The Miller Scholars Program is composed of three staff members, responsible for facilitaitng the program and ensuring student success on a holisitic level.
Liliana Iglesias, Ed.D.
Interim Director
Liliana (she her) grew up in Los Angeles County. The proud daughter of Mexican immigrants and a first-generation college student, Liliana has supported first generation, low income, and underrepresented students since 2012. She recalls conducting research with a graduate student at the School of Education being one of her most memorable college experiences. Liliana has previously served as an advisor for the Undocumented Research Cohort, and also serves as the Director of the Undocumented Student Program at UC Berkeley. She graduated from UC Berkeley with a major in Social Welfare and Education minor, and earned her Master's in Educational Counseling from the University of Southern California and her Doctorate in Educational Leadership for Social Justice from Cal State East Bay.
Pilar Jefferson, M.A.
Graduate Student Instructor
Pilar Jefferson is a PhD student in the department of Ethnic Studies at the University of California, Berkeley. Pilar graduated from Vassar College in 2015 with a BA in Art History and Native American Studies focused on 20th century Native American art and cultural resilience. She is an experienced museum educator and has worked as a program coordinator and teaching artist at institutions including the Museum of the City of New York and the Studio Museum in Harlem. Pilar’s pursuit of a PhD comes out of a desire to understand and support better representation of Indigenous people in museums. Her research interests include contemporary Indigenous art, representations of race in institutional spaces, theorizing museum education as a tool for decolonization, and histories of Black and Indigenous cultural resistance and resilience in the Northeastern US. She recently joined the Miller Scholars Program as a Graduate Student Instructor back in the summer of 2025.
Julio Adrián Cedillo
Peer Advocate Lead
Julio Cedillo received his BA in sociology from UC Berkeley with a focus on political and economic sociology. Julio currently serves as the program assistant for the Miller Scholars Program and aids with qualitative methodology, project design, and academic mentorship. His current research investigates how political identity is shaped by military service among Latinos, exploring how martial citizenship fosters belonging in the United States among minorities. Before beginning his BA, Julio earned an AA-T in Sociology and an AA in Chicana/o Studies from San Diego City College. Beyond his academic pursuits, Julio is an active participant in facilitating academic transitions among California community college students at the UC Berkeley Transfer Student Center.