About

The Undergraduate Journal of Contemporary Affairs (UJCA) is a student-run academic journal publishing undergraduate work in the social sciences and humanities based out of Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas. The journal seeks to shed light on contemporary global issues and give undergraduate students a platform to voice their perspective. UJCA is interested in work that analyzes rising issues in the fields of political science, international relations, economics, history, religion, psychology, sociology, philosophy, and more.

This journal was founded on the belief that pursuing research as an undergraduate student provides incomparable experience for future endeavors such as attending graduate school. Because of this our Editorial Board hopes that UJCA can meaningfully contribute to undergraduate students achieving their future goals.

UJCA is a newly-founded journal that aims to publish one autumn and one spring issue per year. We only accept submissions from undergraduate students attending college in Texas. All publications selected from our submission pool will have demonstrated intellectual competence and insightful content. Opinions expressed in the selected publications reflect the views of the author in question, and do not reflect the views of the Editorial or Advisory Board.

As UJCA is still new and evolving, we welcome any constructive feedback you may have for us. Please send any comments or suggestions to ujca@trinity.edu.

Editorial Board

• Beyza Yildirim, Founder & Editor-in-Chief

Beyza is a senior from Houston, Texas studying Political Science and Film Studies. Her areas of concentration are international relations, non-state actors, human rights, and development, with a regional focus on the Middle East and North Africa. Beyza has worked as a Research Assistant with Rice University’s Baker Institute, the Department of Political Science at Trinity, and the Institute for Migration Studies at Lebanese American University. Through these experiences, she presented at the 2025 Southern Political Science Association Conference and published on Syrian refugees in Türkiye.

• Jay Salter, Editor-in-Chief

Jay is a senior from Katy, Texas studying Political Science. He specializes in international relations with a focus on genocide memorialization and legal exceptionalism. Jay was a student presenter at the 2024 and 2025 Pi Sigma Alpha Student Research Conferences, and served as a Presidential Fellow for the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress during the 2024-25 academic year. He is currently working on research into denial of the Bosnian Genocide with Dr. Rosa Aloisi for the University of Sarajevo.

• C. Judith Fuentes, Editor

Judith is a senior from McAllen, Texas studying Psychology and Spanish. She is interested in the intersection between psychological disorders and culture. Judith recently participated in Rice University’s Translating Research in the Psychological Sciences to the Real World REU program and is currently a part of Dr. Becker’s Life Hacks Lab at Trinity. She aims to attend graduate school to study clinical psychology.

• Nina Pollak, Editor

Nina is a senior from Bethesda, Maryland studying Political Science and Spanish. She specializes in international law, foreign affairs, and voting rights issues. Nina is a student-athlete on the Trinity Women’s Soccer Team and is President of MOVE Texas at Trinity, a non-profit, non-partisan organization that focuses on voter registration and civic engagement among marginalized youth communities.

• Dylan Wilford, Editor

Dylan is a senior from Flower Mound, Texas studying History and Political Science. He specializes in nationalism and labor history’s intersection in the Americas and Europe. Dylan has written for Trinitonian, worked at the Sharpsteen Museum and was a student presenter at the 2025 ASIANetwork Conference.

• Monzerrat Muñoz, Editor

Monzerrat is a junior from Needville, Texas, studying Philosophy and English with a minor in Spanish. She has a particular interest in political philosophy, philosophy of race, and philosophy of the Americas. Aside from these academic pursuits, she is also concerned with labor laws in Texas and nationwide. Monzerrat is the Vice President for Trinity University’s Philosophy Club.

• Julia Williams, Shadowing Editor

Julia is a junior from St. Paul, Minnesota, studying International Studies, Strategic Communications, and Philosophy. Her academic work focuses on diplomacy, human security, and technology governance. She has studied international relations and multilateral diplomacy in Geneva. Julia currently serves as a Digital Watch Knowledge Fellow with DiploFoundation, where she writes on digital diplomacy, cybersecurity, and AI governance.

• Riya Vankamamidi, Layout Editor

Riya is a senior from Frisco, Texas, studying psychology with a minor in biology. She is particularly interested in the medical field and psychiatry. Riya currently serves as Opinion Editor for the Trinitonian and Vice President of Trinity’s Rotaract chapter. She is also a part of Dr. Michele Johnson’s Lizard Lab at Trinity.

Sponsorship

UJCA is primarily sponsored by the School of Social Science and Civic Engagement at Trinity University.

Additionally, it is sponsored by Academic Affairs of Trinity University, the Dean of the Library at Trinity University, the Departments of History, Economics, Philosophy, Political Science, Sociology/Anthropology, Modern Languages and Literatures, Communication, and the International Studies, Women’s and Gender Studies, Global Latinx Studies, and Mexico, the Americas, and Spain (MAS) programs at Trinity University.

We would like to thank our sponsors for their generous contributions.