Jaeden Wesley

Jaeden (Jae) Ariana Wesley (she/they) is an enrolled member of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians and a 20-year-old fourth-year undergraduate student at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), where they study Economics with a focus in Statistics & Data Science. Raised in the Tiak Hikiya Tribal Community on her reservation in Mississippi, Jaeden’s leadership is rooted in community responsibility, cultural continuity and expanding access to education for Native youth.

At UCLA, Jaeden serves as President of the American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) chapter and as the Senior U.S. National Student Representative for AISES, representing Native students at the national level. Their work centers on increasing Indigenous representation in STEM fields, supporting first-generation and low-income students and building sustainable programs that connect academic success to long-term community impact. Jaeden has led initiatives ranging from middle school STEM outreach to post-graduate preparation and professional development programming for underrepresented students.

Outside of school, Jaeden remains deeply connected to her Choctaw culture through stickball playing, social dancing, chanting and beadwork. These practices shape their approach to leadership, grounding their work in discipline, community care and intergenerational learning.

As a Fellow in the California Native Youth Collective, Jaeden is excited to strengthen their leadership skills, engage in policy conversations and contribute to community-driven solutions. They are particularly interested in the intersections of education, economic opportunity and Indigenous self-determination, and hope to amplify Native youth voices while helping develop interventions that support Native communities across California and beyond.