Student Spotlight
Erick Vergara Barrios
Erick Vergara Barrios graduated with a bachelor’s degree in animal sciences in spring 2024. As an undergraduate, he served as an executive CAHNRS student ambassador. As president of the Omega Delta Phi fraternity, Vergara Barrios helped raise money for MECHA de WSU’s Children of Aztlan Sharing Higher Education leadership conference, which encourages Chicanx/Latinx high school students to seek higher education. Vergara Barrios will begin pursuing a PhD in veterinary medicine at WSU this fall.
Charity Maosah
Charity Maosah’s passion for agriculture and food science stems from a childhood growing up on her family’s farm in Kenya. Now pursuing a master’s degree in food science at WSU, she is researching how to make wine palatable for consumers even after grapes have been affected by smoke. Her work is especially critical amid a changing climate and increase in wildfires. Maosah hopes to return to WSU for her PhD after gaining industry experience.
Joseph Ikueze
Joseph Ikueze graduated this spring as the CAHNRS gonfalon bearer, earning a bachelor’s degree in international and development economics with a focus on financial markets and a minor in business administration. While at WSU, Ikueze was an executive member of the Nigerian Students and Scholars Organization and served as president of the WSU Economics Club. He maintained a 3.9 GPA, receiving the CAHNRS 2024 Cashup Davis Merit Award in Human Sciences and an Outstanding Senior Award. Now embarking on a career in the financial services sector, Ikueze hopes to positively impact the world through economics and education.
Stone Durán
Stone Durán is a graduate student in WSU’s Department of Apparel, Merchandising, Design, and Textiles who participated in NASA’s Minority University Research and Education Project Innovation and Tech Transfer Idea Competition, serving as his team’s creative director, design specialist, and textile expert. Durán and his team created a novel jacket design that could replace modern firefighter jackets, which have carcinogenic fire-retardant chemicals that can cause cancer. Though the group didn’t win the contest, Durán hopes to refine the proposal and enter the NASA competition again next year.
Barakatullah Mohammadi
Barakatullah Mohammadi learned about the importance of food safety as a child growing up in Afghanistan. Now a Fulbright Scholar and PhD student in WSU’s School of Food Science, Mohammadi is focused on improving food safety and addressing global food insecurity. This year, he was among 30 U.S. graduate students to receive the prestigious Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research Fellowship. Mohammadi hopes to find employment in the food science industry after graduating.
Kimberly Baxley
Senior food science major Kimberly Baxley is involved in WSU’s Food Product Development club, where she and her team created a novelty product and competed against other universities. She is also a member of WSU’s Food Science Club and the WSU Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Related Sciences chapter. Baxley has conducted research on Pacific Northwest experimental grain varieties, working with food science faculty member Girish Ganjyal to identify the best varieties for Washington growing conditions. Baxley is currently an intern with Nestlé.
Sydney Ferari-Zimmerman
Sydney Ferari-Zimmerman graduated with honors in spring 2024, receiving her bachelor’s degree in human development and a teaching certification for family and consumer sciences. While at WSU, she was a member of the CAHNRS student ambassador leadership team, an orientation counselor, and a teaching assistant for Orientation and Transition Programs. She also helped revamp and lead the WSU Human Development Club. Post-graduation, Ferari-Zimmerman will spend her summers working for the Washington State Department of Services for the Blind, teaching blind and low-vision teenagers life skills. During the school year, she will teach family and consumer sciences at Onalaska High School in southwest Washington.
Emily Libey
Emily Libey, a senior human development major, is part of the CAHNRS student ambassador leadership team and works as a clerical assistant for CAHNRS Student Success and Academic Programs. In both roles, she helps plan events and create marketing strategies geared toward new and incoming students. Also a research assistant for the human development department, Libey is passionate about WSU recruitment and retention and has spent time visiting high schools to encourage students to apply to WSU. This year, Libey plans to join the Human Development Club and help the human development department launch an Instagram account. She will also run the CAHNRS TikTok account, showcasing the college through regular posts that highlight different departments, faculty, and students.