Sandra Ascencio
Hi everyone! My name is Sandra Ascencio, and I am a Junior here at UWM. I am majoring in Marketing, Minoring in Spanish with concentration in business and, a certificate in International Business. I am a very busy person, and I am always on the go. Whenever I have free time, I like to either decompress by myself or chill with friends/family. I like to consider myself as openminded and I am always down to try new things in life! I am 100% Mexicana and extremely proud of where I come from! Raised by two immigrants and ready to conquer anything and everything! This will be my first year as a Lawton Advocate and second as a Lawton Scholar. I had an amazing advocate who was extremely helpful, and I want to be that person to the next. Excited on what’s yet to come and meet new faces!
Brenden Beilfuss
Hello everyone. My name is Brenden Beilfuss, and I am a senior at UWM studying English. I love to cheer on the Brewers and be outside. I spend my free time backpacking, swimming, hiking, watching movies, and listening to music. I’m Cuban and very proud of all that my grand parents had to endure to succeed in America. This is my first time as a Lawton Advocate but have been a part of the program for two years. I have had an amazing time in this program and would love to share what I have learned with the upcoming scholars. Looking forward to meeting all of you!
Makayla Brame
Hi! My name is Makayla Brame and I am a senior double majoring in Sociology and Psychology. I graduated from the UWM at Waukesha campus with my Associates Degree before transferring to UWM in 2021. I have been in Lawton for 4 semesters, was an advocate, and am now a lead advocate. In my free time I like to play video games, explore markets, hang out with friends, and relax with my cats Jude Paw (pictured) and Penelope Garcia Pawker, but we call her Penni. I am also a McNair Scholar, and I work in the Inclusive Excellence Center on campus. I enjoy meeting and working with students and am here to help!
Leilani Cabán
My name is Leilani Cabánand I am a proud 100% Puerto Rican woman born and raised in Milwaukee, WI. I’m currently a senior at UW-Milwaukee in the Lubar School of Business, majoring in IT Management. My friends would describe me as being a great listener, extremely driven, and a highly motivated individual that loves to see the glass half full. I love to travel, spend time with my friends and family, and of course shopping! This will be my first year as a Lawton Advocate and I am very excited to help, encourage and support my scholars in the same way my advocate helped me. I’m looking forward to this year with you all!
Alexia Castillo
My name is Alexia Castillo, I prefer to be called Lexi. I am majoring in biochemistry and double minoring in Italian and biological science. I plan to go to medical school after I graduate. I hope to move to Italy and be a doctor there. Outside of school I really enjoy cooking, reading, calligraphy, and creating new coffee drinks! I am very passionate about school and learning. I hope to share that drive with others. I am very excited to be an Advocate! I have been told I am a great listener and shoulder to lean on, so feel free to reach out about anything. I am happy to support others and see others thrive in their success!
Cianna Colon
My name is Cianna Colon and I am currently a senior at UWM. I am majoring in Nutritional Sciences and am Pre-physician assistant. I have been apart of the Lawton Program for three years which has helped me fund for my education and provided me with resources to help me succeed within my schooling and life in general. I am looking forward to what this year has to offer me, and to being back on campus!
Vanity Conroy-Munoz
My name is Vanity Conroy-Munoz, and this is my fifth year here at UWM. I am a first-generation student majoring in Kinesiology. My plan after graduation is to go to graduate school for Physical Therapy. I currently work a part time job at Milwaukee Habitat for Humanity. In my free time I enjoy hanging out with friends and family, bike riding, and playing basketball. I have been part of Lawton for three years now and this is my first year as an advocate. My former advocate inspired me to become one as they were very helpful and resourceful. I hope to be able to do the same for other students!
Paola Espada
My name is Paola Espadas.I am 20 years old and I am a Human Resources Management major. On my free time I like to spend time with my friends and going out to try new food. I also enjoy going on bike rides
Jennifer Garcia
Hello, my name is Jennifer Garcia but feel free to call me Jenny. A little bit about myself, I am majoring in early childhood education. I like to spend my time working with kids. During my free time, I also like to go out on nature walks and give back to the community. This is my first year as a Lawton advocate. My goal is seeking to help other students grow academically and personally, just as I was able to do as a Lawton scholar. I hope to be a great resource for you this upcoming year!
Diego Garcia
My name is Diego Garcia, and I am currently a Junior here at UWM. I am in the school of Engineering, majoring in Civil Engineering. In the future I hope to help my community anyway possible with my career. In my free time, I am usually playing soccer or spending time with my friends and family. I am looking forward to this upcoming school year because it has been a long time since I have been able to be on campus and learn in person.
Colt Hamilton
Hello! My name is Colt Hamilton. I grew up in the Native American Reservation of Lac Courte Oreilles near Hayward, Wisconsin. Currently a senior in the School of Information Studies, also serving as its senator representative! Majoring in Information Science and Technology with an intent to move right away into my Master in IST to pursue a career in diplomatic IT services. I have served in the United States Marine Corps, being stationed and deployed to Cairo, Vienna, Seoul, and Okinawa. Nowadays, I fill my free time running the UWM football team, working out, PC gaming, range shooting, and being wherever those good vibes are. This is my first go at being a Lawton Advocate, hoping to be the positive force in everyones’ life!
Jadan Howard
Hi guys! My name is Jadan Howard! My pronouns are she/her/s. I currently will be a senior at UWM’s Letters & Science College, majoring in Psychology with a minor in Criminal Justice. I was born and raised in Milwaukee, WI, but I hope to be able to take my career with me and travel once graduating. Some facts about me include, I plan on going to graduate school for forensic psychology, I currently work at a counseling clinic that mainly caters to the minority and underprivileged Milwaukee community, I care deeply about diversity and equality, and I am left-handed. I may be described as an open and funny person by friends. This will be my third year as part of the Lawton program, but first year as an advocate. I am excited to get to know all the returning and new scholars and to have a fantastic year. I look forward to working with everyone and providing any support that I can to anyone who needs it! Let’s have a great year!!
Neena Lewis
Hello everyone! My name is Neena Lewis, and I am a current senior at UWM. I have a double major in Sociology and Urban Studies, a minor in Communication, and a certificate in Quantitative Social Data Analysis (QSDA). Here are some fun facts about me: I am one of nine children, my favorite color is purple, and I love to travel. Additionally, I attended UW-Waukesha for two years before transferring to the UWM main campus, and I have enjoyed both experiences!
Eduardo Magallanes
My name is Eduardo Magallanes, but most people know me as Eddy or Lalo. I am a junior at UWM majoring in business marketing with a minor in music. I was born in Milwaukee, but my family is originally from Zacatecas, Mexico. I enjoy traveling, meeting new people, and most of all playing music. Call me old fashioned, but I love Jazz and Latin American music. My main instrument is saxophone but I also play piano and Latin percussion. While I spend most of my day in my marketing classes, you can also catch me rehearsing with the UWM Jazz Big Band and the UWM Jazz Combo. If you see me around campus don’t be afraid to say hi! I promise I’m not as mean as I look. Look forward to meeting you!
Robert Munoz
My information will be available soon…….
Arleth Nelson Cooper
Hi! My name is Arleth Nelson Cooper, I am a senior here at UWM studying international studies with an emphasis on international relations and politics, minoring in Spanish. I was born in La Mosquitia, Honduras and am very proud to be an afro-indigenous Miskita. I try to stay connected to my roots and visit every other year. I moved to Wisconsin as a child and call Door County one of my many homes. Although I love it, I came to UWM looking for more diversity and people that share more common views/interests. I hope to attend grad school in the near future and do something in humanitarian work or diplomacy.
On my free time I like meditating with crystals, spending time out with my friends, and connecting with some on campus organizations like UWM’s Students for a Democratic Society. I am very excited for this opportunity Lawton had given me and look forward to connecting with more people and to be there for support.
Isabelle Reeson
Hello! My name is Isabelle Reeson. I am majoring in Environment Engineering and have three semesters left! I’m not 100% sure about my plans outside of school but want to focus on improving the health and safety of workers/communities. Outside of school, I love to cook, watch movies, play my Switch (Super Mario Odyssey is my current favorite!), go to coffee shops, and hang out outside. This will be my fourth semester in Lawton but my first as an advocate. I’m very excited to meet everyone and support other scholars!
Karen Rico
My name is Karen Rico and I’m a senior here at UWM. I’m majoring in healthcare Administration with a business minor and certificate in healthcare informatics. This will be my second year as a Lawton Advocate, and I have been a Lawton scholar for 3 years. Additionally, I am a part-time office assistant and peer mentor for Trio’s Student Support Services. In my free time, I enjoy spending time with friends and family, watching movies, going to new restaurants, and shopping. I was born in Dallas but was raised in Milwaukee. I love traveling back to Dallas whenever I can to visit my family. I am a coffee lover who is always looking for new shops to try.
Esther Rocha
Hey! My name is Esther Rocha, and I will be entering my junior year in college this fall at UWM. I will be majoring in Diagnostic Sonography, which deals with ultrasounds for those who are unfamiliar with the major. I might minor in Spanish since that’s my first language and it can’t hurt to master the language further. Aside from my academics, I devote my time to working out at the gym, playing with my cat, exploring new parks/trails and spending quality time with my family. I have been a Lawton Scholar for 2 years, and this is my first year becoming an advocate so I’m excited to take on this new roll. Hope I can be of great help the same way my advocate was for me!
Jonathan Stone
Hi, my name is Jonathan Stone, but I go by Jon. My pronouns are he/him/his. My race and ethnicity are Black (Jamaican) and White. I am pursuing a Mechanical Engineering degree with aspirations of going to graduate school and later on receiving my PhD in Astronautical Engineering. I love sports like Volleyball and Basketball. I also love video games, new tech, and fashion. Lastly, I wanna bring up what living as black man in America means to me, I love to take part in activist events to help learn about how we can improve the world we live in. I look forward to being a Lawton Advocate and providing my support to individuals within this community.
Nou Thao
My name is Nou Thao, I am a first-generation Hmong American woman, born and raised in the city of Milwaukee, WI. I have a large family and I am the third oldest out of ten, and the oldest daughter. I am currently pursuing a major in Biomedical Sciences with a Laboratory Science emphasis. At the same time, I am minoring in both Psychology and Chemistry, obtaining a certificate in Hmong Diaspora Studies. Work-wise, I am a research assistant in the Biomedical Engineering department at UWM and a night shift emergency medical technician (EMT) at Bell Ambulance.
Outside of education and career-focused aspects – I would describe myself as someone who is adventurous and spontaneous. I like to say I am internally an old lady, as I like to go on long walks on trails. At the same time, I enjoy activities that gets me moving, especially with cardio. I enjoy running, hiking, and playing sports with my younger siblings. You will always catch me with my phone out because I am all for catching candid memories whether it be in form of pictures or videos.
Jesus Velarde-Moctezuma
My name is Jesús U. Velarde-Moctezuma, and I am a senior at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. I am a Communications major with a minor in Spanish. Following graduation, I intend to pursue an MA in translation and interpretation with a legal focus. This will be my second year as a Lawton Advocate, and I’m looking forward to what the coming year has in store! In addition, I work as a part-time Bilingual Legal Assistant at Odrcic Law Group, LLC, an immigration law firm. In my spare time, I enjoy playing the guitar and writing music. Milwaukee is where I was born and raised. I identify as Latinx and am proud of my heritage. As an Advocate, I hope to be a resource for students in a variety of ways. I’m looking forward to seeing what the new school year brings!
Angel Xavier
Bienvenido a todos! I look forward to meeting you and hope to see you around! My name is Miles Xavier, but please feel free to call me Milo or Angel. I am non-binary, genderqueer, and transgender. My pronouns are xe/xem/xyrs and they/them/theirs and I welcome any questions about how to use them! I’m a Boricua and a second-generation state-side. I am currently studying for a bachelor’s degree in Community Engagement and Education with a minor in ASL and a certificate in Urban Planning. I’m work-orientated and my interests are Disability advocacy, LGBT+ advocacy, fair housing, and public policy. I work in Disability Support Services as a Respite Provider and feel incredibly close to my line of work as I identify as chronically ill and Disabled. I love watching horror movies, anime, cooking, hanging out with my pup, puzzles, and reading.
I absolutely love to engage with people and welcome everyone! I am thrilled to be able to support students while we all work towards the same goal of graduating with a fulfilling college experience. Please know I am always open to listening, advocating, and assisting you through your academics – we are in this together! I am eager for what the semester has in store for us!
Mee Xiong
My name is Mee Xiong from Wausau, WI. I am a senior majoring in Early Childhood Education. I’ve been married for 7 years. I love meeting new faces and trying new things. Some of my hobbies include traveling, cooking, and arts and crafts.