Edit (3/4/21): Scroll down to check out bios of our new organizers!

Hi! My name is Nayon Park (she/her/hers) and I’m a 4th year in the Cossairt lab. I’ve been involved in organizing since the spring of my first year in 2018, when our union was bargaining for the collective bargaining agreement we currently have and I’m now one of the Head Stewards. Having a union and being a unionized worker as a grad student here at UW is important to me because it gives power to our voice in demanding a safe and equitable workplace, and resources and community to together fight issues like racism, xenophobia, and gender discrimination in and outside of UW.

Hi! My name is Sarah Pristash (she/her/hers) and I’m a 5th year in the Schlenker lab. I got involved in organizing through InCS when we worked with the union on the campus climate surveys. I got more involved during the COVID-19 pandemic while organizing with other union members to make sure graduate students had safe working conditions during this global health crisis. Having a union and being a unionized worker as a grad student here at UW is important to me because collective action ensures our needs are heard!

Hi! My name is Brianne King (she/her/hers) and I’m a 2nd year in the Zalatan and Lalic labs, working on engineering enzymes to carry out cool chemistry. I became involved with the union in Spring 2020 as a union Steward to work towards ensuring safe & equitable working conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic, and to fight for meaningful, non-performative change in the way our department carries out diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) work. Being a unionized worker means that, together, we have power to hold UW accountable when it comes to protecting us as workers. UW works because we do! When I’m not working, I like to explore the beautiful PNW through trail running, rock climbing, and paddling!

Hi! My name is Sarah Sweger (she/her/hers) and I’m a 4th year in the Stoll lab. I’ve been involved in organizing since COVID-19 hit and wanted to help ensure that the university made appropriate safety decisions regarding graduate students. Since then, I have stayed involved and joined the anti-discrimination workgroup to help foster meaningful change in diversity efforts and hold UW to a higher standard. Having a union and being a unionized worker as a grad student here at UW is important to me because it builds a supportive community where graduate students can work together to enact positive changes to build safe and happy work environments. 

Hi everyone! My name is Marissa, and I use she/they pronouns. I’m a fourth year graduate student in the Chatterjee Lab, where I use protein semisynthesis to study the effect of post-translational modifications on the transcription factor p53.  I got involved with our union’s Contract Enforcement team as a second year, which gave me the opportunity to learn about our contract and help my peers solve problems with their health insurance, appointments, and workplace environment, among other things. I found that I really love working together with other graduate students and postdocs to support each other and strengthen our community through organizing. I’m now also part of the bargaining committee, the anti-discrimination workgroup, and the healthcare workgroup. 

Hi! My name is Dan Hart (he/him/his) and I am the financial secretary of UAW 4121, and formerly a chemistry department union steward. I graduated from the chemistry department with a master’s degree in 2016, and at that time decided to work as a staff “union organizer” with UAW. I have pursued this alternative career path because scientists need a collective voice in important issues like science funding policy, immigration rights and climate change. Please reach out to me with any questions, concerns and ideas at dan.hart@uaw4121.org. 

  Hey hey! My name is Matthew Crane (he/him/his), and I’m a postdoc in the Gamelin lab, where I study spectroscopy of nanocrystals and light management of perovskites for new solar technologies. I became deeply involved with UAW 4121 when I joined UW as a postdoc, and I experienced a pile of problems with healthcare because I had external funding. This drove me to help organize postdocs during our first ever contract. I quickly learned the power of organizing and the importance of having a community of postdocs and graduate students for support. Ensuring that students and postdocs receive the pay, healthcare, and equitable treatment they deserve has been one of the most important and rewarding things I’ve ever worked on!

Hi all! My name is Max Friedfeld (he/him/his), and I’m a Research Scientist in the Cossairt lab after having been a postdoc for the past four years when I started in the UW Chemistry department. I study the synthesis and design of low-toxicity nanomaterials that have emissive properties from the high-energy and visible regions through the near-IR regions. The postdoctoral level is where the ‘academic pipeline’ is least secure for independent researchers, and I want to make that experience as attainable, fair, and inclusive for all scientists. With our union, we can make strong workplace protections and an inclusive and equitable research environment possible. Some of my hobbies include gardening, running, and playing trumpet in the Rainbow City concert band.  

Hi all! My name is Venkata (he/him/his)and I am a Postdoctoral Scholar in Gabriele Varani’s lab working on design & synthesis of small molecules that targets non-coding RNAs of importance to HIV, Cancers and other chronic diseases. I became a member of UAW 4121 when I joined as a postdoc in the UW and I experienced visa related issues as an international scholar. This drove me to join as a postdoc steward to address the visa related issues of international scholars. I love working together with other graduate students and postdocs to support each other and strengthen our community through organizing. 

Hi! My name is Theresa Gozzo (she/her/hers), and I’m a 3rd year in the Bush lab doing ion mobility-mass spectrometry of proteins. Over the past year, after witnessing the action our union took for us at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, and after participating in Tax Amazon and BLM protests, I started thinking more about collective action and how it can help us all in so many ways. I became an organizer after filling out our recent bargaining survey because I want to take a more active role in bargaining for the contracts that affect ASE livelihoods. Being a unionized worker is important to me because it helps strengthen our community of graduate students and postdocs; if we stand together, we can win safety, equity, and just compensation for ourselves and others. When I’m not working, I love enjoying cold beer, the great outdoors, and live music.

Hello! My name is Helen Larson (she/her), and I am a first year in the Cossairt lab interested in atomically precise nanostructure growth and assembly. I was drawn to get involved in organizing with our union this fall because of the start of the bargaining season and the need to organize and mobilize our collective power to bargain for a just contract. Our union is important to me because it brings together and gives a powerful voice to graduate students and postdocs who want a safe and inclusive UW community. When I am not in lab I am happy to be outside or eating good food, preferably both.

Hey y’all! My name is Ben Link (he/him/his), and I am a first year in the Li group, specifically interested in quantum computing methods for modeling electron structure dynamics, as well as using nuclear-electron orbital (NEO) approaches for modeling solvent environments. I started organizing in UAW-4121 at the beginning of the 2021 bargaining cycle to ensure that as many people had their voices heard in the union. I believe it’s important that we as graduate students work together to establish a strong foothold in the UW community and to stand up for each member of our own community. In my spare time you can find me pampering my cat Banjo!