Maricela Bañuelos is a Sociology PhD candidate at the University of California (UC) Irvine with an emphasis in Chicano Latino studies. She received her Sociology BA from UC Santa Barbara in 2016, and graduated with Summa Cum Laude, highest honors and distinction in her major. She received her master’s in Educational Policy and Social Context from UC Irvine in 2020. Maricela was awarded the Ford Pre-Doctoral Fellowship in 2021, to support her doctoral research, which focuses on educational pathways and social mobility of first-generation college students, low-income students, and underrepresented students of color. She has published articles in top ranking Education and Sociology journals such as Computers & Education and Gender & Society. Her dissertation focuses on understanding the seals and leaks in the Latine doctoral pipeline, which has been funded through the Gardner Fellowship, National Academy of Education/Spencer Dissertation Fellowship, and UC-HSI DDI President’s Pre-Professoriate Fellowship. Maricela aspires to become a tenured Sociology professor where she can continue to advocate for historically-excluded students in higher education so that they have the support and resources they need to thrive in postsecondary institutions and beyond.
