Kudos, Gauchos

Kudos, Gauchos

Multiple alums make the prestigious 2026 Forbes ‘30 Under 30’ list

 

Three UC Santa Barbara grads are among Forbes magazine’s latest crop of “30 Under 30” honorees, recognizing young movers and shakers in 20 categories across the arts, technology and social impact. Forbes staff and a panel of independent judges evaluate candidates on factors including funding, revenue, social impact, scale, inventiveness and potential. 

Meet this trio of trailblazers working in marketing, gaming and social media: 

 

Bianca Fernandez '19

Bianca Fernandez ’19

As head of brand engagement at Personal Day, an acne-safeskincare line, Fernandez leads brand strategy, creative campaignsand partnerships as part of the company’s founding team. In 2025,Fernandez won NBC’s advertising competition show “On Brand withJimmy Fallon,” nabbing a $100,000 prize, a feature in Adweek, a tripto Cannes Lions and the title of Innovator of the Year.

Francisco Rodriguez ’20

Leading the recruitment of developers making user-generated content at Meta Reality Labs’ Horizon Worlds, Rodriguez doubled recruits in two months. After immigrating from El Salvador at age 3 and being the first in his family to go to college, he worked at StreamElements, Twitter, Riot Games, HoYoverse and TikTok, marketing new game launches and improving creators’ revenue.

Francisco Rodriguez

Hailey Sani

Hailey Sani ’22

The New York-based creator, writer, director and on-camera personalityhas 2.7 million followers across platforms. Her popular vlogs includesome about her experience as a student at UCSB. She has collaboratedwith major companies including Uniqlo and Dove, went viral with aDior Beauty campaign, and hosted press junket interviews with starsincluding Jennifer Lopez and Chris Pratt.

Summer 2026

Features


film strip with negatives

Cut to Success

Versed in theory before technique, UCSB alums — some faculty, too — keep landing on studio lots, streaming hits and awards season shortlists.

By Shelly Leachman

Black and white photo of a black guitarist with acoustic guitar

Musical Americana

UCSB Library partners with the Dust-to-Digital Foundation to preserve a vast collection of historic American music. Anybody is welcome to listen in — for free

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At the scale of the earth

Artist Tiffany Chung traces how histories of climate, conflict and displacement unfold across time — while pointing toward new ways of living with change

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On Campus

Short takes, lively stories and snapshot looks at the UC Santa Barbara campus and community open a window into our dynamic environment and diverse culture.

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Alumni

Alumni profiles, news bites and insights both from and about the UC Santa Barbara Alumni Association foster a strong sense of connection and Gaucho pride.

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