Meet Our MESA Staff

Lorena Navarro

Lorena Navarro

MESA Director
lnavarro@yccd.edu

(530) 661-5791

Dr. Lorena Navarro discovered her passion for research while completing a BS in biological sciences at UC Davis. After graduation, she pursued a PhD in biology at UC San Diego. Upon completion of her postdoctoral studies at the UCSD School of Medicine, she accepted a faculty position at UC Davis in the Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics. Her research focus was bacterial pathogenesis and host defense. After eight years as a professor, she was interested in transitioning into a position where she could contribute to student advancement and success. She joined Chico State in January 2017 where she was the CURE-E Coordinator for the NSF-funded CEMUR (Cultivating A Culture Of Entrepreneurial Mindset And Undergraduate Research) Project. She was also the Natural Sciences Coordinator and Community College Liaison for the Chico STEM Connections Collaborative (CSC2) and the Director of the Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP) program. She co-coordinated the Student-Faculty Research Collaborative, an initiative to provide all CSU, Chico students the opportunity to engage in purposeful faculty-mentored research to advance academic excellence and equitable outcomes in graduation and post-baccalaureate success. In her current role as the MESA Director at Woodland Community College, she fosters a welcoming environment to support community college STEM students in achieving their academic and professional goals. By encouraging students to be life-long learners, she hopes to instill in them the joy and excitement of scientific discovery. She is a strong proponent of STEM education as well as programs to encourage women and underrepresented minorities to pursue a higher education.

 

 

Brenda Aldama Garcia

MESA Student Success Coach
baldama@yccd.edu

(530) 661-5700

Brenda grew up in Woodland, CA and attended Pioneer High School. Her experience in the college prep ETS program molded her view of education and inspired her to pursue a career in higher education. She is passionate about helping first-generation and low-income students believe in themselves and obtain a college degree. She graduated from UC Davis in 2022 with a Bachelor of Science in Human Development and a Bachelor of Arts in Chicano/a Studies. She is currently a graduate student in the Career Counseling master’s program at Sacramento State. Having grown up as a first-generation, low-income student in a single-parent household, she understands the obstacles students face every day in and outside of school. As the MESA Student Success Coach, she serves as a resource and safe space for all students. She is always happy to chat!