Engineering Graduate Student Honored for Latine Excellence and Achievement
April 16, 2025 - Anteater engineer Jesus Alexis Lopez Ochoa was awarded a Graduate Student Excellence Award at the Latine Excellence and Achievement Awards Dinner (LEAD) held April 3 in the UC Irvine Student Center. LEAD recognition is an accolade given to those who champion student success and research excellence in the Hispanic/Latine/x community at UCI and in Orange County.
Ochoa, a proud son of Mexican immigrants and an immigrant himself, moved to the United States with his family when he was 4 years old. His parents lived in Central California and worked in the grape harvest to earn a living. In high school, Ochoa was interested in math and science and applied to UCI’s Samueli School of Engineering without really knowing what the engineering field entailed. The first-generation college student grew interested in chemical engineering during general chemistry class with Professor Jim Smith who discussed his research on aerosols, which motivated Ochoa to find a research lab that contributed toward a more sustainable future. While navigating his engineering courses, Ochoa frequented the UCI DREAM Center, where he accessed resources and mentored other students. Ochoa earned a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering at UCI in 2022.
Now a third-year doctoral candidate, he was recognized for his work as a Scholar-in-Residence mentor at the DREAM Center where he helps guide students impacted by immigration policies through workshops and post graduate planning, ensuring they have access to resources and support.
“I found the value in mentorship through my own struggles of navigating a higher education as a first-gen student,” said Ochoa. “Through these involvements I have equally benefited, and it helps to keep me grounded in my community. Coming into UCI, I did not know much about the resources offered to undocumented students like me, but I quickly gained support from the UCI DREAM Center as well as various student success initiatives.”
Today, Ochoa works in Professor Iryna Zenyuk’s lab in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. He conducts research on the platinum-electrolyte interface for proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells to improve the performance and viability of fuel cells for various applications. Fuel cells emit only water and heat, making them virtually zero-emission. The clean energy solution can be used to generate electricity for homes or commercial buildings and power automobiles or generators.
Ochoa has been a part of three research publications during his academic career at UCI. He was first author on a paper in Electrochimica Acta and second author for research published in Nature Communications.
Zenyuk, a chemical and biomolecular engineering professor and director of UCI's National Fuel Cell Research Center, nominated Ochoa for the LEAD recognition based on his “research achievements and leadership within the Latinx community.” Zenyuk currently advises him alongside a cohort of doctoral students in her lab. She says he is an exemplary graduate researcher. “His critical thinking skills differentiate him from the cohort,” Zenyuk said. “Jesus reasons through challenges well and finds strong solutions based off logical thinking. He is also quite creative in problem solving and takes on many leadership roles in the group. He is a great mentor to junior students and a strong team player.”
Ochoa was one of 15 graduate students across campus honored with LEAD Awards. This was the eighth year of the annual awards, which also recognizes faculty, staff, alumni and community members and presents the Luz y Fuerza (which translates to light and strength) Award.
– Cassandra Nava
