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Candidate #2

Akane Takahashi is a PhD student in History at the University of Southern California. Her principal research interests are agricultural and food-related labor and labor unionism, with a strong focus on race, ethnicity and migration in the modern U.S. Her dissertation project aims to incorporate labor histories of people of color into American labor history, examine their roles in U.S. labor unionism, and explore the labor identity of immigrants as American workers.

Her work has been supported by various awards and scholarships, including Fulbright Scholarship. She received her BA from Tokyo University of Foreign Studies in Spanish and Latin American Studies, and her MA from the University of Tokyo in North American Studies. Prior to coming to USC, she was also a Japan Society for Promotion of Science (JSPS) Research Fellow.

Through her work in labor and community organizing, she is committed to service that brings tangible changes in the workplaces in higher education and beyond. At WHA, she hopes to contribute to the association’s mission to foster a welcoming environment for all, and encourage engagement among scholars from various backgrounds.

Outside of work, she is often found at local community gatherings or in pursuit of her next culinary discovery in Los Angeles.  

Candidate #3

Brenda Lakhani is a PhD Candidate at the University of Texas at Dallas. Her interests are Indigenous women’s resilience and federal policy in the United States during the long 20th century. Her dissertation focuses on Native women’s lived experiences and resilience in the face of land privatization policies. She is a research assistant on Open US History Lab projects under the direction of Dr. Ben Wright, including The American Yawp, the upcoming Texas Yawp, and the U.S. Women’s History volumes.  

 As a former president of UTD’s Phi Alpha Theta Chapter and Senator for the Association of Graduate Students, she has organized and conducted professional workshops, supported the university’s annual graduate student RAW Conference for the past three years, and served as a mentor for incoming history graduate students.  

 An active member of the Western History Association, Brenda has served as graduate conference staff for the past two years and as a member of the graduate student caucus. She wishes to become more involved in the Association and further the goals of the organization and fellow graduate students. She would like to serve as Vice Chair and continue Abi’s work with the WHQ publishing event. Alternatively, as the membership and outreach coordinator, she would welcome the opportunity to connect people in meaningful ways. It is Brenda’s heartfelt desire to give back to the WHA community from whom she has benefited greatly.

Candidate #1

Howdy! My name is Leslie Torres, and I am a fourth-year doctoral candidate in the Department of History at Texas A&M University. I am self-nominating for the Outreach and Membership Coordinator role. I love the environment and space that graduate students are given at Western Historical Association meetings, which is especially due to the work of the graduate student board. It would be extremely enriching and rewarding to be part of this important team. I have four years of experience in student-centered program coordination and communications. In various volunteer and elected positions in my home department, I have submitted marketing articles, programmed department events, coordinated external and internal speaker presentations, and curated student and faculty newsletters. As graduate student representative on the Marketing and Communications Committee, for example, I published features on recent graduates and current graduate student accomplishments. As communications officer for my department’s History Graduate Student Organization, I marketed student achievements of the organization’s X account and developed graduate student newsletters that included points of interest like fellowship opportunities and campus events. In this role, I also co-planned our 15th annual, internationally attended graduate student conference. I managed the conference website, programmed panels, and coordinated keynote speaker events.  As such, I am prepared and excited to develop the newsletter for the WHA graduate students, highlight student accomplishments, and locate opportunities for funding, prizes, and networking. I would love the opportunity to be part of a leadership board that connects students finding their place in the field of western history. 

Candidate #2

Hi everyone! My name is Sam Reitenour and I am a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Texas at El Paso, where I’m currently working on my dissertation project, “Courtesy Is Cash: A History of the Tourist Economy in Santa Fe, New Mexico.” I’m so excited to be considered for a spot on the all-new WHAGSC team as the next Outreach and Membership Coordinator! Having seen the hard work our GSC puts into making the conference a welcoming place for graduate students, I feel compelled to contribute to the continuation of this organization and the community it fosters. I’ve been a WHA member since 2021 and I’ve attended every conference since 2022. In Albuquerque, I had the pleasure of joining the Grad Staff for the first time and I had so much fun getting to know you all better, which made my love for the WHA even stronger. I am particularly interested in serving as the Outreach and Membership Coordinator because it aligns with my prior experiences. As the Graduate Assistant for the Conference on Latin American History (CLAH), one of my duties over the past three years has been the production of a biannual newsletter. I also have experience communicating with CLAH members about that organization’s prizes and awards. Aspects of the administrative work I do for CLAH thus overlap with the duties of this position. I would be honored to give back to the WHA in this capacity, and I cannot wait to see you all in Portland!