Each year, undergraduates in the College of Biological Sciences with exceptional academic performance are invited to join the Phi Sigma Honor Society’s Delta Gamma chapter. First started in 1984, the Gamma Delta chapter has long been a marker of excellence for UC Davis students.

Phi Sigma provides a platform for students to engage in meaningful discussions, network with peers and professionals, and participate in events that foster a deeper understanding of the biological sciences. The Davis chapter acknowledges excellence in the field and encourages members to actively pursue their passion for biology to make significant contributions to the scientific world.

This year’s officers will lead the Gamma Delta Chapter’s activities, and each brings enthusiasm and impressive scholastic achievement to their roles for the 2023-24 academic year.

Meet the 2023-2024 Gamma Delta Officers

Amrit Bains (she/her)

Major: Biological Sciences
Role: Co-President

Amrit Bains is a fourth-year student studying biological sciences. She is actively involved in serving her community by working at the Shifa Community Clinic, a non-profit, student-run group that provides uninsured patients in the Greater Sacramento with basic and specialized medical care, free of charge.

Early in 2023, Bains received the Alys Hay Travel Award, which supports travel-based learning for CBS students, as well as a diversity award from the Doctors in Italy program. She spent the summer in Italy to participate in the Doctors in Italy program, where she gained invaluable first-hand experience working alongside practicing physicians, including in the Italian hospital’s neonatal unit and operating room. On campus, Bains is involved with the Academic Assistance and Tutoring Center, which provides tutoring support for students across the UC Davis campus, where she works as a biochemistry tutor.

A pre-med student, Bains is interested in a career specializing in pediatrics, or obstetrics and gynecology.

Carmina Alves (she/her)

Major: Neurobiology, Physiology and Behavior
Role: Co-President

Carmina Alves is a fourth-year student studying neurobiology, physiology and behavior, and psychology. Originally from Roseville, Calif., she is involved in community support through her work at the Imani Clinic, a student-run group that provides healthcare services to underserved populations in the Oak Park area of Sacramento. At Imani, she serves as a specialty coordinator for the Women's and Gender Health Clinic to provide free care to patients, distribute hygiene kits and give informational presentations. She is also involved in research at the Development of Externalizing and Self-Control (DESC) lab, where she studies how a child's development is impacted by their relationships and other environmental influences.

On the Sacramento campus, Alves is a research assistant in the lab of Dr. Amparo Villablanca, a cardiologist in the Department of Internal Medicine, where she studies the effects of changes in brain microvasculature on dementia. She plans to pursue a career in medicine, specifically to work with children with neurodevelopmental disorders.

Sania Bhella

Major: Biological Sciences
Role: Secretary

Sania Bhella is a fourth-year student in the college, where she studies biological sciences. She is actively involved in the Shifa Community Clinic, a non-profit, student-run group that provides uninsured patients in the Greater Sacramento with basic and specialized medical care free of charge. Bhella is a member of Alexander Nord’s lab, where she studies brain development, evolution, and function.

Bhella is also involved in the UC Davis Mental Health Initiative (MHI), an entirely student-run program focused on mental health awareness and de-stigmatization in the UC Davis student body. For MHI, she serves as social coordinator and lead of the social committee, which help the group organize and host a campus-wide mental health conference with workshops and activities offering training, guidance and resources for the UC Davis student body. After graduation, she plans to become a physician and work with children and young adults.

The Phi Sigma Honor Society, Gamma Delta Chapter members are inducted in the spring of each year. The 2023-24 chapter members and officers were finalized in April, 2024.