Current Board Members
Kiki Li, President
Buddhism has been a guiding light in Kiki’s life, providing profound insights and inspiration for reflection and growth towards becoming a better individual in this world. After moving from China in 2022 to study educational technology at Teachers College, she feels immensely grateful to have found the welcoming community of CUBA, where she can grow spiritually alongside inspiring people. With deeper involvement in the club, she is both humbled and honored to serve the community. In her free time, she enjoys nature, reading about psychology and martial arts, and working on projects in maker spaces.
Anjana Priya Peddireddi, Vice President
Anjana was introduced to Buddhism in high school when she began meditating to find more stillness. She took a religious studies course on Buddhism at her previous university that completely changed the way she thought about relationships with others, nature, and herself. Through CUBA, she hopes to create a space for reflection, learning, growing, and sharing with one another through Buddhism.
Anjana is pursuing a degree in sociology and statistics. She is passionate about mental health, making music, talking to strangers, playing board games, and laying on the steps in the sun.
Adriana Gyepes, Secretary
Adriana was introduced to Buddhism a couple years ago through a friend. She began her journey by listening to podcasts and reading books by teachers such as Tara Brach, Thich Nhat Hanh, and Pema Chödrön. Since then, Buddhism has become a wonderful source of joy, wisdom, and strength in Adriana’s life.
She is currently a Junior at Barnard College studying Psychology. She plans to study the intersection of Buddhism, Neuroscience, and Psychology. She is a fan of the crossword, any sort of metaphor, and vegan food.
Rob Kelly, Event Chair
Rob was introduced to Buddhism through his experience with using mantras, both while competing in endurance sports, and while dealing with difficult situations. After deciding to further engage with the Buddha’s teachings, he has found the CUBA community to be an ideal place for him to develop and grow in his practice alongside other students. As a Fiction M.F.A. candidate and a creative writing teacher, he is particularly interested in how Buddhism uses storytelling to convey truths that are otherwise difficult to express.
Gou Sunim, Students Advisor & Dharma Outreach
Gou Sunim is a female Buddhist monk from the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism in South Korea. She has been engaged in Buddhist practice and meditation since childhood and took full ordination in 2010. With experience in both Korea and the United States, she now serves as the Abbess at B.U.D Zen Center in Queens. Gou Sunim is also furthering her education as a student at Columbia University. She is majoring in Human Rights and is a student advisor for CUBA, where she shares the path of mindfulness and happiness with a broad audience. Gou Sunim finds delight in walking dirt paths at dawn and observing the tranquility of nature.
Julian Novarr, Communications Director
Julian first came across Buddhism in novels by Jack Kerouac and Herman Hesse. In college, he pursued the teachings further in a class called Buddhist Ethics. Inspired, he joined CUBA to begin communal practice. Julian believes in the potential of Buddhist philosophy and practice for developing meaningful relationships with others and cultivating a sense of wellbeing. He is an English major.
Mohsen Mahdawi, Visionary Advisor
Mohsen Mahdawi discovered Buddhism shortly after moving to the United States in 2014, finding inner peace through meditation. This practice became a means for him to find solace and healing from the childhood trauma and loss he experienced under Israeli occupation in the refugee camp where he was born and raised in Palestine. Through meditation, Mohsen cultivated empathy and compassion, which fueled his passion for peacemaking and justice.
Currently, Mohsen is pursuing a degree in philosophy at Columbia University and is preparing to further his education in the field of Law. His mission is to make CUBA a welcoming home for all students seeking inner growth and deeper connections.
Alejandro Menjivar, (on exchange overseas)
Alejandro was formally introduced to Buddhism during the pandemic when his father provided him with several books on Buddhist teachings and practices. Since then, meditation and important Buddhist principles such as impermanence have become integral in his daily life as he works to cultivate a grounded sense of self and vibrant Buddhist community on Columbia’s campus. Currently, Alejandro is pursuing a Political Science degree at Columbia College and enjoys any opportunity he gets to spend time in nature.
Julia Neely, (on exchange overseas)
Growing up in Tokyo, Japan, Julia has had a long and complicated history with Buddhism, experiencing a childhood full of cultural ceremonies and buddhist familial tradition, however, only recently finding a deeper connection and resonation with it on a personal level. Meditation is now an integral and anchoring part of her personal and inner child healing and growth alongside journaling, yoga and her spiritual community. This past summer, she spent a month in Bali practicing yoga and meditation every day while farming and connecting to nature. She is excited for another year on the CUBA board and continuing to help cultivate an open, vulnerable and safe space for people to comfortably explore themselves and their spiritual journeys.
Gina Liu, Event Coordinator
Sebastian Gonzalez-Quintero, Event Coordinator
Former Board Members
Mohsen Mahdawi, President
Mohsen Mahdawi discovered Buddhism shortly after moving to the United States in 2014, finding inner peace through meditation. This practice became a means for him to find solace and healing from the childhood trauma and loss he experienced under Israeli occupation in the refugee camp where he was born and raised in Palestine. Through meditation, Mohsen cultivated empathy and compassion, which fueled his passion for peacemaking and justice.
Currently, Mohsen is pursuing a degree in philosophy at Columbia University and is preparing to further his education in the field of Law. His mission is to make CUBA a welcoming home for all students seeking inner growth and deeper connections.
Jacob Clay, Vice President
Jacob was introduced to meditation at an early age, but it wasn’t until later that Buddhist teachings radically transformed his understanding of reality. After sustaining his own practice for years, he deeply values the opportunity to support others on the path. He is currently a senior majoring in Mathematics at the School of General Studies and a Research Staff Assistant at the Center for Theoretical Neuroscience. In his free time, he takes long walks by the Hudson and reads Spanish language literature.
Regan, Vice President of Finance
Regan discovered a love for meditation more than ten years ago on an adventure in Asia. While initially, his practice remained sporadic, he occasionally took time away from a strategy consulting career to engage in several month-long meditation retreats in India. After coming to Business School and joining Columbia's Buddhist Association, the community energy helped him establish a more committed daily practice that has been invaluable alongside the intensity of NYC. His current mission is to help create an environment where others can experience the deep peace possible through Buddhist practices.
Julia Neely, Vice President of Student Outreach
Growing up in Tokyo, Japan, Julia has had a long and complicated history with Buddhism, experiencing a childhood full of cultural ceremonies and buddhist familial tradition, however, only recently finding a deeper connection and resonation with it on a personal level. Meditation is now an integral and anchoring part of her personal and inner child healing and growth alongside journaling, yoga and her spiritual community. This past summer, she spent a month in Bali practicing yoga and meditation every day while farming and connecting to nature. She is excited for another year on the CUBA board and continuing to help cultivate an open, vulnerable and safe space for people to comfortably explore themselves and their spiritual journeys.
Alejandro Menjivar, Vice President of Internal Communication
Alejandro was formally introduced to Buddhism during the pandemic when his father provided him with several books on Buddhist teachings and practices. Since then, meditation and important Buddhist principles such as impermanence have become integral in his daily life as he works to cultivate a grounded sense of self and vibrant Buddhist community on Columbia’s campus. Currently, Alejandro is pursuing a Political Science degree at Columbia College and enjoys any opportunity he gets to spend time in nature
Kiki Li, Vice President of External Communication
Kiki finds guidance and inspiration in Buddhism to continually grow and better herself. As a longtime lay practitioner, she was drawn to her current position at CUBA by the welcoming spiritual community and the chance to serve the community. Currently, she studies instructional design at Teachers College. In her free time, she enjoys maker space, martial arts, running, and films.