liaisons host relevant health career events including medical school visits, panels with medical schools, and healthcare seminars. They also host Prehealth community building events such as a welcome-back social, de-stress hang-outs, and pre-registration schedule planning. The Prehealth Liaisons build strong connections through their mentorship program for first-year students and advising students in one-on-one meetings. Reach out to them at pomonahealth@gmail.com.
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Nadiya Muhammad 鈥25
Nadiya is a senior from Chicago, Illinois, majoring in chemistry with an intended minor in Africana studies. In addition to being a Prehealth Liaison, on campus, she is a Posse Scholar, an Academic Peer Mentor, and is the current program coordinator for the Draper Center for Community Partnership鈥檚 Sista 2 Sista program. As far as her future career goals, Nadiya is interested in becoming an obstetrician/gynecologist or an emergency medicine physician. She has gained a variety of direct patient care experience working in various hospital departments including emergency medicine, labor and delivery, and pediatrics. She is currently an intern in Rush Hospital鈥檚 Education and Career Hub. Nadiya is deeply interested in gaining knowledge of the overall healthcare system through exploration of non-clinical healthcare and heath adjacent careers. She is exploring this work as an intern at MEDCEEP, a nonprofit initiative that aims to address the issues of poor healthcare outcomes and low health literacy in underserved neighborhoods through healthcare career exposure. Through her future career, Nadiya hopes to eliminate barriers to quality healthcare for individuals of underserved backgrounds through culturally competent, compassionate care, patient empowerment, and healthcare policy. Outside of academics, Nadiya enjoys volunteering in the Los Angeles area, trying out new restaurants, going to the beach, and binge-watching Love Island.
Zheous Abalos 鈥25
Zheous is a senior from Chicago, Illinois, majoring in chemistry and minoring in English. He wants to pursue an MFA or MSt in Creative Writing before matriculating into an MD/PhD program to become a physician-scientist. Zheous is interested in improving patient-physician relations, especially for patients with marginalized identities, and maintaining care in all stages of medicine, from drug discovery to treatment administration. In addition to being a Prehealth Liaison, Zheous is a Posse Scholar, a diver on Pomona-Pitzer's Swim & Dive team, a mentor and researcher for the chemistry department, and a lifeguard. Additionally, he enjoys reading, doing anything creative, playing guitar, cooking, and exploring anything new.
Jackson Hagen 鈥25
Jackson is a senior from Kansas City majoring in neuroscience and minoring in chemistry. He plans to combine his passion for research, sports, and clinical practice by pursuing an MD to specialize in orthopedics and sports medicine. Jackson has made good use of his summers to gain different health-related experience. In 2022, he volunteered in an underserved wound care clinic and conducted research off-campus. He spent summer 2023 researching pulmonary and critical care medicine in a basic science lab at the University of Kansas Medical Center. Summer 2024 was at NYU Grossman SOM researching master transcription factors that underlie the switch in trophic factor dependency in hippocampal and cortical neurons. In addition to being a Prehealth Liaison, Jackson competes on the varsity baseball team. In his free time, he enjoys disc golfing, playing hacky sack, and watching sports.
Ava Spiegler 鈥26
Ava Spiegler is a junior from the Bay Area, but she's lived all around the world. She's double majoring in molecular biology and math and is interested in pursuing a PhD to eventually enter the field of medical biotechnology. She is particularly fascinated by gene therapy and cancer research and is hoping to gain more experience in those fields during her time at Pomona. Alongside being a Liaison, Ava is also a mentor and grader for general chemistry. Outside of school, Ava loves spending time with friends and family, reading, working out, and traveling!
JJ Hoffman 鈥26
JJ Hoffman is a junior from Los Angeles. He is majoring in public policy analysis with a concentration in biology. Although he is interested in pursuing an MD degree, Pomona's ID1 鈥淪cience and the Public鈥檚 Health鈥 sparked his interest in public health issues and how they affect certain communities. In addition to being a Prehealth Liaison, JJ runs in the Claremont Running Club and is a member of Health Bridges. In his spare time, JJ enjoys reading and playing board games with friends.
Ivyer Qu 鈥26
Ivyer is a junior from Kansas, currently residing in Orange County, majoring in neuroscience and minoring in computer science. She is interested in medical school and potentially PhD programs in computational neuroscience. Ivyer conducts theoretical neuroscience research on how the brain computes using neural network models. After working as a certified nurse assistant in long-term care units, Ivyer is also interested in advocating patient-centered care for memory care patients and the elderly. Outside of class, Ivyer can be found baking challah in the Frary kitchen, journaling, or weightlifting in the CARW.
Andrew Butler 鈥26
Andy is a junior from Boston, Massachusetts, majoring in Chemistry and a member of the Sagehen football team. Although initially focused on pursuing an MD, his summer 2024 internship ignited an interest in medicinal chemistry as an alternative pathway to contributing to the field of healthcare. In addition to serving as a Prehealth Liaison, Andy is a chemistry liaison, student mentor, founder of the SHYFT youth club, and a student athletic trainer. Outside of school, he enjoys spending time with family and friends, weightlifting, and watching movies.
Tamarah Al Mozani '27
Tamarah Al Mozani, originally from Connecticut, is pursuing a major in Neuroscience with a strong aspiration to become a surgeon, particularly in the field of neurosurgery. She has immense interest in exploring the latest trends in neuroscience, and understanding how they intersect with psychological sciences in addition to the broader aspects of healthcare. Beyond her academic pursuits, Tamarah is actively involved as a Liaison, researcher, tutor, hospital volunteer, and works with the athletic department. In her free time, she enjoys playing tennis, reading, practicing Pilates and yoga, and cooking.
Eva Chen '27
Eva is a sophomore from Orange County who is interested in majoring in chemistry and minoring in music. She is passionate about biochemistry research, which she began through the 2024 Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP), and she aims to pursue an MD degree, specializing in pathology or hematology/oncology. In addition to being a Prehealth Liaison, she also serves as a chemistry liaison and is dedicated to volunteering with on-campus organizations, mentoring younger students in music, and guiding Claremont and Pomona families in public health. Outside of academics, she enjoys performing with the 麻豆传媒 Orchestra, attending Oldenborg language tables, and exploring Los Angeles.
Gerard Lapuente '27
Gerard is a sophomore from Miami, Florida intending to major in psychological science and is planning to minor in data science, computer science, or sociology. Gerard's interests lie in exploring the intersection of mental health and medical care. He dreams of pursuing an MD/PhD degree and working in psychiatry as a physician-scientist inspired by his work as a Certified Nursing Assistant and student researcher. Gerard is focused on addressing healthcare disparities in underserved communities, ensuring that quality care is accessible to all. He aims to gain experience in research and clinical settings to better understand patient care. Besides being a Prehealth Liaison, Gerard is a Posse Scholar, FLI Mentor, AAMP Mentor, 5Cs Kasama Secretary, and a QSC Partner. Outside academics, Gerard likes to hang out with friends and family, try different foods, explore new places, indulge in arts and crafts, watch fictional films and shows, and read.