Matthew graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with a degree in Electrical Engineering and a minor in Biomedical Engineering. He has worked in a wide variety of topics including theoretical physics research at Caltech, eye development research at the NIH, DNA computing research at MIT, and neuroscience research at the University of Chicago. In his free time, he enjoys scuba diving, volunteering at a homeless health care clinic, playing football and soccer, and spending time with his wife and two cats. Matthew is currently pursuing MD and PhD degrees through UCLA's Medical Scientist Training program. His PhD research interests are in leukemia and lymphoma cancer biology and in hematopoietic stem cell development.

Menna was born and raised in Ethiopia and came to the US with her family in 1998. She graduated from UCLA in 2004 with a major in Biology. She is interested in becoming either a general internist or an endocrinologist and help especially the growing number of Diabetics in the world increase their quality of life. She is also interested in pursuing a degree in public health and doing a health services research that addresses issues of the chronically ill patients.

Susan Park graduated from UCLA in 2003 with dual degrees in Physiological Sciences and Women’s Studies. Although a native of Southern California, she continues to explore and enjoy new places and opportunities in this amazing area. She has a special interest in international health developed over the years through volunteer work in Albania, Mexico, and Ukraine. Susan would love to work with children in her future practice but has a special place in her heart for the geriatric population as well. Outside of school, she enjoys traveling, designing and spending time with friends and family.

A native of South Dakota, Trent Custis graduated from the University of South Dakota with a dual degree in Chemistry and Business and a minor in Mathematics. He has many interests in medicine including radiology, anesthesia, internal medicine and surgery. Trent also plans to complete the dual MD/MBA program while at UCLA. In his spare time he enjoys visiting family and friends, downhill skiing, and a good round of golf. Trent is grateful to be here in Los Angeles and is proud to have served on the board of directors for this year's Health Care Symposium.

Originally from Lexington, KY, Warren graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with a degree in Mechanical Engineering and concentrations in Economics and Film. He migrated to the Bay Area to earn his M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley. Before entering medical school, Warren taught science and mathematics classes to high school students. He is pursuing dual roles in medicine with clinical practice and health policy, specifically universal health care and pharmaceutical industry regulation. When he is not working at free clinics or advocating health care reform, Warren enjoys surfing and rock climbing.

Caleb Ho was originally from Hong Kong, and graduated from UCLA in 2004, majoring in Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics. During his time off from college, he worked as a classroom assistant in the Lanterman Developmental Center, with elderly people with mental retardation. Currently, he's interested in various subspecialties within internal medicine, including GI, oncology, and endocrinology. During spare time, he likes snowboarding, watching TV, drawing and designing stuff.

A native of Los Angeles, Ali Khan graduated in 2005 from the University of Southern California with dual degrees in Biological Sciences and Political Science. While at USC, Ali sought to combine his interests in politics and medicine throughout his undergraduate career, including a graduate-level program with the Institute of International Studies in Geneva, Switzerland. While abroad he was able to hold an internship with the United Nations, and has since continued his interest in international health and public health policy. Now at UCLA, Ali has many interests in medicine, particularly national health policy, and looks forward to exploring different fields. In his spare time he enjoys athletics and spending time with friends, and notes that despite coming to UCLA he is still a Trojan football fan.

A Southern California resident, Barkha Gurbani graduated from Johns Hopkins University in 2004 after majoring in Public Health Studies and obtaining a minor in Women, Gender and Sexuality. She spent the subsequent academic year in Mumbai, India as a Fulbright Scholar conducting a project titled "Young Widows of India Psychosocial Impact of HIV/AIDS." She hopes to obtain her MPH in the future and would like to combine her interests in Public Health, International Health, and Pediatrics in her future career as well. In her spare time she enjoys dancing, reading, painting, traveling, and music.

Christine Chen is a first year student at UCLA Med. She is originally from Vancouver, British Columbia and graduated from UC Berkeley in May 2005 with a degree in Molecular and Cell Biology and a minor in Music. She looks forward to exploring different fields of medicine in the upcoming years.

Monica El-Masry was born in Queens, New York and grew up in Los Angeles. She graduated in 2005 from UCLA with a Bachelor of Science in Psychobiology. She has served as a tutor, mentor, and counselor to many UCLA undergraduate students and because of her strong dedication and service to UCLA and the community she received the distinguished UCLA Chancellor's Service Award. Monica enjoys traveling, watching movies, volunteering at free clinics, and spending time with family and friends. Through her leadership in the health care symposium, she hopes to encourage other students to take an active role in shaping medicine in the 21rst century. In the future, she hopes to get involved in international medical missions and pursue a career in general and vascular surgery and medical education.