Mariana Meza Mantilla

Class of 2026
Nakayama Scholar
Mellon Mays Fellow

Hometown: El Paso, Texas

Major: Program II: "Theorizing and Practicing Social Change: Towards Justice in the U.S./Mexico Borderlands"

Bio: Mariana Meza designed a Program II major entitled “Theorizing and Practicing Social Change: Towards Justice in the US/Mexico Borderlands.” Mariana is a proud fronteriza who is passionate about immigration justice and social change. On campus, Mariana serves as the President of Mi Gente (Duke’s largest Latinx student organization), works as a Program Assistant for the Hart Leadership Program, and is conducting a self-designed Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship project on community-rooted research, advocacy, and engagement practices that center the agency of immigrant populations.