Ariana Aparicio Aguilar
Ariana is serving as a Student Grad Fellow for the Presidents’ Alliance. Ariana is originally from Mexico City, Mexico. She began her educational journey at Santa Rosa Junior College and transferred to Sonoma State University where she obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Sociology with distinction. She also holds a Master’s in Education with a focus on Higher Education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE) and is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration and Policy at the University of California Riverside. In 2019, she was the recipient of the Latinx Amplifier award for her work advocating for the immigrant community in Boston, MA.
While a graduate student at Harvard, she worked in the Office of Student Affairs at HGSE as a Graduate & Inclusion Associate. After graduating, she joined the Immigration Initiative at Harvard as a Research Assistant and became a Teaching Fellow for the Contemporary Immigration Policy and Educational practice course. Ariana has more than 10 years of experience in higher education and in the non-profit sector. Her professional career is influenced by her own experiences navigating life and higher education in the U.S. as an undocumented and DACA recipient. In addition to being a doctoral student, Ariana is committed to guiding the next generation of leaders and has mentored many college and graduate students. She is passionate about issues pertaining to undocumented students, immigration, social justice advocacy, and access & retention of minoritized students in higher education.
Email: ariana@presidentsalliance.org