Hosted by the Association of Asian Alumni and the Asian American Student Union
 Are you a UF alumni looking to share your experiences with current UF students? Are you a current student looking for career advice and guidance? The AAA and AASU are proud to present a virtual alumni panel for students and alumni to learn and share. Please email your questions to [email protected] and please click on the link below to register. 

Participating Alumni
(Updated Daily)

Priyank Pandey (Breakout Room 1)
Class of 2009

Priyank is an entreprenuer, investor, and a finance professional. He started off his career as a consultant at Accenture after graduating from UF in 2009. He spent 6 years advising companies on their technology, data, and business strategy. After his consulting career he received his MBA from Columbia Business School, during which he raised a private equity fund. He currently works for the global strategy and M&A team for one of the largest Japanese insurance companies. He continues to invest in private markets as well, owning several real estate and small businesses.
#investor #entreprenuer #father #worldtraveler

Shirish Lala (Breakout Room 2)
Class of 2008

Originally from Mumbai, India, Shirish Lala worked at Orange City Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in DeBary, Florida, while pursuing his post-professional distance Master of Health Science degree at the University of Florida. Under the guidance of Dr. Sherrilene Classen at the Department of Occupational Therapy, he graduated from the University of Florida in 2008. He has worked as the Academic Clinical Coordinator at Daytona State College's Occupational Therapy Assistant program since August 2009. In 2018, he was awarded the Outstanding Young Alumnus Award by the University of Florida, Department of Occupational Therapy, for excellence in professional practice and exceptional leadership in the advancement of public health and health professions. In 2021, he graduated with the Doctor of Education degree from Johns Hopkins University and was awarded the Dr. John J. Guthrie, Jr. Award for Research and Professional Development at Daytona State College.
#OccupationalTherapy#AlliedHealthEducation

 Philip Varona (Breakout Room 3)
Class of 2005

Phil Varona is currently a Chemical Process Engineer at BRIS Engineering, LLC in Baton Rouge, LA. After earning two Masters degrees in Engineering, Phil started working for Wink Companies, LLC which has since become BRIS Engineering, LLC. Phil has earned his Professional Engineering License and has worked for over 20 clients in the refining and chemical production industries. Additionally, Phil enhances his career by sharpening his communication skills through his involvement in Toastmasters.
#ProfessionalEngineer #ChemicalEngineering #Consulting #Toastmasters

Aashish Shukla (Breakout Room 1)
Class of 2007

Aashish is a startup junky. After graduating from the MSF program in 2007, he solidified his finance chops at Deloitte. Since then, he's taken progressively senior roles at startups shepherding them through Series A, B, and C capital raises. He is currently Director of Finance at Fernish where leads the finance and accounting function.
#startups

Phillip Cheng (Breakout Room 4)
Class of 2011

Phillip Cheng is a student affairs specialist at Stanford University. From 2011-2016, he taught middle and high school math on the Big Island of Hawaii with Teach for America. From 2017-2020, Phillip worked in several EdTech startup companies in Silicon Valley including Swivl, Quottly, and Landed. He received a Masters in Teaching from Chaminade University in 2012 and a Masters in Asian American Studies from San Francisco State University in 2019. 
#HigherEd #Teacher #EdTech

Lauren Vu (Moderator)
Class of 2019

After completing her psychology degree, Lauren joined Teach for America S.F. Bay Area in 2019. Furthering her love for mentorship and educating others, she currently resides in Oakland as a 6th grade STEM teacher!
#Psychology #aasuhistory

Rachel DiSesa (Breakout Room 2)
Class of 2016 & 2022

Rachel DiSesa is the clinical programs coordinator for the UF Veterinary Hospitals. She has been with the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine since 2006. She earned her bachelors from the University of Phoenix, her masters from the University of Florida, and is currently a doctoral student in the Department of Agricultural Education and Communication. Her research focuses on strengthening diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives by encouraging under-represented minorities to consider careers in agriculture, specifically veterinary medicine.

George Perez (Breakout Room 3)
Class of 2003 & 2014

After his first graduation, George worked in Houston as a developer in the oil industry for several years before deciding to move back to Gainesville. He then pursued his Master's in Computer Science at UF while continuing to work in logistics as a lead developer.
#ComputerEngineer #Musician

© UF Association of Asian Alumni 2024
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