Lucia grew up in Petaluma, CA with her family and labradoodle, Ginger. A lifelong creative with passions for writing, art, fashion, and music, she served as Concertmaster in the Santa Rosa Youth Symphony and completed an original novella at seventeen. Before coming to UCLA, Lucia was late diagnosed with ASD, an experience that gave her a profound new understanding of herself and sparked her drive to connect with and foster a neurodivergent community on campus.

Now a fourth-year Cognitive Science major with a minor in Disability Studies, Lucia bridges empirical research with grassroots community support. She volunteers as a Research Assistant across the Rissman Memory Lab, the Anxiety and Depression Research Center, and the Dapretto Lab, where she assists with MRI protocols. Deeply involved in campus advocacy, this marks her third year with Autism Advocacy on campus and her second year serving on the executive board directing Community Engagement. She also serves as a neurodivergent peer-mentor for UCLA students with All Brains.

Looking ahead, Lucia plans to pursue a PhD in Cognitive Neuroscience, focusing on neurological and neurodevelopmental conditions through an integrated framework that bridges neuroscience, culture, and the social model of disability. She is dedicated to expanding support systems for neurodivergent adults; a population frequently overlooked among both research and policy.

Lucia is thrilled to join the team at Level-Up as a Direct Support Professional, where she looks forward to learning directly from the community, deepening her understanding of adult support services, and translating those lived insights into impactful research and advocacy.