Patrick Paglia-Garcés

Hello, my name is Patrick Paglia-Garcés! I come from a small town in New Jersey and I recently graduated with a bachelor’s in Bioengineering, next I am studying Robotics at Penn. I am also interested in medicine, but am taking a non-traditional route to medical school to explore my interest in engineering further. At Penn I was involved by curating our annual TEDxPenn conference, driving golf carts around campus for Spring Fling with SPEC Concerts, joining a research laboratory, and volunteering at the high school nearby as a math tutor. I’m Puerto Rican, so cooking is in my DNA, and I also keep myself busy by playing video games, soccer, concerts, taking very long walks with music, and coming up with fun projects to work on in the bioengineering labs. My top musical artists in the past have Bad Bunny, Ariana Grande and Charli XCX, but I love all music. I also am a huge marvel fan, particularly for Wanda Maximoff, Spiderman, and Miles Morales.

Katie Piotrzkowski

I am a junior studying CBE with a minor in Neuroscience. I am from Stamford, CT. At Penn, I am involved in SWE (Society of Women Engineers), AOE (stem sorority), and CSSP (a community service club partnering with local West Philly schools through the Netter Center). I am also a tutor with the Weingarten Center in CHEM102 and MATH114 as well as a CHEM054 lab LA. I am also a member of the club women’s ice hockey team and have participated in intramural soccer. Last summer, I interned at the City of Stamford’s Recycling and Sanitation Department working primarily on a food scrap initiative. This summer, I am interning at Linde Engineering, a chemical gases company, with their PlantSERV team. I love going to concerts and exploring different neighborhoods in Philly.

Julia Dase

Hi everyone! My name is Julia and I am majoring in MEAM with a minor in Fine Arts. I am also a Benjamin Franklin Scholar, so if you have any questions on how it works in engineering, don’t be afraid to ask! On campus, I am the Secretary of the American Society for Mechanical Engineers (ASME) where we plan GBMs and social events for MEAM students. I also staff the Rapid Prototyping Lab. This summer I am doing research in the Modular Robotics lab under Doctor Mark Yim. I am also a sister of Alpha Phi which is one of the Social Sororities on campus. In my free time I have climbed the Grand Teton and backpacked through Peru. Hopefully I can help your transition to Penn as easy as possible!

Helen Rudoler

I’m Helen, I’m a sophomore in CMPE. I came in as an EE student for the first semester, and then switched part way through second semester when I realized I wanted more computer science in my curriculum. I lived in the quad as a freshman, and had a great experience despite it being an atypical covid semester. In high school I attended a small Hebrew day school. I work as a TA in the computer science department, for CIS 1600 (mathematical foundations of computer science), and I’m interning this summer at Vanguard in Application Development. For student life involvement, I’m pretty involved with Jewish life on campus. For non-campus interests, I love to read and watch movies. Can’t wait to welcome you all to Penn!

Rodrigo Villagomez

Hey! My name is Rodrigo and I’m a Sophomore studying Computer Science with an Econ minor originally from Atlanta, Georgia. In addition to being an OPA, on campus I’m involved with Penn International Impact Consulting, engineering student government (Penn Engineering Council), Greek life(FIJI), and the club swim team. This Summer I’ll be working at Jane Street Capital in New York doing Software Engineering. In my free time I love going to the gym, swimming, and longboarding. Looking forward to being an OPA and getting to know everyone!

Nick Anderson

Hi! My name is Nick and I’m a Senior at Penn studying MEAM (Mechanical Engineering) with a Minor in EENT (Engineering Entrepreneurship). On campus, I’m involved in engineering student government (PEC President), mechanical engineering leadership (ASME Chair), club sports (Club Soccer Captain), Greek life (FIJI Philanthropy Chair), and a variety of mentorship roles (OPA, P1P First-Gen Mentor, MEAM TA). That being said, in my free time I would rather be in the gym, at the piano, or enjoying an afternoon biking in the city.

I’m excited to be returning as a 2nd-year OPA Fellow, and can’t wait to meet and have the opportunity to mentor you all!