By Shane Goldmacher - Capitol Alert

The California Latino Legislative Caucus Institute for Public Policy announced the selection of its fifth class of Polanco Fellows late Wednesday. The program is named after former state Sen. Richard Polanco, who founded the Institute.

The program includes "training at the Center for Creative Leadership in La Jolla, an annual Institute Orientation at UCLA, a four-month placement in a major state agency in Sacramento such as CalPERS and, then, the heart of the Fellowship, an eight-month placement in the Capitol office of a state legislator."

Here are the bios of the latest participants:

Esmeralda Martin, a graduate of UCLA where she earned a B.A. in Political Science. Her hometown is Pinole, California, in the Bay Area. She has worked on several research projects involving Day Laborers and considers healthcare to be one of the most important issues facing our state.

Miguel Martinez, a graduate of UC Davis with a combined degree in Political Science and Chicano Studies with an emphasis on Social Policy. He considers South Central L.A. his hometown and he attended Garfield High School in East Los Angeles. He served as a Peer Counselor for the Educational Opportunity Program at UC Davis along with serving in several other counseling positions on-campus and the surrounding communities. He considers K-12 education to be one of the most pressing public policy issues for the state.

Yuliana Mendez, a graduate of Sacramento State University who earned her degree in Philosophy and Sign Language. Her hometown is Live Oak, California. She plans to pursue a career in law and considers accessibility to higher education a key policy issue for California. She is an active member of the College Assistance Migrant Program and has conducted research to identify challenges and improve the admission and retention rates of migrant students.

Tomas Oliva, a graduate from UC San Diego with a degree in Political Science. Although born in Los Angeles, he considers El Centro, California to be his hometown. He served as an Academic Mentor and Coordinating Tutor for the Early Academic Outreach Program at UCSD serving communities such as El Centro and Chula Vista and hopes to have a career in law.

Felipe Perez, a graduate of Stanford University who majored in Human Biology. His hometown is Long Beach, California, and he hopes to study medicine and public health. He has conducted research and published articles on molecular biology and genetic analysis. He recently completed a stint as special assistant to the Chief Medical Officer for Baltimore, Maryland, and is currently serving as an intern for U.S. Representative Henry Waxman. He also served as president of Barrio Assistance, a tutoring program for at-risk youth.

Luis Tapia, a graduate of UC San Diego who holds a degree in Political Science. His hometown is Galt, California. He conducted field research on migration patterns between Yucatan, Mexico and the United States and the results are being published in an upcoming book. He sees immigration as a major public issue and also worked in the U.S. Embassy's Commercial Section in Mexico City.