Minority Peer Counselor (MPC) Team
The MPC program is a peer mentorship program housed in the Brown Center for Students of Color (BCSC). The MPCs are here to guide 1st-year BIPOC students in a year-long exploration of barriers to equity and inclusion, and ways to address and navigate them!
MPC Co-Coordinators
(she/her)
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MAIKEKAI ‘26
RACHEL ‘25
Introducing our 2024-2025 Minority Peer Counselors…
(he/him) “Being from Palestine and being proud of my heritage and culture keeps me rooted in everything I do. We have a concept called صمود 'sumud' meaning steadfastness that we are resilient through maintaining our values and beliefs in our everyday actions and take pride in the struggles we face.”
Aboud ‘25
(they/she) “My faith and food :)”
arman ‘25
(Any) “My lived experience as a low-income, Mexican-Native American nonbinary femme has gifted me a level of empathy and understanding for all that is hard to achieve otherwise. My community, and especially my family are extremely important to me and are the driving force of everything that I do. Building and maintaining community, especially through music (mariachi), is a vital aspect of my life and wellbeing.”
Chooch ‘25
(she/her) “Being a Cape Verdean woman keeps me grounded especially since my culture is a big part of my identity today. Similarly, my family keeps me grounded especially my mother who has done everything in her power to provide for my sister and me even if it meant she couldn't have the life she wanted for herself. Finally, I take pride in my art and I like to think that the work I have created up until this point keeps me rooted in my creative spirit.”
emily ‘27
(she/her) “When I feel homesick I listen to Sierra Leone by Frank Ocean. A beautiful song about one of my beautiful countries. When I feel as if I've lost or strayed away from my purpose I'll read Assata by Assata Shakur. When I miss my mom I'll make a waistbead, a remidner that we are connected by our shared Gambian culture. When I'm stressed, I'll take a walk and say affirmations!”
jasmine ‘27
(she/her) “My background as a Camerronian/African-American woman keeps me grounded as I often pull from my African roots in many of the things that I do and spaces I explore. My UFLI identity has been integral to the community I have found here at Brown as the UFLI community here is really strong and tight knit and always looks out for each other. I'm also from NYC (represent!) and there's a lot of New Yorkers here who relate to the NY to Prov shift and how jarring it can be at times.”
milan ‘27
(she/her) “I have always been rooted in my connection to Nepali as a language, speaking it with random people I meet and my family allows me to feel rooted in my identity. Talking to my home friends and folks here who share similar lived experiences allows me to feel validated and safe.”
Niyanta ‘25
(Any) “Playing/performing music, chasing waterfalls, cooking with my mother, tending to plants, and being from California keeps me grounded.”
anisa ‘26
(she/her) “My ethnic background definitely keeps me grounded, I love attending African events and meeting African individuals from various places to connect.”
arrissa ‘25
(she/her/ella) “I take pride in my identity as a low income first gen Cuban American form Miami Florida. I am raised and uplifted by my grandmother, my aunts and my mother.”
cyntia ‘27
(he/him) “My guane campesino backgrounds keep me grounded.”
ian ‘26
(they/them) “I am grounded in being from Atlanta and the South, being Chinese American, Trans and Queer. I love to revisit poetry and zines to ground myself.”
jo ‘26
(he/him) “Aspects of my identity that keep me rooted and grounded are my Palestinian heritage and my experience growing up in a large family!”
mo ‘26
(she/her) “What keeps me grounded are my home, Long Island, New York (but I also spend a good amount of time in Brooklyn with my family), being Black/African American, Trinidadian, and Korean, my family and friends (at home and at school) + BCSC, the community within my major, music; both playing (violin, piano, guitar) and listening to all kinds, photography!!! (f@b, The Optic, taking pictures for Brown Athletics), drawing, All About Love by Bellhooks, & the tradition of sharing a homecooked meal with family and friends <3”
trinity ‘26
(he/him) “What keeps me grounded is being a Queer Asian-American immigrant born in Vietnam and raised in Florida.”
anson ‘27
(he/him) “Where I'm from as well as well as my community I involve myself in keep me grounded.”
bryce ‘25
(he/him) “The that that I'm from DC, am Black, and was raised by a single mother are pretty core to my identity. I also think my friends and the people I surround myself with keep me grounded and push me forward.”
dylan ‘25
(he/him) “My journey as a Black man grounds me. Despite initial struggles and anxieties, I've come to embrace and take pride in my authentic expression. Growing up without a father figure compelled me to forge my own path and redefine masculinity on my terms. I find strength in challenging societal norms, advocating for support, care, and nurturing as essential elements of connections with everyone around me.”
isaiah ‘26
(he/him) “Aspects of my identity that keep me rooted are my Guatemalan heritage specifically when wearing jewlery, speaking Spanish, or drinking coffee.”
marco ‘27
(she/her) “My identity as a proud Burkinabé keeps me grounded in the history of resiliency of my people. It empowers me to strive for greatness in all aspects of my life as a way to pay homage to those that came before. My background also keeps me grounded in love because when I think of my family, that is what see.”