President
Dana Sheinhaus
GSAPresident@austin.utexas.edu
Dana (she/her) is a 2nd year PhD student in the College of Pharmacy. Her research focuses on the interaction between endocrine disrupting chemicals and extracellular vesicles within the reproductive system. She earned her BS in Microbiology from NCSU in 2021. She previously served as the GSA administrative director (2022) and GSA vice president (2022-2023). Dana is excited to strengthen connections between members of the UT community through her position as GSA President. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, ice skating, and hanging out with her cat, Bert.
Vice-President
Zach Young
GSAVicePresident@austin.utexas.edu
Zach is a second year MFA candidate in Live Design and Production. He was excited about the GSA since he first joined as his department representative and is now very excited as the Vice President of the GSA. His goal this year is to unite the Graduate student population with each other and with GSA in ways that might not have been in recent years!
External Affairs Director
Meg Donahue
mmdonahue@utexas.edu
Meg (she/her) is a PhD candidate in the Institute for Neuroscience. Her current research project focuses on how memory systems in the brain are impaired in neurodevelopmental disorders. She is passionate about advocating for graduate students and early career scientists. In her free time, she enjoys running, cooking, and knitting.
Communications Director
Aastha Chawla
aastha.chawla@utexas.edu
Aastha (she/her) is a second-year Masters student in Operations Research. She is studying about Machine Learning, Optimization, Data Science and Decision Analysis. In her free time, she enjoys traveling, hiking, skydiving, and hosting dinners. This year, she hopes to establish a stronger online and social media presence for the GSA!
Membership & Outreach Director
Daisy Flores
dmflores@utexas.edu
Daisy (she/her/ella) is in her third year of the Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior doctoral program in the Department of Integrative Biology. Most of her research projects include traveling to the tropics, scuba diving, and working with baby corals! She is also looking forward to helping to build graduate student community at UT Austin as the Membership and Outreach Director of GSA. In her free time, Daisy likes to watch Lil Jon's HGTV show while cuddling with her dog Luna.
Academic Affairs Director
Dylan Gilbert
dylan.gilbert@utexas.edu
Dylan (he/him) is a fifth-year doctoral candidate in Italian Studies in the Department of French and Italian. Originally from Missouri, he graduated first-gen from Middlebury College in 2016 and then went on to receive a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship in Italy. He has previously served twice as his department's GSA representative (2020-2021/2022-2023). In his spare time, Dylan enjoys playing tennis, baking, and petting other people's dogs.
Administrative Director
Aasim Hussain
afhussain@utexas.edu
Aasim Hussain (he/him) is a second-year doctoral student in biomedical engineering. His research focuses on structural design of nucleic acid nanoparticle delivery systems. Aasim received his B.S. in Biomedical Engineering in a joint program from North Carolina State University and The University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill. In his free time, Aasim enjoys listening to music, biking, exploring new foods, watching sports, and playing video games. Aasim looks forward to building advocacy within the graduate student population and connecting students throughout different departments.
Finance Director
Noah Lindsell
nlindsell@utexas.edu
Student Affairs Director
Sophia Epstein
sepstein@utexas.edu
Sophia (she/her) is in her second year of the Computational Science, Engineering, and Mathematics program at the Oden Institute. She plans to study optimization of stimulus waveforms in treating neurological disorders. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, lifting, and being outdoors.
Internal Policy Director
Trevor Hand
Trevorhand@utexas.edu
Agency Directors
Voting Graduate Student Agency Director (VGSA)
Brinkley Artman
obartman@utexas.edu
Brinkley is a second-year Ph.D. student in biomedical engineering here at UT. I love good food, the arts, traveling, and my two doggos. But most importantly, I love helping others to understand the power and process of exercising their right to vote! I aim to serve the Longhorn community well by setting a record for new voter registrations this year; hook 'em!
Health Agency (GSHA) Director
Jiaying Liu
jiayingliu@utexas.edu
Jiaying Liu (she/her/hers) is a third-year Ph.D. student at the School of Information. Her research center on mental well-being and technology use, especially in those underserved and marginalized communities. She was the Ph.D. representative in Doctoral Study Committee during 2022-2023. She aims to make mental health technologies accessible and ecologically sustainable to people from historically underserved groups and areas.
International Student Agency (ISA) Director
Raphaël Nonin
rknonin@utexas.edu
Raphaël (he/him) is a fifth-year doctoral student in French Studies in the Department of French and Italian. Born and raised in Dijon, France, Raphaël moved to the US in 2014 to spend a year at Amherst College as an exchange student. Little did he know at the time that 9 years later, after living in Providence and Chicago, he would find himself in Austin, TX, studying the representation of social emancipation in contemporary French literature. This year, Raphaël hopes to advocate for all International Graduate Students, especially those who come to UT outside of any exchange programs. In his free time, Raphaël listens to a lot of talk radio and loves watching The Great British Bake Off.
Entrepreneurship & Innovation (E&I) Agency Director
Iman Salafian
i.salafian@utexas.edu
Iman is currently pursuing a Ph.D. degree in Mechanical Engineering with a focus on Biomechanics at the Walker Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Texas at Austin, since August 2021. His research is centered on developing vital sign monitoring devices for neonates and he is the entrepreneurial lead for two novel pediatric devices, Trinity Tube and Palm Reader. He joined the UT-Austin Graduate Student Assembly as the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Director because he is deeply passionate about fostering a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship within our academic community. With his experience and expertise, he aims to empower and support our graduate students in turning their innovative ideas into real-world solutions, creating a vibrant ecosystem of creativity, collaboration, and success.
Events Coordinator
Shania Montufar
shaniamontufar@utexas.edu