About Us
Creating Connections serves underrepresented graduate students across the University of Oregon. We connect students by building a supportive social network that helps them thrive personally and academically. We have a four-person executive board.
Creating Connections is where underrepresented graduate student groups can connect, engage, and partner to serve otherwise unmet needs through social gatherings and community building activities that celebrate diversity and embrace inclusivity.
Hometown: Southeast Texas
Area of Study and Year: Department of Sociology, College of Arts and Sciences
Undergraduate Degree and Institution: BA Sociology, Baylor University (Waco, TX)
Biography: Christine Capili (she/her) is a Filipina American sociologist and PhD candidate in the Department of Sociology at the University of Oregon (Eugene, OR) where she also earned her MA. She earned her BA in sociology at Baylor University (Waco, TX). Her research focuses on race & ethnicity, identity, quantitative methods, political sociology, and voting patterns & political outcomes. Capili's dissertation, "Creating Panethnicty: How Discrimination and Ethnonational Identity Affect Racialized Political Alignments," examines the salience of ethnonational and panethnic attachment and its relationship to discrimination, generational status, and political alignment in the United States.
Hometown: Amman, Jordan
Area of Study and Year: School of Journalism & Communication
Undergraduate Degree and Institution: Bachelor in Business Administration (BBA): Marketing from the University of South Dakota
Master's Degree and Institution: Master of Arts (MA) in Communication from the University of Nebraska at Omaha
Biography: Saeed (he/him/his) is a Doctoral Student in the Communication & Media program, focusing his research on narratives and portrayals in media, particularly towards marginalized communities. A proud Palestinian-Jordanian, Saeed's work delves into the complexities of identity and representation, employing diverse research methodologies to explore these themes.Saeed serves on the National Advisory Board for the National Conference on Race & Ethnicity (NCORE), reflecting his deep commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA). His extensive background includes working in multicultural and DEI spaces within higher education, where advocating for and supporting students is where he finds the most comfort and confidence.Before his doctoral studies, Saeed played a pivotal role in fostering diversity and inclusivity as the Intercultural Programming Coordinator at the University of South Dakota's Center for Diversity & Community.
Seulbi Lee, Internal Communications Officer, Creating Connections
Hometown: Daejeon, South Korea
Area of Study and Year: Department of Special Education and Clinical Sciences, College of Education
Undergraduate Degree and Institution: M.Ed. & B.S. in Special Education, University of Maryland - College Park
Biography: Seulbi Lee (she/her) is a PhD candidate in Special Education, specializing in educational data science and quantitative research methods. Her research focuses on specific reading comprehension difficulties, academic support for students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and developmental disabilities, and technology-enhanced learning practices. In her dissertation, titled "Unveiling inner narratives: Evaluating think-aloud strategies for pragmatic inference in ASD through eye-tracking analysis," she explores the cognitive mechanisms underlying inferencing during the reading of textual and graphic narratives in students with ASD through eye-tracking analysis and assesses the effectiveness of think-aloud strategies in enhancing inferential reasoning. Beyond her research pursuits, she publishes quarterly columns in "Special Education in Practice," affiliated with the National Institute of Special Education of South Korea. She is interested in expanding her research scope to encompass international development for inclusive education and raising disability awareness in low- and middle-income countries, particularly in the areas of reading and literacy.
Hometown: Daejeon, South Korea
Area of Study and Year: Department of Special Education and Clinical Sciences, College of Education
Undergraduate Degree and Institution: M.Ed. & B.S. in Special Education, University of Maryland - College Park
Biography: Seulbi Lee (she/her) is a PhD candidate in Special Education, specializing in educational data science and quantitative research methods. Her research focuses on specific reading comprehension difficulties, academic support for students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and developmental disabilities, and technology-enhanced learning practices. In her dissertation, titled "Unveiling inner narratives: Evaluating think-aloud strategies for pragmatic inference in ASD through eye-tracking analysis," she explores the cognitive mechanisms underlying inferencing during the reading of textual and graphic narratives in students with ASD through eye-tracking analysis and assesses the effectiveness of think-aloud strategies in enhancing inferential reasoning. Beyond her research pursuits, she publishes quarterly columns in "Special Education in Practice," affiliated with the National Institute of Special Education of South Korea. She is interested in expanding her research scope to encompass international development for inclusive education and raising disability awareness in low- and middle-income countries, particularly in the areas of reading and literacy.
Tamaya I. Levy, Treasurer and Funding Officer, Creating Connections
Hometown: Chicago, Illinois
Area of Study and Year: Department of Linguistics, College of Arts and Sciences
Undergraduate Degree and Institution: BA in Political Science and Linguistics, University of Illinois at Chicago
Biography: Tamaya I. Levy (she/her) is a Ph.D. student in Linguistics. She is a first-generation student from Chicago, dedicated to the in-depth exploration and research of the linguistic processes of African-American English and its users. Her research interests include sociophonetics, neurolinguistics, and raciolinguistics. In her MA (Linguistics, Northeastern Illinois University), she defended her thesis on the perceptions of emotions and African American Language. She is continuing to expand this work in her current program. Specifically, she investigates the production and perception of emotional prosody in African American English and the neural correlates of phonological expectations in speech. For leisure, she enjoys watching international TV series, traveling solo & with friends, and pottery at the UO Craft Center.
Hometown: Chicago, Illinois
Area of Study and Year: Department of Linguistics, College of Arts and Sciences
Undergraduate Degree and Institution: BA in Political Science and Linguistics, University of Illinois at Chicago
Biography: Tamaya I. Levy (she/her) is a Ph.D. student in Linguistics. She is a first-generation student from Chicago, dedicated to the in-depth exploration and research of the linguistic processes of African-American English and its users. Her research interests include sociophonetics, neurolinguistics, and raciolinguistics. In her MA (Linguistics, Northeastern Illinois University), she defended her thesis on the perceptions of emotions and African American Language. She is continuing to expand this work in her current program. Specifically, she investigates the production and perception of emotional prosody in African American English and the neural correlates of phonological expectations in speech. For leisure, she enjoys watching international TV series, traveling solo & with friends, and pottery at the UO Craft Center.
Chelsea Alatriste Martinez, Student Relations Officer, Creating Connections
Hometown: Newport, Oregon
Area of Study and Year: School of Law
Undergraduate Degree and Institution: Philosophy and Political Science, George Fox University
Biography: Chelsea Alatriste Martinez is a rising 3L at Oregon Law and will participate in the Portland Program this fall. She is a Wayne Morse Legal Fellow and Board Secretary for Fair Oregon Utility Rates for Small Business (FOUR). Chelsea is passionate about legal advocacy and public service.
Hometown: Newport, Oregon
Area of Study and Year: School of Law
Undergraduate Degree and Institution: Philosophy and Political Science, George Fox University
Biography: Chelsea Alatriste Martinez is a rising 3L at Oregon Law and will participate in the Portland Program this fall. She is a Wayne Morse Legal Fellow and Board Secretary for Fair Oregon Utility Rates for Small Business (FOUR). Chelsea is passionate about legal advocacy and public service.
If you are interested in participating in Creating Connections or have any questions, please feel free to contact us:
Creating Connections (creatingconnections@uoregon.edu)
Christine Capili, Chief Coordinating Officer (ccapili@uoregon.edu)
Saeed Dabbour, External Communications Officer (sdabbour@uoregon.edu)
Seulbi Lee, Internal Communications Officer (blee3@uoregon.edu)
Tamaya Levy, Treasurer and Funding Officer (tamaya@uoregon.edu)
Chelsea Alatriste Martinez, Student Relations Officer (calatris@uoregon.edu)
Creating Connections Annual Diversity Dinner
