Meet the BESA 2025-2026 Team
The Biomedical Engineering Students’ Association (BESA) is led by a passionate and diverse group of students committed to building community, advocating for student interests, and creating meaningful academic, professional, and social opportunities. We are excited to introduce the BESA 2025-2026 team.
February 2, 2026
Senior Team Members
Reke Avikpe
President, is serving as the lead of BESA for the 2025–2026 year. Driven by a strong commitment to student advocacy, mentorship, and community building, Reke aims to strengthen BESA’s programming, expand opportunities for student engagement, and ensure that BME students feel represented, supported, and connected across all streams of the program. Outside of academics and leadership, Reke enjoys board games, trying new dishes with friends, and is always happy to debate strategy over a competitive game night.
Tony Jiao
Vice President of Finance and Operations, brings a long-standing interest in logistics, budgeting, and event coordination to the role. Having always enjoyed the operational side of planning, Tony hopes to build on the strong foundation set by previous leadership and work closely with the executive team to deliver high-quality events while improving amenities and resources available to BME students. Outside of BESA, Tony has an impressive fun fact: he has approximately 200 grams of titanium in his right arm and has confirmed firsthand that it does not interfere with MRI scans.
Lyba Sheraz
Vice President of Communications, returns to student leadership after a rewarding experience with last year’s ToBE Conference. Inspired by the sense of purpose she found within the BME community, Lyba is focused on increasing awareness and engagement across all BESA initiatives. This year, she hopes to ensure students stay informed, excited, and connected through clear and creative communication. In her spare time, Lyba enjoys deep-diving into astronomy and astrophysics and learning more about how the universe works.
Nicholas Fok
Vice President of Events, was motivated to get involved in student life and help create memorable experiences for the BME community. His goal this year is to run engaging and enjoyable events that give students something to look forward to throughout the academic year. A memorable lesson from Nicholas’s undergraduate days is the importance of moderation, after a caffeine overload during exam season convinced him to permanently give up energy drinks.
Sarah Iskin
Vice President of Academic and Professional Development, is passionate about supporting student growth both inside and outside the classroom. This year, she aims to strengthen BESA’s academic and professional programming by fostering meaningful workshops, mentorship opportunities, and skill-building initiatives that help students navigate both research and industry pathways.
Amy Huang
Chair of ToBE 2026, was inspired to take on this role after seeing firsthand how impactful the Toronto Biomedical Engineering Conference is in bringing together students, researchers, and industry professionals. Amy hopes to ensure that ToBE reflects the core values of the U of T BME community, including innovation, diversity, and inclusivity, while strengthening the bridge between research and industry. Outside of engineering, she has an academic background in Classics and lists The Odyssey as her favourite book.
Junior Team Members
Kaiwen Liu & Tasnia Nabil
Academic and Professional Development Directors, share a strong interest in student mentorship and professional growth. Kaiwen hopes to expand BESA’s professional development programming through impactful workshops, industry partnerships, and accessible spaces for skill-building, while Tasnia is passionate about helping students explore the full scope of biomedical engineering across research, industry, entrepreneurship, and beyond. Outside of academics, Kaiwen enjoys climbing, while Tasnia fences and 3D-prints practical solutions, including an entire 3D-printed set of Catan: Cities and Knights.
Megh Rathod & Aden Wong
Community Outreach Directors, are excited to expand BESA’s engagement beyond campus. Megh brings extensive experience in public science outreach, having led Science Rendezvous demonstrations that introduced biomedical engineering concepts to over 300 community members, and hopes to broaden outreach initiatives beyond science education alone. Aden sees outreach as an opportunity to meet new people, try exciting initiatives, and strengthen BESA’s presence across U of T and the city of Toronto. Outside of outreach work, Megh once tried growing a pineapple, while Aden’s go-to karaoke song is “If I Ain’t Got You” by Alicia Keys.
Sajida Chowdhury, Naziba Haider, Omar Habashy & Charlie Lake
University Affairs Representatives, work together to advocate for BME students at the university level. Sajida is passionate about transparency and student advocacy around issues such as housing, transit, and food insecurity. Omar is focused on ensuring Master of Engineering students have a strong voice in university-facing conversations and access to meaningful resources. Charlie, who recently moved from Vancouver, hopes to support initiatives that help students succeed academically and socially during their time at U of T. Together, the team aims to keep BME students informed, represented, and empowered.
Sana Malik
Events Director, was drawn to the role by her enthusiasm for event planning and her commitment to creating welcoming spaces where students can relax, enjoy good food, and have fun. This year, Sana hopes to increase event turnout and make BESA events a highlight of the student experience. A fun fact about Sana is that she once broke both wrists at the same time and briefly enjoyed delegating tasks during recovery.
Fiona Pepper
Athletics Director, was inspired by her lifelong involvement in sports and her experience playing competitive college tennis. She hopes to strengthen participation in BESA athletics by making sports more accessible and enjoyable for students of all experience levels, while fostering team spirit and confidence. Originally from Peru, Fiona once spent two weeks volunteering at a biological station in the Amazon rainforest, an experience she describes as unforgettable.
Christine Kwon
Marketing Director, supports BESA by helping promote events and initiatives across platforms. Through her role, Christine aims to strengthen BESA’s visual presence and ensure students stay informed and engaged with upcoming opportunities.
Dharsan Ravindran
Clinical Engineering Representative, took on this role to help connect clinical engineering students who are spread across multiple hospital and research sites. This year, he hopes to build stronger community through meetups and shared spaces for connection. Outside of school, Dharsan once trained his pet bird to ride a miniature skateboard.
Samantha Rahamatali
Master of Engineering Representative, was motivated to build community among MEng students and create opportunities for both professional networking and social connection. Outside of her role, Samantha is a devoted penguin enthusiast and proudly owns a large penguin plushie.
