Mitzy Zitlaly Mendoza is a Senior double-majoring in Chicana/o Studies and Gender Studies. She will be pursuing a departmental honors senior thesis in Chicana/o Studies. Upon her involvement with underserved youth through various educational access efforts, Mitzy has demonstrated passion and commitment to social justice and community building. Her research will focus on developing a community action project which aims to cultivate safe spaces for queer people of color in the Central San Joaquin Valley. This project seeks to use the power of artistic self-expression as a method towards individual and collective empowerment. Through collaboration with a local grassroots organization in Fresno, this project will consist of developing workshops focusing on issues of identity through storytelling, creative writing, and arts and crafts which will culminate into the creation of a collective zine. After graduation, Mitzy hopes to pursue a dual graduate degree in Latin American Studies and Public Health at UCLA.