UC Riverside

Location: Modesto, California

Orgs and ECs:
-Connect-In-Place Instructor
-Riverside Giddhe Di Raunak Co-Founder and Captain
-UCR Mini Med School- Eye Health Care Group Member
-Mentor Collective UCR Mentor for first years
-CFO and Co-Founder of Helping Hands (non-profit organization)
-shadow optometrists
-volunteer at hospital
-Precision for Vision- general member
-Sikh Student Association- previous board member and current general member

Bio:

I am a third year biology major at UCR. My future career goal is to become an optometrist. I have participated in various clubs and organizations but what I am most proud of is creating the first ever Giddha team at UCR. We started out with two members and now have a full team of dedicated members ready for competition. We have brought the Punjabi folk dance to the city of Riverside and have members form ucr and all around the Inland Empire. I have also created my own non-profit with my sister for my local community members. Our mission is to give back to key members of the community such as healthcare workers and firefighters and also give support to those who need it. I also educate members of the Inland community on the importance of eye health and resources that are available to help them. I believe community education is very important as prevention is key in healthcare. An important part of my college experience has also been to build a community through means such as SSA or Giddha. I have connected with members of the Sikh and Punjabi community and built myself a network. My hobbies include dancing, reading, volunteering, etc. I want to be a mentor as I understand the struggle of being a Sikh student who went to a college away from home. I want to provide incoming students with the resources and information they need to be successful and comfortable. My goal is to give back to the Sikh community and ease their transition into college. These are different times with everything being online and I think it’s important for incoming first year students to have a mentor or advisor, someone to guide them so that they can find their community, friends, and learn from a student who has different experiences and knowledge to offer to them.