Research Assistants
Listed in alphabetical order by last name
Nicolas Gutierrez III
Research Assistant
Nicolas Gutierrez III is a Ph.D. candidate in Sociology at the University of Southern California, where he is also a Provost’s Fellow and W.E.B. DuBois & Ida B. Wells-Barnett Graduate Scholar. He earned an M.S. in Criminal Justice and Criminology from San Diego State University and a B.A. in Criminology, Law and Society from the University of California, Irvine.
His research focuses on the intersection of unsheltered homelessness, criminalization, and mutual aid in Los Angeles, CA. Nicolas has published in Punishment & Society, International Journal on Homelessness, Public Integrity, Scholars Strategy Network, and USC ERI Blog. His research has also been featured in the Voice of San Diego, CBS 8, NBC 7, inewsource, and Televisa Californias. His most recent article examines how the acts of helping by mutual aid organizers, who support unsheltered Angelenos during homeless encampment sweeps, are treated as acts of resistance and criminalized. His doctoral research builds on his work on sweeps by incorporating the experiences and perspectives of City agents.
Nicolas was born and raised in West Adams, where he continues to live and advocate for housing and mobility justice. As a lifelong Angeleno, he loves his city, acknowledges its flaws, and dedicates his research career to advancing his vision of Los Angeles as a truly “just city” for all. In his free time, Nicolas enjoys watching Dodgers games and eating his way through LA.
Ximena Sanchez Martinez
Research Assistant
Ximena Sanchez Martinez is a PhD student in Sociology at the University of Southern California. Her research interests include immigration, medical inequity, access to higher education, and qualitative methods. Her current work focuses on how immigration and health policies shape the experiences of Latino communities in Los Angeles County.
Ximena earned her Bachelor’s degree with honors in Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity from Stanford University, with a minor in Biology. Her undergraduate honors thesis, The Next Step: Reframing the Vulnerability and Difficulties of Undocumented Students Through Higher Education Milestones, was one of ten projects selected for the Hume Honors Fellowship. Her research was supported by grants from the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education and the Stanford Humanities Center, and recognized with the Award for Excellence in Honors Thesis Presentation and the Arturo Islas, Jr. Prize for Outstanding Academic Achievement.
Beyond her academic work, Ximena serves as a board member of the Stanford First-Generation and/or Low-Income Alumni Network, supporting first-generation alumni, and as a Dream Project mentor, guiding first-generation high school seniors through the college application process. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her cat Luna, watching anime, scrapbooking, and listening to music.
Brandon Saucedo Pita
Research Assistant
Brandon Saucedo Pita (he/him) is a PhD student in Sociology at the University of Southern California, with research interests in the intersections of expressive cultural practices, identity formation, and political struggles in Mexican American communities. Raised in the vibrant Brighton Park neighborhood on the Southwest side of Chicago, Brandon draws inspiration from his upbringing and ancestral roots in Michoacán, México.
A graduate of Haverford College, where he was a Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellow, Brandon majored in Sociology and double-minored in Growth & Structure of Cities and Latin American, Iberian, and Latina/o Studies. He also completed a Thomas J. Watson Fellowship, traveling globally to study the development of Mexican immigrant communities through engagement with artists, cultural centers, and state-led initiatives focused on Mexican musical traditions and other expressive cultural practices.
Brandon’s research focuses on the Los Angeles-area Norteño music scenes, exploring their relationship to collective identity formations, transnationalism, and political expression. He has previously conducted research at Bryn Mawr College and Northwestern University on related topics, including Mexican Chicago’s underground Hip Hop movement. Outside of his academic pursuits, Brandon is an avid videographer and enjoys watching documentaries and sci-fi films, playing Rocket League, editing travel music videos, and producing melodic rap beats.
Dawy Rkasnuam
Research Assistant
Dawy Rkasnuam is a Ph.D student in Sociology at USC. Her research uses intersectionality and the reproductive justice framework to explore how social movements, medicine, and law mediate health and cultural outcomes in the realm of reproductive politics. Her current project examines how reproductive justice activists across different regions respond to changing political climates.
Prior to attending USC, she did research and advocacy work on immigration detention at Detention Watch Network in Washington, DC. She holds a Master of Public Policy from the University of Maryland, College Park, during which time she conducted immigration research as a research assistant at the UMD Center for International Policy Exchanges and as an intern at the Migration Policy Institute. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from California State University, Los Angeles. Dawy is originally from Bangkok, Thailand but grew up in the San Gabriel Valley in Southern California. Outside of work, she enjoys swimming, attending concerts, and cooking Thai food.
Undergraduate Interns
Verena Im
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Verena Im is an Undergraduate Research Assistant at ERI. Pursuing a major in Law, History, and Culture. She passionately engages in social justice work with the goal of reimagining an equitable society that is rooted in community, joy, love, and justice– concepts she sees as inherently intertwined.
Originally from Kansas City, Missouri, Verena grew up in an immigrant household with a diverse cultural background—her mother from Egypt, and her father from Cambodia, all while living in the Midwest. This unique upbringing instilled in her a profound appreciation for community building in every space that she enters. Verena believes seeking genuine connections with others is the foundation for the social justice work we seek. Through collaboration with people from all walks of life, we resist oppressive, divisive systems while embracing a robust network of communion and support. Following this, collaboration breeds transformative thinking, harnessing wisdom and insight from a plethora of people. Having witnessed the impacts of global injustices, genocide, and oppression through her family’s history, she also witnesses the strength in resistance, the beauty of hope, and the value of love.
While Verena acknowledges the significant advancements in research and innovation today, she questions its scope. She asks, who will this research serve in our caste ridden society? We generously pour efforts into technical, medical, and other research, oftentimes, without harmonizing the efforts to promote equitable access to such things. Accordingly, Verena is so excited to contribute to the valuable work ERI does to engage with these critical issues.
Rania Tuku
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Rania Tuku (she/her) is an undergraduate research assistant at
ERI. She is a Junior pursuing a degree in Cinema and Media Studies for her undergraduate and Public Relations & Advertising for her graduate degree. Rania believes ideas take place and reality begins when creativity aligns with strategy. She believes that impactful storytelling can capture audiences and shape perceptions when accurate representations of cultures and communities are portrayed.
Born and raised in Seattle, Washington, Rania was shaped by the city’s culture of curiosity. Her strong passions for research and data, along with a strong appreciation for diversity and inclusive perspectives, flourished when she co-founded the organization East Side Black Girls for Change. The intersectionality of Rania’s identities as a Black, Muslim Woman has inspired her to use the art of storytelling to accurately represent communities and diasporas that have yet to be respectfully highlighted in the media. She believes that media is a form of education, and once people understand each other’s experiences, they gain empathy and are able to build meaningful relationships.
Rania has previous research experience with Beats by Dr and Annenberg Inclusion Initiative. She is intentional about working with organizations whose morals and values align with her own, especially those committed to diversity and to uplifting marginalized communities through inclusive practices. Rania is excited to both contribute to and grow through the research and work she conducts at ERI.