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Latino Heritage Internship Program
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Abigail Houkes • Florida State University
Southeast Archeological Center, FL
Abigail Houkes is a Mexican-American recent anthropology graduate from Florida State University.
During her undergraduate career, Abigail focused on researching biological anthropology, specifically
osteological analysis of different populations and researching forensic anthropology at the University
of South Florida. Also, during her time in undergrad, Abigail was involved in her local community
through a community service co-ed fraternity, Alpha Phi Omega. Her passion for community
service can be seen through working on the Menstrual Hygiene Project, which assists in providing
menstrual hygiene materials to the local homeless shelters and being on the leadership board for
three consecutive semesters. In the future, in fall 2020, Abigail will begin her master’s program in
anthropology studying forensic anthropological methodologies in the hopes of helping victims and
their families. Other passions Abigail has is hiking, cross-stitching, thrifting, attending music concerts,
and going to her local coffee shops.
Patsy Herrer • Montclair State University
Minute Man National Historical Park, MA
Patsy Herrera is an undergraduate Biology major with a concentration in Environmental Science and
a minor in Anthropology from Montclair State University. Born and raised in New Jersey, Patsy and
her twin brother are first generation Mexican-Americans. Her interests focus on research and doing
fieldwork in ecological agriculture that aids in conservation and food scarcity in underprivileged
communities. During her undergraduate studies, she was part of a research project in Madagascar led
by a Montclair State professor as a field assistant, an intern for PSEG Institute for Sustainable Studies,
STEM Pioneer Mentor, and Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation mentor and scholar. She
also enjoys learning about soil science, insects, data analytics, permaculture, and making GIS maps.
In her free time she enjoys painting, gardening, going on picnics with friends, and volunteering for
nonprofits that support underrepresented people. Patsy will be completing her undergraduate degree
in May 2020. She is grateful to be part of LHIP this summer with the people at Minute Man National
Historical Park.
Tanya Helbig • St. Mary’s University
San Antonio Missions National Historical Park, TX
Tanya Helbig was born in Kiel, Germany, but raised in San Antonio Texas. She is a second-generation
college student working towards an undergraduate degree at St. Mary’s University in Environmental
Science and minoring in Business Administration. She has worked on projects during her
undergraduate education that involved sustainability, conservation, and environmental management.
Her goal is to promote sustainability in all communities and inspire others to become more
environmentally active. Tanya aspires to work with either non-profit organizations or government
agencies relating to environmental management/policy. She is proud of her Mexican/German culture
because it has made her the diverse and open-minded person she is today. In her free time, she enjoys
getting out of the city and going to parks to enjoy the great outdoors. National parks have always
had a special place in her heart and have been the reason she cherishes the preservation of natural
environments.
Ramon Galvan • Harvard College
National Parks of Boston, MA
Ramon was born and raised in a small town in Texas. As a freshman in high school, Ramon first
operated a video camera during a live production of the Special Olympics held at his school. A college
undergrad, he developed his cinematic sensibilities with the support of filmmakers Robb Moss and
Guy Maddin. In between his junior and senior years, he worked as a staff production assistant for the
first season of USA’s Colony. During his senior spring semester, he co-instructed an introductory media
course at the Harvard Extension School with his colleague Dan Coffey. Ramon graduated from Harvard
College in 2017 with a degree in English and a secondary field in Film/Video. Over the past several
years he has worked for CS50, Harvard University’s largest course, as a video producer and outreach
coordinator. Ramon has worked on various film projects in numerous roles. His latest film project is
about his father. Besides his production work, Ramon values his teenage years he spent working at
a barbecue restaurant. He writes and reads though these days he more often listens to music and
podcasts. He currently lives in Somerville, Massachusetts.