Alamo Colleges District Board of Trustees Selects New Student Trustee

April 29, 2026

District Communications

The Alamo Colleges District Board of Trustees has selected St. Philip’s College (SPC) student, David Bermejo, as the new student trustee. He will serve a one-year term from May 1, 2026, to April 30, 2027.

Bermejo succeeds Josiah Rodriguez (San Antonio College), who served as the 2025-26 student trustee.

“We are grateful to our outgoing student trustee, Josiah Rodriguez, and student trustee alternate, Nala Knight, for their dedicated service and for ensuring the voices of Alamo Colleges students were represented,” said Dr. Mike Flores, Alamo Colleges District Chancellor. “Their leadership reflects the very best of our student community, and we look forward to the insight and contributions that our new student representatives will make to our board.”

Bermejo, a first-generation college student, is currently pursuing an Associate of Science with a 4.0 GPA and has earned a consistent place on the President’s List. He is an active member of the Phi Theta Kappa honor society and serves as a student editor for SPC’s literary journal, Tiger Paws. His service-first mindset and dedication to ensuring every scholar has the stability to succeed are a welcome addition to the position of student trustee.

“My vision is to bridge the gap through proactive, holistic, and consistent care,” said Bermejo. “My commitment to you, and to 90,000 students across the five colleges, is to prove that increasing our investment into basic needs and accessible support is the most effective way to increase our retention, graduation, and transfer rates. Together, we can prepare the Alamo Colleges District to meet the demands of the future by ensuring no student is less simply surviving, but rather fully empowered to succeed.”

With a focus on environmental justice and community advocacy, Bermejo aims to champion increased access to wrap-around services. He also previously worked with East Yard Communities for Environmental Justice and the Marina-Pando Research Collective, as well as volunteering at Compassion Conquers Cruelty and the Cody Library Seed Bank.

In addition, Palo Alto College (PAC) student, Rahmayah Contreras, was selected as the student trustee alternate, and will also serve the same one-year term. She succeeds Nala Knight (Northwest Vista College).

Student Trustee Alternate

Rahmayah Contreras Headshot

Rahmayah Contreras is a student at Palo Alto College (PAC) and a proud native of San Antonio, Texas.

The oldest of four, she helped raise her siblings and made sure they had what they needed when life felt unstable. She has overcome personal challenges, including poverty and instability. Facing those odds required resilience that has built confidence – traits that she has further strengthened through her college experience. She cares deeply about student support and providing aid to those who feel unseen.

She credits every opportunity, including AlamoPROMISE, for turning her story around and helping her find her passion.

Student Candidate Bios

Inkar Bakhytzhanova Headshot

Inkar Bakhytzhanova is a first-generation nursing student at San Antonio College (SAC) with a drive to care for people.

At SAC, she serves as President of the Phi Theta Kappa Beta Nu chapter and works with the Student Government Association (SGA). For the District, she serves on the Student District Council (SDC), and is an Alamo Colleges Foundation Scholar Ambassador. She is also part of Texas Nursing Student Association and the Nursing Honor Society.

Her goal is to achieve an RN license, return to SAC for her bachelor’s degree, pursue a master’s degree at UT Health San Antonio to become a Family Nurse Practitioner, and then ultimately attend Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health.

Nathalia Melendez Headshot

Nathalia Melendez is a music major student at Northwest Vista College (NVC) with a dedication for making a change for the community.

She is an active member of Phi Theta Kappa, ACD Student Leadership Institute, and the secretary for the NVC Student Government Association. After completing a bachelor’s degree in music education and teaching, she hopes to pursue a law degree with an emphasis in civil rights and the goal of advocating for teachers’ and students’ rights.

With the leadership, professionalism, and integrity she has gained in her time at NVC, she strives to ensure the voice of every student is heard.

Aleksei Nazarov Headshot

Aleksei Nazarov is a student at Northeast Lakeview College (NLC) pursuing an Associate of Science with a focus in Chemistry.

He was elected Public Relations Representative for Student Government for the 2025–2026 academic year and is an active member of Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) and Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA). He also conducts undergraduate research at UT Health San Antonio, where he contributes to cancer biology research examining obesity-associated signaling in endometrial cancer, and serves as a Research Assistant on projects focused on Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs) at St. Mary’s University.

After completing NLC, he plans to transfer to Baylor University to continue his studies and ultimately obtain an M.D.