The First-Year Counselors—or FroCos!—are an integral part of Yale’s residential college experience and Yale’s advising system. Living in the same entryways as the first-year students, the First-Year Counselors are there to ease and support the transition of incoming first-year students to the academic, extracurricular, social, and cultural life of Yale. Below are the 2026-2027 First-Year Counselors in Pauli Murray College.
Reem Abdo Kahin
Reem Abdo Kahin is a Sudanese-American currently living in Falls Church, Virginia. Having grown up moving around, she spent her childhood living in the US, Nigeria, Vietnam, and India, before graduating high school in Sudan. At Yale, she is a pre-law student majoring in Economics and pursuing certificates in French and Statistics & Data Science. She has truly appreciated how Yale has allowed her to explore so many facets of her academic interests, and to discover passions she did not realize she had! Outside of school, she plays volleyball with Yale Women’s Club Volleyball, debates with the Independent Party of the Yale Political Union, and is involved with advocacy for Sudan on campus. She was also a leader of the best Yale pre-orientation program, FOOT, and so please don’t hesitate to ask her any questions you might have!
In her free time you can find Reem drinking chai at Arwa, learning new chords on the guitar, and hanging out with the people who have made Yale a home. She is excited to meet the Class of 2030 and welcome them to Pauli Murray!
Ben Braeklein
Hello My Name Ben Braecklein I am a senior in Murray college studying Physics and Economics. I am heavily involved with MYCC (Murray College Council), YUTA (Board game club), and the YPMB (Marching band). When I am not in class or participating in my clubs I enjoy watching TV shows like Invincible and JJK or hanging out with friends! I am super excited to meet you all in the fall!!!
Zoe Frost
Zoe Frost (she/her) was born and raised in Washington Heights, New York City. At Yale, she majors in American Studies with a concentration in Visual, Literary, Audio and Performance Cultures (ask her what that means!) as well as studying German. She can be found around campus playing flute in various ensembles and musical pits, working as a Writing Partner and Tour Guide, or editing for the Yale Herald.
Pauli Murray College is one of Zoe’s favorite places in the entire world, but some of her other New Haven staples are the YCBA, East Rock, Wooster Square, and the Farmington Canal trail. She cannot wait to welcome the Class of 2030 to the magical Murray community!
Royce Haynes
Royce Haynes (he/him) is originally from Dittmer, Missouri. At Yale, he is studying Political Science and hopes to attend law school. He enjoys studying the relationship between the federal bureaucracy and democracy. Last summer, he was working at the Missouri Public Defender’s Office, supporting indigent individuals applying for Post Conviction Relief.
When not in the Slavic Reading Room, Royce can be found at a Rural Student Alliance cookout or basking in the sun on Cross Campus. Royce previously served as the Director of Walden Peer Counseling, Yale’s only anonymous and confidential peer listening service. He also enjoys late-night Burgerway runs with friends, lifting in the Murray gym, and hiking to East Rock.
Royce is incredibly grateful to have found his place at Yale. Coming from a small town, he never realized that a place like Pauli Murray College could feel like a home away from home. He is excited to welcome the class of 2030 and help them find their place in Murray and Yale at large.
Abigail Hu
Abigail Hu (she/her) is from New Orleans, Louisiana, a place that makes up 50% of her personality. She is a Political Science major studying the political theory of digital democracy. Currently, she is serving as a student volunteer on the Research Committee for the Connecticut Citizens’ Assembly on property taxes. Her academic interests deviate widely from her professional ones; last summer, she worked with the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division on issues that ranged from housing, immigration, to emerging fintech products.
On campus, Abigail is a competing member and former President of the Yale Mock Trial Association, a dance instructor for the Yale Ballroom Dance Team, and a frequenter of Haas Arts Library (plus a second secret study spot she will not tell you here). She enjoys spending hours in the Pauli Murray pottery studio and leaving empty-handed because she can’t make a bowl to save her life.
Abigail is so excited to welcome the Class of 2030 to Yale! Over these past three years, being a LiMur has been one of the most beautiful and rewarding experiences of her college career. She hopes she can help incoming LiMurs find their place here too.
Lukass Kellijs
Hi all! I’m Lukass - I’m originally from Riga, Latvia (a land of rye bread, music, forests, and the best hockey fans in the world). I study applied physics with a personal interest in physics and computation. Outside of that, I’m part of the Yale Climbing Team, the Progressive Party of the YPU, the Yale AI Association, and am a loyal member of the Pauli Murray MHoops team. In my free time I love to run, hike, drink copious amounts of tea, and read in the grass. Very excited to meet all of you in the fall!
Anika Mohapatra
Anika Mohapatra (she/her) was born and raised in Bangalore, India. At Yale, she is majoring in Neuroscience; Her research focuses on addiction in adolescents, and she also works at the Dettmer Lab to help prepare biological samples for hormonal assays. Anika is excited to work this year as a Pedagogical Partner with the Poorvu Center, and before being a FroCo, she worked as a Peer Liaison with the LGBTQ center. On campus, she’s involved in a cappella (Doox of Yale, where she was Rush Manager for the past two years) and publications (The Yale Literary Magazine, where she’s a literary editor).
Aside from her interest in Neuroscience, Anika is also really passionate about reading literature from around the world and has recently been really invested in translating literature from Japanese to English (partially inspired by her summer spent in Tokyo studying the language). In her free time, Anika loves drawing, reading, playing the guitar, hosting game nights, and watching horror movies! Her favorite spaces on campus include the secret courtyard in Murray, the big tree on 300 Prospect, and the Acorn.
She’s incredibly grateful for all the meaningful communities she’s found on this campus and she’s excited to meet the class of 2030 and hopefully help them do the same!
Jesse Mullins
Jesse Mullins (he/him) is originally from Hershey, Pennsylvania. Majoring in Ethics, Politics, & Economics, he is drawn to the ways law and business can be used as tools to tackle complex social and economic problems.
On campus, Jesse is passionate about direct service. As Co-President of Urban Improvement Corps, he connects Yale undergraduates with New Haven students, supporting mentees in their academic and personal growth. Before becoming a FroCo, he had mentees of his own as a Peer Liaison for the Afro-American Cultural Center. He also serves as treasurer of the Yale Collegiate Chapter of the NAACP, where he hopes to grow the organization’s presence on campus.
In his free time, Jesse enjoys learning new piano arrangements of 2016 pop songs, playing intramural ping pong, and meticulously crafting his fantasy football lineup for the week.
Outside of Yale, you can find him (painfully) watching Chicago sports teams, playing tennis with friends, visiting Europe (in search of a fresh French baguette), and experimenting with new recipes with his family.
Jesse has loved being a LiMur for the past three years and can’t wait to welcome the Pauli Murray Class of 2030!
Arohi Nair, Head FroCo
Arohi is originally from Okemos, Michigan, and now lives in Needham, Massachusetts. She is double majoring in Computer Science & Economics and Applied Mathematics. In her free time, she loves to travel, run, and explore new coffee shops and restaurants (peep the Beli). Some of Arohi’s favorite memories from her Yale experience so far have been frolicking around East Rock with friends, impromptu visits to the YUAG, and attending friends’ performances and presentations! Arohi is so excited for this upcoming year, and can’t wait to welcome you all!
Avi Rao
Hi everyone! My name is Avi, and I study global affairs and history. I grew up between New York City and a small town in Dutchess County called Clinton, where I live on an apple orchard. My background—I’m Jewish, Indian, Peruvian, and Venezuelan—inspired my love for international politics and history, as well as a lifelong interest in studying South America. I’m particularly interested in how international ideologies developed in Latin America during the Cold War as phenomena independent from the great powers. I also developed a deep interest in global macroeconomics after taking my first economics class at Yale, and I’ve also done some work in finance outside of school.
At Yale, I’ve proudly served as the 182nd chairman of the Independent Party of the Yale Political Union, Speaker of the Yale Political Union, and vice president of the Alexander Hamilton Society. I also give campus tours! Outside of Yale, I love cooking, eating, telling people about his apple orchard, hanging out with my twin sister Clio, rooting for the New York Jets, and hiking the Northeast.
I’ve made my closest friends in Pauli Murray and I’m so excited to welcome a new generation of LiMurs!!