HATS OFF TO THE GRADUATE ... East Palo Alto City Council member Antonio Lopez graduated from Oxford University on July 16 through the Marshall Scholarship, which allows Americans to study at any United Kingdom university after receiving an undergraduate degree. Lopez is one of 43 recipients of the Marshall Scholarship established by the British government. The scholarship is named after George Marshall, who pioneered the Marshall plan, a U.S. program that funded the rebuilding of western Europe after World War II. While Lopez completed his master's in philosophy in Modern Middle Eastern Studies from Oxford's Balliol College in 2020, he was not able to participate in a degree ceremony until this year due to the pandemic. "Today, I honor the labor of not just my immediate family but also my wider East Palo Alto family, who nurtured me and my pursuit for higher education. I carried our stories of struggle and resilience every single day during my time in Oxford," Lopez said in a press release. He said that his time at Oxford also pushed him to give back to the community that helped him so much. "If you have the desire to make an impact, no matter what your age, you can do that," said Lopez, who added that he felt inspired to pursue a career in public service by his peers at Oxford. "I felt very encouraged being in that environment."

RESEARCH UNDERWAY ... Stanford Blood Center is one of three Bay Area locations taking part in a Food and Drug Administration study that could make a difference in blood donor eligibility for men who have sex with men (MSM). The study, Assessing Donor Variability and New Concepts in Eligilibity (ADVANCE), aims to explore alternatives to MSM blood donor deferral. Previously, men who had sex with men were deferred from donating blood for 12 months. That changed in April 2020, when the FDA reduced the deferral period to three months in response to the pandemic, which heightened the need for blood donations. "It is the hope that data from the ADVANCE study and other scientific evidence might lead the FDA to adjust its MSM guidance again to reflect a risk-based deferral model," according to a July 18 press release from the center. The study is open to people ages 18 to 39, who can visit the research site at 3373 Hillview Ave. in Palo Alto, where participants will be enrolled from Wednesdays through Fridays, now through Sept. 30. For more information, visit stanfordbloodcenter.org/advance.

MOVING ON UP ... Palo Altans may recognize two young athletes with local ties who were selected in the MLB Draft, which took place July 17-19. The Toronto Blue Jays snapped up Palo Alto High School alum Joshua Kasevich. The 21-year-old shortstop, who played for the University of Oregon, was picked in the second round and was 60th overall. "He'll definitely be able to go out and play shortstop," Blue Jays amateur scouting director Shane Farrell said in a July 18 article on the team's website. "This is obviously a plan we'll build around with the player, but getting him exposure to other positions will be key, too, like it is with any other player." Locals may also recognize another Paly alum who just graduated this past June. The Oakland A's picked 18-year-old outfielder Henry Bolte, the 56th pick overall. "He's a tremendous athlete. He's got a ton of raw power and can really run. There's just a lot of upside to him," A's scouting director Eric Kubota said in a July 18 article on the team's site. "There's some developing needed with the bat. But if the bat comes, he's truly the kind of guy who could develop into a five-tool player."