PEER MENTORS
Peer Mentors are undergraduate students in the SEES department who have been recruited by faculty to serve as role models, advocates, and allies for students.
SEES Peer Mentors are excellent students, but they are also individuals who have demonstrated maturity, leadership, and emotional intelligence during their time in the department. They work directly with our introductory lab classes (ENSCI 99, ENSCI 100, and GEO 101) to support students with lab reports, study strategies, selection of majors and/or classes, and orientation to Queens College in general.
George Charalambous
Environmental Science
“I am currently a lower senior and I am currently studying earthquake occurrences in sediment cores with Dr. Cecilia McHugh and NYC waterway sampling with Dr. Greg O’Mullan. I am a peer mentor because I want to help my fellow students foster an interest in and succeed in their Environmental studies.”
Ian Barragan
History and Education
“I enjoy history, specifically American and Greek history though lately I have been very interested in European history past 1815. I am planning on delving further in Latin American history as well since I come from Ecuador but don’t know much of its history.
I chose to become a Peer Mentor because I plan on becoming a teacher so having an active role in a classroom is great experience for the future.”
Eli Bursztyn
Environmental Science & Ancient History
“I love fencing, model boat building, and I am an unabashed dinosaur nerd. I chose to be a peer mentor because I genuinely love Environmental Science, and I want to do what I can to help other students. My office hours are Wednesdays 2-4 in D-108, and if that doesn’t work, you can always email me!”
Michael Devore
Environmental Science Major
“I am an upper senior and I am majoring in Environmental Science. I’m interested in clean energy and energy efficiency. I am currently an intern at Bright Power. I hope to help make New York City the model for the rest of the world in building energy efficiency and clean energy for the purposes of deterring climate change.
I became a Geo 101 peer mentor because I loved Geology and I love being able to help students learn, grow and thrive.”
Yaacov Strickon
Geology
“I’m a Junior studying Environmental Science with a specific focus on rivers. I love learning about ecosystems and the ways they function. I am a peer mentor because I enjoy science and love that I can do it as a job in undergrad.”
Julia Sandke
Environmental Science
“I’m working towards my second bachelor’s degree. I’m interested in conservation as a tool to mitigate global climate change, as well as the role of the ocean and other water resources in finding solutions for our warming planet. I became a Peer Mentor for GEOL 101 because I like meeting other students and talking about how awesome rocks can be.”
Devina Kalika
Environmental Science
“I am an upper senior and my major is Environmental Science (BS). I’m interested in a variety of fields such as climate change and environmental remediation. I work with Dr. Lesnek on studying the deglaciation of the Laurentide Ice Sheet in hopes of better understanding modern ice sheet melt. I initially became a peer mentor because I thought it would be a good opportunity to test my knowledge of geology and environmental science. Now, I simply enjoy helping students learn through sharing my knowledge!“
Fabio Dos Santos
Adriana Zumba-M
Geology
“I am a junior, and my major is Geology. Science has been an interesting topic for me since I learned about climate change in elementary school. I am interested to keep learning about Earth’s past, its systems, what it could look like in the future. This semester I am a peer mentor for ENSCI 100 and I am excited to experience the lab in person with ENSCI students since I took the course when it was hybrid; and although I did not experience the lab in person, I worked on the same activities and lab reports. I am a peer mentor because I know what it can feel like to have moments of confusion in class topics or college in general, and I want to help students by offering some of my knowledge from my past few years in college.”
Samiha Alam
Environmental Science Major
“I’m a senior majoring in Environmental Science. I hope to work towards implementing green infrastructure in cities to stave off the effects of climate change. I choose to be a peer mentor because I enjoy helping people understand concepts I’m passionate about.”