Meet the TAs

We are very excited to teach you this fall! Please contact course staff if you have any logistical questions or concerns. Otherwise feel free to email any of the staff members below.

Teaching Assistants (TAs), also known as Graduate/Undergraduate Student Instructors (GSIs), focus their teaching efforts on a particular component of the course, such as sections, exam prep, or walkthrough videos. Head TAs additionally manage a broader component of the course, such as logistics, content, software, office hours, etc.

Patricia Ouyang

Patricia Ouyang
she/her/hers

Vanshaj Singhania

Vanshaj Singhania
he/him/his

  • Head of Logistics
    vanshaj@berkeley.edu

  • Hello hello! I'm a junior majoring in computer science & data science. When I'm not studying or teaching, I'm most likely starting yet another side project just to learn something new. Either way, there's probably some music playing in the background (my monthly playlist's usually at imvs.me/s/mvp)!
Cyrus Bugwadia

Cyrus Bugwadia
he/him/his

  • Head TA
    cyrus.bugwadia@berkeley.edu

  • Hi everyone! I'm Cyrus, and I'm a third-year Computer Science major and Data Science minor from San Jose, CA. Outside of the classroom, catch me watching all things sports-related (go Dubs/Niners/Giants/Sharks!), attempting and failing to make all kinds of recipes, and answering Piazza questions.
Jamie Hong

Jamie Hong
she/her/hers

  • Head TA
    jamiehong@berkeley.edu

  • questions are a start,
    answers might prompt new questions -
    a loop of learning!
Melanie Cooray

Melanie Cooray
she/her/hers

  • Head TA
    melaniecooray@berkeley.edu

  • Hi! I'm a fourth-year CS + Econ major from Sacramento, CA. Recently, I've been enjoying watching reality tv, kickboxing, and trying new foods! Looking forward to meeting all of you this semester!
Rahul Arya

Rahul Arya
he/him/his

  • Head TA
    rahularya@berkeley.edu

  • Hi! I'm working on course software this semester, so feel free to reach out to me regarding that. Or ask me anything about Scheme!
Richard Roggenkemper

Richard Roggenkemper
he/him/his

  • Head TA
    rroggenkemper22@berkeley.edu

  • Hi! My name is Richard. I'm a fourth year student from Los Gatos, California. I’m a Computer Science/Data Science major. I love skiing, cooking, and anything related to food. I’m excited to be teaching this semester!
Timothy Tu

Timothy Tu
he/him/his

  • Head TA
    timothyktu@berkeley.edu

  • Name: Tim/Tu
    Pronouns: Him/Who
    Worst Text Editor/Framework: Vim/Vue
    Favorite Slime: Rim/Uru
    Who's Excited For 61A: Yes, I'm/Yes, you
Abdus Salam Azad

Abdus Salam Azad
he/him/his

  • salam_azad@berkeley.edu

  • Hey, I'm Azad! I'm a 3rd year PhD student in CS. Outside academia, I like traveling, listening to music, watching movies and tv series, and improvisational theater. Super excited to introduce you all to the amazing world of computer science!
Addison Chan

Addison Chan
he/him/his

  • addisonchan@berkeley.edu

  • hello! feel free email or message me if you wanna say hi! my name is addison, and i'm a fourth year cs/stats/math major from san jose. i love listening to ~ chill edm vibes ~ (shameless plug: go.addcnin.blue/spotify:f).
Albert Hu

Albert Hu
he/him/his

  • alberth@berkeley.edu

  • Hey, I’m Albert! I’m a senior studying CS from Davis, California. I came into 61A with no programming experience and completely switched my career path because of this class. Feel free to reach out about new-to-cs advice, internships, or anything you want. Looking forward to a great semester!
Aman Shah

Aman Shah
he/him/his

  • amanshah2711@berkeley.edu

  • Hey! I'm a 4th year Applied Math and CS major from Edison, New Jersey. In my free time I enjoy any kind of problem solving, way too much Netflix, drawing, video games, and sleeping. Feel free to talk to me about anything!
Anthony Han

Anthony Han
he/him/his

  • yikun.anthony.han@berkeley.edu

  • Hi! I am a junior from China studying math and CS here at Berkeley. In my free time, I like to cook, read some books, and play some video games (mostly first-person shooters). I am super excited to teach 61A this semester, and feel free to talk to me about 61A, long email addresses, or more!
Arushi Somani

Arushi Somani
she/her/hers

  • arushisomani@berkeley.edu

  • Hey everyone! I'm a junior studying CS and Econ who's mildly addicted to Pav Bhaji, acoustic music and astronomy facts. I love talking about all things 61A and CS and Berkeley and life and internships and startups and whatever! I wanna help you out however I can. Email me, let's chat!
Ben Cuan

Ben Cuan
he/him/his

  • ben.cuan@berkeley.edu

  • Hi everyone!! I'm Ben, a junior studying CS and Psych from the South Bay. I am always looking for more books to add to my infinitely long reading queue, so please reach out if you have any suggestions (and/or want to chat about 61A or anything else)!
Catherine Gee

Catherine Gee
she/her/hers

  • catherinegee@berkeley.edu

  • Senior studying computer science looking to become the Classic Tetris World Champion. Feel free to reach out about anything course related or the hit game Genshin Impact (or most other things)!
Christopher Wang

Christopher Wang
he/him/his

  • czwang@berkeley.edu

  • Hi everyone! I'm Chris, a junior studying CS + Statistics. I enjoy playing poker, basketball, flipping coins, and listening to music. I also like outdoorsy stuff like hiking, running, and swimming. Hope you enjoy 61A this fall!!
Cindy Lin

Cindy Lin
she/her/hers

  • cclin520@berkeley.edu

  • Helloooo~ I'm Cindy and I am a senior from Taiwan studying Data Science and CS! C: Super heppy to be teaching 61A and very excited to meet y’all! Things I like: eating, cooking, taro, sweet potato, traveling, cats and anime and kdramas~
Connie Shi

Connie Shi
she/her/hers

  • constance.shi@berkeley.edu

  • Hi, I'm Connie! I'm a junior studying EECS from Thousand Oaks, California! This is my third semester on staff, and when I'm not attempting to cs, you can find me running, trying new recipes, or bullet journaling! Feel free to ask me anything and really looking forward to cs-ing with y'all :)
Cooper Bedin

Cooper Bedin
they/them/theirs

  • cooper.bedin@berkeley.edu

  • Hey there! I'm a rising senior studying linguistics + cs! In my free time you can find me knitting/sewing/crafting, watching RuPaul's Drag Race, and playing with my cat Jellybean. I'm really excited to get to teach y'all this semester plz feel free to reach out to me about absolutely anything!
Daphne Pan

Daphne Pan
she/her/hers
they/them/theirs

  • d.pan@berkeley.edu

  • Hello! I'm a third-year CS major born and raised in the Bay Area. I love cats and also forcing everyone in my vicinity to discuss inane topics such as whether or not cereal is a soup and whether or not the water in my hometown is making people short.
George Gikas

George Gikas
he/him/his

  • gcgikas@berkeley.edu

  • Hello! My name is George, my pronouns are he/him and I am a senior CS student from Chicago, Illinois. In my free time, I enjoy playing video/board games and cooking. I absolutely loved taking 61A as a student, and hope that you all do as well!
Gurkaran Singh Goindi

Gurkaran Singh Goindi
he/him/his

  • gurkarn.goindi@berkeley.edu

  • Hey, I'm Gurkaran! I'm a senior studying CS, from Delhi, India. I love reading about history (preferably post WWI), stocks, and economic policy in general. Super excited to introduce you all to the amazing world of CS! Feel free to email me if you have any questions about 61A, Cal or anything else!
Ivan Penev

Ivan Penev

Jennifer Huang

Jennifer Huang
she/her/hers

  • serenade092@berkeley.edu

  • Hey there, I’m a senior studying CS, Math and Music from Toronto, Canada. In my free time you might see me trying to cook stuff(and failing). If I'm not doing that, I'm probably playing clash royale & honor of kings, drinking boba, and collecting perfume. Looking forward to know y’all!
Jessica Yu

Jessica Yu
she/her/hers

  • jessica.yu@berkeley.edu

  • Hello! I'm Jessica, a senior from Fremont, CA. When not studying in Moffitt, I enjoy hiking, swimming, and hanging out in SF. I'm really excited to teach 61A this fall and I hope you all have a great experience! Feel free to reach out anytime, I'd love to chat with you!
John So

John So
he/him/his

  • johnianrso@berkeley.edu

  • hello! i enjoy taking walks at night, and i'm a gamepigeon word hunt fiend (my high score is 58600; if you can beat that—with proof!—i'll give you a cookie). please feel free to ask me about anything and everything!
Jordan Schwartz

Jordan Schwartz
she/her/hers
they/them/theirs

  • jordanschwartz@berkeley.edu

  • Hey! I'm Jordan, and I'm a sophomore from the Bay Area. In addition to teaching, I like to bullet journal, listen to records, bake, and watch Netflix. I'm super excited to be TA-ing for CS61A again this semester! Feel free to reach out to me anytime for anything :)
Joshua Baum

Joshua Baum
he/him/his

  • joshuabaum@berkeley.edu

  • Hello! I'm a Senior studying computer science from LA. Super excited to be teaching for 61a this semester. I'm a big fan of photography, cars, and listening to music. Feel free to reach out with questions about CS, Berkeley, or anything else on your mind. Looking forward to a great Fall semester!
Julie Ma

Julie Ma
she/her/hers

  • julie.m@berkeley.edu

  • Hi guys, I'm Julie (she/her)! I am a Junior and a CS and MCB major. I love watching movies, eating spicy ramen, playing Minecraft and League, and drawing. I'm really excited to be ta-ing 61a this fall! Reach out to me if you wanna talk about 61a (or anything at all!).
Kenny Chi

Kenny Chi
he/him/his

  • kennychi@berkeley.edu

  • ello! I'm a rising Junior studying CS from Cupertino, CA. This is my 4th time with 61A staff, and I'm excited to (potentially) work with y'all in-person! In my free time, I enjoy swimming, hiking, biking, etc. I'm trying to go to as more concerts this semester, so hmu if you know of good ones!
Kevin Li

Kevin Li
he/him/his

  • kevinli5941@berkeley.edu

  • Hi there! My name's Kevin, and I'm a junior from Chicago interested in applying machine learning to biomedical research. Outside of academics, I am obsessed with anything music-related (especially jazz improvisation) and the outdoors! Super excited for finally being able to teach in person!
Laryn Qi

Laryn Qi
he/him/his

  • larynqi@berkeley.edu

  • Hello! My name is Laryn, and I’m a third-year CS and Music major. I <3 61A! Besides teaching, I enjoy drumming, running, and video games. Looking forward to an awesome semester >:)
Lauren Zhou

Lauren Zhou
she/her/hers

  • ren.zhou@berkeley.edu

  • Hello! I'm a third-year EECS student from Maryland. I like tetris, crosswords, and many more things too, so feel free to email me about anything you'd like! I'm always down to chat. :D
Lily Yang

Lily Yang
she/her/hers

  • lily-yang@berkeley.edu

  • Hi! I'm a sophomore from Australia majoring in CS. A few things I love are sourdough, beaches, and floristry! Here's my favourite and only CS joke: what do programmers and air conditioners have in common? Feel free to reach out for the answer or to chat about anything! (-:
Marie Chorpita

Marie Chorpita
she/her/hers

  • chorpita@berkeley.edu

  • Hi everyone! I'm Marie, a junior from Los Angeles, California. I'm a Computer Science and Cognitive Science double major, and this is my fourth semester on CS 61A course staff. I love baking, playing video games, sewing, and watching baseball (go Dodgers!).
Mathilde McKeever

Mathilde McKeever
she/her/hers

  • mpmckeever@berkeley.edu

  • Hello! I'm Mathilde (she/her) and I'm a senior studying EECS. I'm from Albany, California and in my free time, I love to read, swim, bake, and go on road trips around California. I love 61a and I'm thrilled to be teaching it this fall!
Matthew Guo

Matthew Guo
he/him/his

  • matthewguo9@berkeley.edu

  • howdy 🤠 i'm a fourth year cs major from san jose. in my free time i love to draw, play video games, and read. feel free to email me if you'd like to chat about anything. looking forward to meeting you all!
Michelle Chen

Michelle Chen
she/her/hers

  • mchen9129@berkeley.edu

  • Hi! I'm a rising junior majoring in computer science and cognitive science. When I'm not working, I'm probably watching asian dramas and bad reality TV, snacking, or listening to music. Feel free to reach out to me about anything, I'm so excited to meet you all!
Owen Gong

Owen Gong
he/him/his

  • goldenowen@berkeley.edu

  • Hey! My name is Owen and I'm a 4th year CS + Math major from Omaha, Nebraska (extra credit if you know where that is without referencing a map). I enjoy making/listening to music, playing/following basketball, streaming/watching CS:GO, and using/unnecessary forward slashes
Patrick Wang

Patrick Wang
he/him/his

  • patwang123@berkeley.edu

  • Hello! I'm a second year EECS major from Maryland. In my free time, I love swimming, frisbee, league, music, and a lot more stuff! This is my second time teaching/TAing for 61A, and I'm looking forward to a great semester :) feel free to reach out to me about literally anything!
Rajamani Sarvesh Iyyappan

Rajamani Sarvesh Iyyappan
he/him/his

  • rajamanisarvesh@berkeley.edu

  • Hello everyone! I am Rajamani Sarvesh Iyyappan, a fourth year CS major from Chennai, India. Feel free to reach out about anything and looking forward to a wonderful semester.
Rohan D'Souza

Rohan D'Souza
he/him/his

  • rohan.ds1001@berkeley.edu

  • hi im rohan. (shameless plug) I am also tech chair of CSM so I spend a lot of time coding edtech apps. email me if you wanna write code that has noticeable impacts on the CS education system at cal. Also about me lmao: really like ramen and coffee and teaching. join my section. we'll have a time !
Ruslana Yurtyn

Ruslana Yurtyn
she/her/hers

  • rusy@berkeley.edu

  • Hi! I'm Ruslana, and I'm a junior studying Computer Science. In my free time, I love to knit and crochet, watch fun movies, and do puzzles. I also dance on campus with Thrive Dance Company. I'm super excited to hang out with you all this semester. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions!
Ryan Chao

Ryan Chao
he/him/his

  • ryanchao@berkeley.edu

  • Hello! I'm Ryan and I am a senior from San Jose, California. This is my third time teaching 61a and I am super excited to be doing so. Outside of CS, I like to play badminton and binge like literally anything, but especially sitcoms and dramas. Looking forward to meeting y'all this semester!
Samee Ibraheem

Samee Ibraheem
he/him/his
they/them/theirs

  • sibraheem@berkeley.edu

  • Hello (: I am a PhD student doing research in Natural Language Processing (NLP) who likes learning languages (eg. Japanese), singing/listening to music (if you're curious: youtu.be/vce_N9yIFFQ&list=PL7bkkg2rE7qNA8BIqp_79y8fNNIsRIkdA), and playing board games. Hope you're excited for the course!
Sean Sananikone

Sean Sananikone
he/him/his

  • seans1337@berkeley.edu

  • Hey everyone! My name is Sean and I'm a current Senior majoring in CS and minoring in CS. I'm from San Jose and have lived in the Bay my entire life. In my free time I enjoy listening to music (porter robinson rn), hiking, and playing video games.
Serena Zhang

Serena Zhang
she/her/hers

  • serenazyx@berkeley.edu

  • Hi! I'm Serena, a junior studying EECS. I enjoy traveling, watching movies, and playing with my cat :) Looking forward to meeting you all!
Shaun Diem-Lane

Shaun Diem-Lane
he/him/his

  • shaunlane@berkeley.edu

  • Hey! My name is Shaun and I am a third year Computer Science major from Southern California. One of my main hobbies is researching credit cards so I can earn as much free travel as possible. You can reach out and ask me questions literally anytime.
Yersultan Sapar

Yersultan Sapar
he/him/his

  • yersultan@berkeley.edu

  • Hey! I am a senior CS major from Kazakhstan (from where the first astronaut was launched to the space). Email me to chat about anything!