Azadeh Zohrabi, Executive Director

Born in Iran into a lineage of activists, Azadeh Zohrabi is an abolitionist leader, educator, executive director, institution builder, and certified coach devoted to liberation, transformation, healing, and collective leadership. As the daughter of two formerly incarcerated Iranian political prisoners and a refugee whose life has been shaped by exile, immigration, undocumented status, and the intergenerational impacts of incarceration on families, she has dedicated more than two decades to building leaders, institutions, and movements capable of transforming systems from the inside out.

As Executive Director of Berkeley Underground Scholars at UC Berkeley, Azadeh has grown one of the nation's leading prison-to-university initiatives from a single-campus program into a statewide effort serving students across the University of California system. Under her leadership, the organization has expanded access to higher education across California, launched comprehensive wellness and healing initiatives, created career development programming, and deepened its commitment to leadership development for incarcerated and formerly incarcerated students. She created and leads the Underground Scholars Policy Fellowship, which has trained dozens of formerly incarcerated students across the UC system in policy development, advocacy, and systems change.

Beyond Berkeley, Azadeh partners with organizations and leaders committed to justice and systems change as a coach and consultant. She is a certified healing-centered coach and certified in the Birkman Method, helping individuals, teams, and organizations strengthen self-awareness, leadership, communication, and organizational effectiveness. She also designs and facilitates healing-centered spaces that foster reflection, connection, resilience, and collective growth.

Across every aspect of her work, Azadeh is guided by the belief that lasting change happens when people heal, share leadership, and take bold collective action. Whether coaching a leader, developing a program, facilitating a healing circle, or leading an organization, she is committed to cultivating the conditions where people can exercise collective power, transform institutions, and build more just futures.

Azadeh's work has been featured in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Guardian, The Atlantic, The Nation, Mother Jones, Ebony, and Al Jazeera. She earned her BA from UC Riverside, where she double majored in Ethnic Studies and African Diasporic Studies, and her JD from UC Law SF. She is a Soros Justice Fellow and an alumna of the Women's Policy Institute, Rockwood Leadership Institute, and New Leaders Council Oakland.

Danny Murillo, Associate Director

Danny is a co-founder and associate director of the Underground Scholars Initiative at the University of California, Berkeley. He leads our recruitment efforts through the Underground Scholars Ambassadors and the Incarcerated Scholars Program. Danny also supports the Wellness and Career pillars. Originally from the One-Way streets of Norwalk, California, he was born to Mexican parents from Zacatecas. 

Danny was the Smart Justice Fellow at the Michelson 20MM Foundation. In this role, he convened the Smart Justice Think Tank, a coalition of higher education champions and directly impacted leaders to establish California’s Best Practices that serve as a common agenda for the field of higher education in prison and supporting formerly incarcerated students on campus in California. Danny was the Campaign for College Opportunity program analyst. He is the primary author of their report: “The Possibility Report: From Prison to College Degrees in California.”

He also served as a program analyst at the Vera Institute of Justice; Danny worked on a nationwide higher education prison project. He was the research and program analyst at California Corrections to College, a project focused on educational equity and creating access to higher education for currently and formerly incarcerated people. In 2013, Danny was a media representative for the Prison Hunger Strike Solidarity Coalition. The coalition supported the Short Corridor Collective, a group of incarcerated men organizing a statewide prison hunger strike to end the practice of long-term solitary confinement.

He has appeared in GQ Magazine, La Opinion, National Public Radio (NPR), New York Magazine, The Appeal Podcast, Univision, and 60 Minutes with Oprah. He received the John W. Gardner Fellowship for Public Service and the Soros Justice Advocacy Fellowship and was recently selected as the 2024 Global Freedom Fellowship.

Michael Cerda-Jara, Associate Director

Michael Cerda-Jara is a researcher, scholar, and higher education professional committed to reshaping narratives and policies affecting people with incarceration histories. Hailing from Newark, CA, Michael's journey as a formerly incarcerated, first-generation Chicano has fueled his commitment to reversing the school to prison pipeline and contributing to the discourse on the collateral consequences of mass incarceration.

Currently serving as the Associate Director for the Berkeley Underground Scholars program at UC Berkeley, Michael provides transformative academic and graduate school advising to formerly incarcerated students, and leads the organization’s retention efforts and wellness programs. He also leads the Underground Scholars Transfer Program which supports formerly incarcerated scholars throughout California with gaining admission to the UC system. Under his leadership, over 65% of applicants are offered admission to UC Berkeley and over 90% of applicants are offered admission to other UC campuses each year.

Michael is currently pursuing his Doctoral degree in Sociology at Stanford University as an Enhancing Diversity in Graduate Education (EDGE) Fellow. His research is focused on employment prospects for formerly incarcerated college graduates. Michael's academic achievements include graduating with Highest Distinction from UC Berkeley in Spring 2020 with a BA in Sociology, earning an honorable mention from the department, and being recognized as one of the top graduating seniors. 

Michael Cerda-Jara's journey exemplifies resilience, tenacity, and a profound commitment to dismantling systemic barriers. Through his academic pursuits, advocacy, and leadership, he is actively shaping a future where individuals with incarceration histories are not defined by their past but empowered by their potential. Michael stands as a testament to the transformative power of education and mentorship, inspiring positive change both at an individual and systemic level.

Shani Shay, Incarceration to College Director

Shani Shay is an educator, researcher, and advocate dedicated to transforming educational access for incarcerated and system-impacted youth. She is the Director and Founder of Incarceration to College (ITC) and Pathways to College (PTC) - two Underground Scholars programs that use culturally affirming, anti-racist, and trauma-informed curricula to help students in juvenile facilities and community schools transition successfully to higher education.

A proud graduate of Harvard University (M.Ed., 2024) and UC Berkeley (B.A. in African-American Studies, Minor in Education, 2022), Shani’s scholarship explores liberatory pedagogies, Black feminist teaching methods, and curriculum models that raise the educational aspirations of incarcerated youth. Her work bridges academia and lived experience—cultivating college access pipelines from juvenile halls to universities statewide.

As a student at UC Berkeley, Shani served as Advocacy Co-Chair and President of the Black Underground Scholars, supporting formerly incarcerated students through mentorship, resource access, and leadership development. She also chairs the Alameda County Education Subcommittee, advancing equitable education policies for justice-impacted youth.

Shani’s leadership has been recognized nationally. She is a Rockwood Fellow for Leaders in Higher Education in Prison (2025–2026). Shani has received numerous honors including: Harvard Graduate School of Education Intellectual Contribution Award (2024), UC Berkeley Excellence in Management Award (2024), Alameda County Probation Department Commitment to Excellence Award (2024), California Women in Leadership Award (2020), and UC Berkeley’s Mather Good Citizen Award (2022)

Her research and programs have been featured in CBS, KQED, Berkeley News, Dope Era Magazine, Impact Justice, and The Peralta Retiree. She has presented at major national convenings, including the National Symposium on Juvenile Justice Services (2025), NACRJ Conference (2024), and NCORE Conference on Race and Ethnicity in Higher Education (2024).