Introducing the Movers and Shakers of the Biomedical Engineering Students’ Association (BESA)! Meet the leadership team that will spearhead graduate student related extracurricular activities this year.
BESA is the official student government for BME students at the University of Toronto. All BME and collaborative program graduate students are automatic members. BESA represents student interests, facilitates communication with BME administration, and organizes various events. This includes social gatherings, professional development opportunities, and special activities like ski trips and live performances. BESA also supports charity donations, community projects, and serves as a professional communication platform. Additionally, BESA plays a key role in planning Toronto Biomedical Engineering (ToBE) Conference, a showcase of graduate student work.
Jonathan Wu
President
I’m a fourth-year PhD student in the Franklin Lab working on wearable devices for assessing and removing confounders from tissue oxygenation. In a previous life, I was also a start-up co-founder and head of finance for a few fundraising events, but you might recognize me as the former VP Finance and Operations (2023/24) for BESA. In my downtime, I love to cook and am a little bit of a foodie (if you know a good place, let me know)! As your President of BESA this year, I’m planning on shaking things up this year with some new social events and I’m always open to hearing feedback for improving BESA, so don’t be afraid to say hi if you see me!
Savina Cammalleri
VP Communications
I am a second-year PhD student in the Wheeler group focusing on developing spatial multi-omics strategies. I am eager to be VP Communications and look forward to a great year!
Aksel Gomel
VP Finance & Operations
I am an incoming MEng in Biomedical Engineering student and I am excited to serve the BESA community as a VP of Finance and Operations this year. In my spare time, I love playing and watching sports. Looking forward to meeting everyone and I wish everyone a successful year ahead!
Amy Huang
VP Events
I am Amy Huang, an incoming MASc student in Professor Cristina Amon’s lab. I recently completed my BASc in Engineering Science (Biomedical Engineering Option) at the University of Toronto, so I am very excited to be back to the BME community again. I will be the VP Events for BESA this year, where I look forward to organizing a series of engaging events for our community! In my spare time, I enjoy drawing and playing board games with my friends.
Ferdinand Avikpe
ToBE Conference Co-Chair
As a second-year PhD student in Prof. Cristina Amon’s group, and the current Co-Chair of the ToBE Conference, I’m thrilled to take on this leadership role after serving as the Visual & Design Co-Lead on the planning committee this past year. My research focuses on optimizing the differentiation of iPSCs and hPSCs into lung progenitor cells and cardiomyocytes using computational modeling. Outside of the lab, I enjoy exploring new restaurants and dishes, reading, playing board games and tennis, and I also play the saxophone. I’m always on the lookout for new places to eat or a good book to dive into, so if you have any recommendations, I’d love to hear them! I’m also looking forward to contributing to the BME community and working with everyone to make a positive impact.
Lyba Sheraz
ToBE Conference Co-Chair
Hi! I’m Lyba (lie-ba) and I’m a first year MEng student who is really excited to be part of the BME/UofT community. This year, I’m thrilled to be your ToBe 2025 Co-Chair, and I can’t wait to dive into all the exciting things we have planned (feel free to reach out if you have any cool thoughts or ideas). When I’m not working or studying, you will either find me at the gym or eating – living my best life one rep and one snack at a time!