Denizcan Ozdemir CC’25 is a senior studying political science and human rights. As the first person in his family to attend college, he has devoted himself to advocating for his communities and his fellow students as the first-generation low-income representative and, currently, the VP for Equity of the Columbia College Student Council. In these roles, he has pushed for the creation of essential resources like affordable summer housing, free textbooks, improved financial aid and increased funding for identity-based programs. He has also served in various leadership and advocacy roles in ColumbiaVotes, FLI Network and the Turkish Students Association. Beyond his involvement in student life, Ozdemir has worked with the New York Civil Liberties Union to successfully pass the NY Equal Rights Amendment, which enshrines abortion rights and creates protections for marginalized communities in the New York State constitution. He has also been involved with Freedom and Citizenship, where he taught political philosophy and civic engagement to low-income NYC high school students, helping them amplify their voices in the democratic process. Additionally, he worked with The Roger Lehecka Double Discovery Center, a college access program that supports high school students from local schools in navigating their journey to and through college.