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Past Peace & Justice Interns
Summer 2009 Interns
Cory Felder is a junior at Cornell University, majoring in Near Eastern Studies, where he is President of “Last Call A Cappella,” responsible for organizing the rehearsal program, including managing the schedules of thirteen student leaders. He also serves on a volunteer basis on the Philanthropy Committee. Cory spent a summer in Ayacucho, Peru, working as an English teacher at Colegio Los Libertadores. He has also traveled with Cornell Hillel to build houses in New Orleans for survivors of the Katrina hurricane. He is proficient in Spanish and speaks elementary Arabic. Cory hails from San Diego, California, where he attended San Dieguito Academy.
Breyn Hibbs, spring intern 2009, returns to the IPJ for the summer. In May 2009 she graduated from USD with a B.A. in Philosophy and a minor in Leadership and Asian Studies. Breyn has received several academic awards and scholarships including the American Humanics Certificate; the Undergraduate Academic Merit Scholarship (“Trustee Scholarship”); the Alcalá Senior Honor Society Mortar Board; the Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation Scholarship; the National Panhellenic Conference Foundation Betty Quick/Gamma Phi Beta Scholarship; the North American Interfraternity Conference Richard G. Miller Memorial Scholarship; and the Western Region Greek Association’s Marilyn Fordham Fraternal Values Award. Breyn has studied abroad in Guadalajara, Mexico; London, England; and San José and Monteverde, Costa Rica.
Katie Kilcline graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 2005 with a B.A. in Psychology and a concentration in International Peace Studies. From 2006 - 2008 she worked in Kathmandu, Nepal, through Jesuit Volunteers International, as a project assistant at the Godavari Alumni Association, where she organized volunteer training, fundraisers, and health awareness programs through the social service unit at a pediatric hospital. Before that, she spent the year after graduation working in Chicago with AmeriCorps, working as a case manager at the Marjorie Kovler Center for Survivors of Torture and living in an intentional community, Amate House. Katie first became acquainted with the IPJ through its volunteer program, and lives in Coronado, California.
Joanna Kot is an intern at the Consulate of Sweden in San Diego, where she assists Swedish citizens with processing passport and visa applications, and supports the Swedish Consul and his staff at various events. She has a Degree of Master with a major in law from the University of Örebro in Örebro, Sweden. Her Master’s thesis was on the Swedish Disabilities Act, and her Bachelor’s thesis was on the roles of damages when violating the prohibitions of the Swedish Antitrust Law. Joanna first became acquainted with the IPJ while attending the Distinguished Lecture Series talk by Ambassador Jan Eliasson.
Alana Miller is a senior at Smith College majoring in Latin American Studies with a minor in Environmental Science and Policy. She spent her junior year studying in Mexico at the Universidad Autónoma de Puebla. Alana has worked for, among other organizations, the Obama Campaign for Change New Mexico; the Democratic Party of New Mexico; Environment California and CalPIRG; and Massachusetts Power Shift, where she planned a state-wide lobby day to pass strong climate change legislation and trained participants in lobbying techniques. Alana is from San Diego, California.
Spring 2009 Interns
Irene Burga is a senior at the University of San Diego. She is scheduled to graduate in May 2009 with a major in International Relations and minors in Management and Philosophy. Irene has been on the Dean’s Honor List, is a member of the Political Science Honor Society, and has received the Gamma Phi Beta Scholar Award. She has studied abroad at ITESO University in Guadalajara, Mexico and at Richmond University in London, England. Irene has also spent time living in Spain and Peru. In addition to working in the USD Office of Annual Giving, Irene currently tutors Sudanese refugee children at the Community Service Learning Center. Previously, Irene has donated her time to work as a coordinator, participant, and contributor to the annual Breast Cancer Walk for Hope, and she has participated in several Mission Beach clean-up projects. After graduating, Irene is considering pursuing a career in law, conflict resolution, or diplomacy.
Shawna Fehrman is a senior at the University of San Diego. She is a double major in International Relations and English, and she is scheduled to graduate in May 2009. Shawna has been on the Dean’s Honor List and is currently a member of the Alcalá Senior Honor Society Mortar Board. She has participated in the Liberal Arts Study Abroad Program at St. Clare’s in Oxford, England, and also in the One-on-One Tutorial Program at the University of Oxford. In 2007, Shawna traveled to the Philippines to live, work and volunteer with the Sisters of the Sacred Heart. She currently donates her time to assist with events and activities at the Romero Center for Faith and Action, where in the past she has organized and led Tijuana Service Trips, participated in an El Salvador Immersion Trip and tutored students at the Sudanese Community Center. Shawna has also spent time working as a University Ministry Retreat Leader, Founders Chapel Mass Minister and Americorps: Students in Service volunteer. In the future, she is interested in pursuing a career related to women’s rights and the prevention of human trafficking.
Chris Groth received an M.A. in International Relations from the University of San Diego in May 2006, and graduated cum laude from the University of California, Irvine, with a B.A. in Social Science and in Sociology in June 2003. His M.A. thesis was, “Crisis in the Taiwan Strait: An Avoidable Situation?” His research interests include regional security issues, specifically in East and South Asia; U.S.-China relations; and the war on drugs in Mexico and Colombia. He was awarded the USD Graduate Grant and the Irving Salomon Political Science Scholarship, and published “In the Trenches: Fighting Mexico’s War without End,” in Comparative Politics and the War on Terror, ed. Lisa Papera and Randy Willoughby (San Diego, CA: University Readers, 2005). Chris currently works as an Operations Analyst at SRA International, Inc., providing analytical, technical and logistical support in the fields of emergency prevention, management, and response. He previously interned at the San Diego World Trade Center and has volunteered with Amnesty International. Chris will be the Graduate Intern at the IPJ, remaining at the institute through the spring semester 2009. He is currently assisting with the IPJ’s Nepal Project.
Breyn Hibbs is a senior at the University of San Diego. She is scheduled to graduate in May 2009 with a major in Philosophy and minors in Leadership Studies and Asian Studies. In addition to taking part in the Honors Program at USD, Breyn has received several academic awards and scholarships including the American Humanics Certificate; the Undergraduate Academic Merit Scholarship (“Trustee Scholarship”); the Alcalá Senior Honor Society Mortar Board; the Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation Scholarship; the National Panhellenic Conference Foundation Betty Quick/Gamma Phi Beta Scholarship; the North American Interfraternity Conference Richard G. Miller Memorial Scholarship; and the Western Region Greek Association’s Marilyn Fordham Fraternal Values Award. Breyn has studied abroad in Guadalajara, Mexico; London, England; and San José and Monteverde, Costa Rica. Her volunteer and organizing activities include participating in orphanage and cancer hospital visits (while in Guadalajara), assisting with graffiti clean-up projects (while in London), and continuous involvement in philanthropic organizations including the City of Hope Biomedical Research, Treatment, and Educational Institute; the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital; and the Reading is Fundamental Foundation. In the future, Breyn is interesting in pursuing a graduate degree in higher education leadership.
Csilla Kristof is a senior at USD majoring in International Relations. She is scheduled to graduate in May 2009. Csilla is currently completing a research project entitled: “U.S.-Russian Cold War Tensions in Post-Cold War Era.” She spent the summer of 2008 studying abroad at Pécs University in Pécs, Hungary. Csilla is currently the Communications Director for the Alcalá Chapter of Mortar Board Senior Honor Society. Previously, she was a member of the US Disabled Ski Team from 1997-2004, during which time she won three silver medals in 2002 and was the three time World Slalom Champion. During her skiing career, Csilla frequently served as a motivational speaker discussing her racing experiences to elementary school students and disabled youth. Csilla has traveled extensively throughout Europe and to parts of Africa, and she is proficient in Hungarian and speaks some French.
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Fall 2008 Interns
Elisabetta Colabianchi is a senior at USD, majoring in Biology and Spanish and minoring in Italian and in Peace and Justice Studies. She has studied in Milan, Italy at L’Universitá Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, at FLACSO (Latin American Social Sciences Faculty) in Buenos Aires, Argentina; and at the ITESO (The Jesuit University of Guadalajara) in Guadalajara, Mexico. During an internship at the Botanical Garden Cascina Rosa in Milan, Elisabetta worked on an alternate fuel sources research project focusing on bio-diesel. She has also worked at the USD Student Health Center and has volunteered at USD’s Romero Center for Faith in Action and the San Diego chapter of the American Red Cross. Her volunteer and organizing activities include a stint with the Coalition for Health and Wellness Initiatives, the International Film Club, and Totally Rad Environmental Enthusiasts (T.R.E.E.), all while at USD. Elisabetta speaks fluent Italian and Spanish as well as some Arabic. In her future work she plans to continue to focus on sustainability and development.
Chris Groth received an M.A. in International Relations from USD in May 2006, and graduated cum laude from the University of California, Irvine, with a B.A. in Social Science and in Sociology in June 2003. His M.A. thesis was, “Crisis in the Taiwan Strait: An Avoidable Situation?” His research interests include regional security issues, specifically in East and South Asia; U.S.-China relations; and the war on drugs in Mexico and Colombia. He was awarded the USD Graduate Grant and the Irving Salomon Political Science Scholarship, and published “In the Trenches: Fighting Mexico’s War without End,” in Comparative Politics and the War on Terror, ed. Lisa Papera and Randy Willoughby (San Diego, CA: University Readers, 2005). Chris currently works part-time as an Operations Analyst at SRA International, Inc., providing analytical, technical and logistical support in the fields of emergency prevention, management and response. He previously interned at the San Diego World Trade Center, and has volunteered with Amnesty International’s UC Irvine chapter and with Border Angels among other organizations. Chris will be the Graduate Intern at the IPJ, remaining at the institute through the spring semester 2009. He plans on returning to school to pursue a doctorate degree and an academic career.
Carolyn Smith is a senior at the University of California San Diego, planning to graduate in September 2009, with a major in Political Science- International Relations and a minor in Human Development. She previously studied at the University of Arizona and completed an internship with Senator Jon Kyl of Arizona, in which she researched issues of health care and immigration, in support of the senator’s work on the Finance and Judiciary Committees. Carolyn serves as Director of Service and Outreach at the Golden Key International Honour Society at UCSD, and has also interned at the La Jolla Light Newspaper. Her academic interests include insurgency and terrorism, U.S. intelligence and national security, and East Asian thought in comparative perspective. Carolyn plans to pursue a career in international aid work and diplomacy.
Alexandra (Ali) Wolters is a senior at USD, majoring in Political Science and minoring in Peace & Justice Studies and Sociology. She completed a semester of study in Uganda in the fall of 2007, through the Uganda Development Studies program of the School for International Training in Bratteleboro, Vermont. Ali then returned to Uganda in the summer of 2008, where she worked in maternity ward of a hospital in Gulu, northern Uganda. Her summertime travels also took her to Uganda’s capital, Kampala, and briefly to the city of Goma on the Congolese border with Rwanda. Ali has worked as an office assistant at Invisible Children, has volunteered as a tutor and a coordinator at the Southern Sudanese Community Center, and attended the Lobby Days for Northern Uganda event in Washington, D.C. She plans on a medical career after graduation.
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Summer 2008 Interns
Erica Embree is a senior at the University of California, Berkeley, where she is majoring in Peace and Conflict Studies, graduating in May 2009. Previously, Erica studied at the University of California, San Diego, where she majored in International Studies and Sociology. Through the Undergraduate Research Apprentice Program at Berkeley, she is serving as a researcher with Professor David Cohen, who is consulting for the ECCC, the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia. Erica has received a fellowship to spend a five-week stint in Cambodia during January 2009. She has also conducted research on World War II-era war crimes and war crimes in Bosnia and Rwanda. In addition, Erica has done volunteer work in rural Costa Rica through Peace Works International; helps international students to practice conversing in English through UCSD Extension; and volunteers for the YWCA’s English in Action program. Erica is from Playa Del Rey, California.
James (Jamie) Giganti is a second-year M.A. student at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, graduating in May 2009. She received her B.A. in Russian Language & Literature, with a minor in Dance Studies, from Emory University in May 2002. During her time in graduate school, she has interned at the Initiative for Policy Dialogue at Columbia University, a not-for profit think tank run by Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz. While there she has assisted in the completion of four forthcoming books: The Washington Consensus Reconsidered: Towards a New Model of Global Governance. James has participated in the 12 Hours of Dialogue program, which in 2008 employed teleconferencing technology to engage young women from America and Tunisia in discussions about personal, local and international issues. She also served as Editorial Assistant to the Journal of International Affairs and Managing Editor of the The Emory Wheel, and received the Award for Excellence in Language Studies, at Emory. James hails from Abbeville, Alabama, and her research interests include the role of UN peacekeeping operations.
Benjamin Lee graduated magna cum laude from the University of San Diego in May 2007 with a double B.A. in English Literature and Theological and Religious Studies. He studied at Oxford University in the spring of 2006, where he was a Blackfriars Scholar. During the spring of 2005, Ben participated in the Tijuana Spring Breakthrough, and in the summer of 2006 he volunteered for seven weeks in the urban slums of Manila, where he lived and served at a foundation for boys separated from unstable home life. While at USD he served in the office of University Ministry as a residential ministry leader; a retreat leader; and a tenor in the Men’s Ensemble of the Founders Chapel Choir. Ben is currently working full-time as the Coordinator of Youth Ministry at St. Michael’s Catholic Church in Poway.
Azaam Samad is a senior at Whittier College in Whittier, California, majoring in International Conflict Management. He studied at the American University in Cairo during fall 2007, and during that time taught introductory English to underprivileged Egyptians, through the Better World NGO. Also in 2007, Azaam interned at the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR). At CAIR, he specialized in government relations and politics, and wrote letters to the editor, including one published August 9, 2007 in the San Diego Union-Tribune, on the plight of a San Diego elementary school facing controversy over its efforts to accommodate Somali immigrant children who are devout Muslims. Azaam has participated in Model United Nations and had an issue paper on safe water and sanitation published in the Model United Nations Issues Book. The son of Sri Lankan parents, Azaam grew up in San Diego and visited Sri Lanka most recently in the summer of 2007.
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Spring 2008 Interns
Andrew Chua is a senior at the University of California, San Diego, majoring in International Studies and Economics. During the fall semester, he completed an internship at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington, DC, researching topics of public health policy in sub-Saharan Africa. In his research Andrew focused on approaches to tackling the malaria epidemic in that region, and on the need for adequate regulation of trade in prescription drugs. He has also worked at the office of the International Relations/Pacific Relations Graduate School at UCSD, and interned at the San Diego office of marcus evans, an international business events and information company. Andrew has studied at the Universidad Del Belgrano in Argentina, and has volunteered at a number of agencies including National Geographic Headquarters in Washington, DC.
Justine Darling is a senior at the University of San Diego, majoring in Psychology with a minor in Business and Philosophy. She studied abroad in Milan, Italy and in Guadalajara, Mexico, and speaks some Italian and Spanish. Justine has served as the Philanthropy Chair of the Psychology Club since Fall 2005, and tutors children in an after-school program at the Bayside Community Center. Justine has also worked in Facilities Management at USD since 2004. She is a member of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars and of Alpha Chi Omega Sorority, and has participated in immersion trips to El Salvador and to to Tijuana, Mexico.
Andrea Lovano is a senior at the University of San Diego, majoring in History and Sociology with a minor in Art History. She has co-chaired the Social Issues Committee for the past calendar year, and helped plan the 18th Annual Social Issues Conference featuring keynote speaker Thich Nhat Hanh. Andrea has also served, since September 2006, as the co-director of Social Issues at the Center for Awareness, Service, and Action (CASA), planning programs related to social justice issues. In this capacity, she helped organize the January 2008 intersession immersion trip to Duncans, Jamaica. Andrea has studied in Falmouth, Jamaica and in Florence, Italy, and participated in an immersion trip to Tegucigalpa, Honduras. She also has served as Sophomore Senator to the Associated Students, and as campaign organizer for So Others May Eat (S.O.M.E.).
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Fall 2007 Interns
Ray Amberg graduated in May 2007 from the University of California, Riverside. His major was Languages and his minor was Computer Science. Ray spent the 2006 – 2007 academic year studying at the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University in Frankfurt, Germany. He has worked as a research assistant in the political science department at UC Riverside, and has completed an internship in computer science there as well. During the summer of 2007 he was an intern at the Los Angeles office of Human Rights Watch. Among his extracurricular activities while in school, Ray was active in the Russian Club, the Arab Student Union, the Khmer Club, and Students for Justice in Palestine. He is proficient in Spanish, German and Russian and competent in Arabic and Hebrew.
Ryan Millard is studying for an M.S. in Conflict and Dispute Resolution at the University of Oregon, expecting to graduate in June 2008. He graduated cum laude with a B.A. in Political Science from California State University Hayward. Since 2005, Ryan has worked as a research assistant at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in Berkeley, California. Ryan has studied environmental law, U.S. immigration policy and law, zero-sum conflict, and cross-cultural mediation, negotiation, bargaining and persuasion.
Alissa Skog is studying at the University of San Diego, planning to graduate in May 2008. Her major is International Relations and her minor is Peace & Justice Studies. Among her extracurricular experiences, Alissa has worked as an HIV/AIDS educator and an elementary school tutor in Cape Town, South Africa. She has also volunteered as a tutor at the South Sudanese Community Center in San Diego. During the summer of 2007, Alissa studied international political economy at Georgetown University.
Dana Twal is a student at the University of San Diego, majoring in International Relations and minoring in Spanish and in Peace & Justice Studies, planning to graduate in the fall of 2007. During the summer of 2006, she interned at The Protection Project at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) in Washington, D.C. At USD, Dana has been active in the Alcalá Club and in Students for Life. She has also volunteered as a tutor at the Southern Sudanese Community Center. Dana is proficient in Arabic and competent in Spanish.
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Summer 2007 Interns
Lucas Cometto is studying for an M.A. in Political Science at the University of Connecticut, planning to graduate in May 2008. He has a B.A. from Occidental College, where he majored in History and minored in Art History. Lucas interned at the Center on Policy Initiatives in San Diego, a progressive think tank, gathering and organizing research data on mayoral campaign finance. He was named Ronald E. McNair National Scholar and was awarded a University of Connecticut Predoctoral Fellowship. He has been active in Students United for Peace and in the Occidental College History Society, and has studied the Peruvian Truth and Reconciliation Commission of 2001-2003.
Nubia Macias graduated in May from the University of California at Berkeley, with a major in Spanish and a minor in Peace and Conflict Studies. She attended the University of California at Santa Barbara before transferring to Berkeley. Nubia conducted independent field research on the Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD) in the Mexican city of Querétaro, presenting the results to her professors and peers in Mexico City. She volunteered at the Foundation for Sustainable Development in La Plata, Argentina, working at a center for disadvantaged children. Nubia has been active in a number of campus organizations including the Center for Latin American Studies and Bears for UNICEF.
Carolyn McMahon is studying at the University of California at Berkeley, planning to graduate next May with a B.A. in Peace and Conflict Studies and minors in French and History of Art. She will have completed a semester of study with the Centre de Recherche Ouest Africain in Senegal, combining coursework in international development in Dakar with a home-stay experience, and internship at a microfinance bank in the rural village of Ndangane. Carolyn also completed a month-long course at the University of Fribourg in Switzerland, studying international organizations. She is interested in global law and governance as these relate to science, with a particular interest in the expansion of intellectual property rights and its impact on global justice and equity.
Saurav J. Thapa is studying at Hampshire College in Amherst, Massachusetts, majoring in International Relations and Government and planning to graduate next May. He has interned at UNIFEM in Nepal, working on a national media awareness project on gender issues; prior to that, Saurav was a reporter for The Kathmandu Post. He is active in the Forum of International Students at Hampshire, serving as co-coordinator. A national of Nepal, Saurav has been inspired by the war in that country to study peace and conflict transformation. For his senior year, starting this fall, he will be doing his senior honors thesis on the civil war in Sri Lanka between the government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Hampshire College has awarded Saurav the Sander Thoenes Research Grant 2007-08 to enable him to travel to Sri Lanka to conduct research on the civil war. Sander Thoenes, a Hampshire graduate, was killed by Indonesian troops in East Timor in 1999 when he was covering the fight for East Timor’s independence as a correspondent for the Financial Times of London.
Elise Vaughan is studying at the University of San Diego, planning to graduate next May with a B.A. in International Relations and Economics, minoring in Spanish. She has interned with Congressman Adam Smith of Tacoma, Washington, and served as a delegate to the United Kingdom with Dwight D. Eisenhower’s People to People program. Elise studied in Spain, living with a host family in Madrid and traveling in the country. She has also served as a volunteer at the Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace & Justice.
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Spring 2007 Interns
Rebecca Deedman, USD ’07, is majoring in International Relations and Spanish, with a minor in French. She has participated in USD’s Guadalajara program for two summers and now works in that program’s office. Rebecca has done volunteer work in an orphanage in Guadalajara and with migrant workers on a weekly basis through Migrant Outreach. The daughter of a military family, Rebecca hails from Honolulu, Hawaii, spent much of her childhood living in Spain and Italy, and has traveled in the Czech Republic, Egypt, and Morocco. She is fluent in Spanish and French.
Nick Diamond, USD ’07, is majoring in International Relations and minoring in Philosophy. Nick studied at the International School for Social Sciences and Humanities of the Universiteit van Amsterdam in the Spring of 2006, and visited the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, in The Hague. He has traveled through Eastern Europe and the Balkans. Nick is from Seattle, and has volunteered with the Big Brothers/Big Sisters program of King County.
Daniela Loor, USD ’07, is majoring in Business Administration with a minor in International Relations. She is active in the International Student Organization at USD, serving as co-chair from August 2006 to the present. Daniela is from Guayaquil, Ecuador, and was an organizing member of the Foundation “Educar en Cristo” in that city. She has traveled in Japan, the UK, France, Germany, Spain, Argentina, Colombia, and Ecuador.
Gabriella Stumpf, USD ’07, is majoring in International Relations with a minor in Theology. She has been active with a number of on-campus organizations including Community Service Learning (as a student leader), as well as Alpha Chi Omega, serving on its Panhellenic and Intellectual Development Committees. Gabriella is from St. Paul, Minnesota and has served at the Dorothy Day Center of Saint Paul; she also took a civil rights trip through Atlanta, Georgia, and Selma, Birmingham, and Montgomery, Alabama, where she visited civil rights museums and historical sites and toured the Southern Poverty Law Center.
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Fall 2006 Interns
Morgan Cosby graduated in December 2006 from Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego, with a B.A. in International Development Studies. Morgan was International Development Studies Student of the Year 2005-2006, at PLNU, has volunteered with Junior Achievement, and spent the summer of 2006 in studying Spanish in Quetzaltenango (Xela), Guatemala.
Jennifer Rhodes received her B.A. in International Relations from USD in December of 2006. Jennifer acquired her love of traveling and an interest in other cultures while on a month long trip to Europe with her high school French class. She studied abroad for a semester in Florence, Italy during her freshman year. After studying abroad, she took a sabbatical from college and traveled through Europe, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Mexico for three years. She is interested in both domestic and international politics, and hopes to move to Washington D.C. after graduation. During the past summer, she served as an intern in the office of California State Assembly member Lori Saldaña. Jennifer was born and raised in San Luis Obispo, California.
Marilyn Shapley graduated in December from UCSD’s Sixth College, with a B.A. in International Studies. She comes to IPJ after spending a year studying at the American University in Cairo, where she was active in the International Model UN and served on the Cairo International Model UN Commission on Human Rights and was named Best Delegate 2006.
Michelle Takagishi-Almeida earned her B.A. in International Studies with a minor in Conflict Resolution from the University of California, Irvine. She has studied and traveled in France and Spain and been active in Model UN, and includes law school in her future plans.
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Summer 2006 Interns
Ursula Götz is from Dortmund, Germany, where she studies Journalism with a minor in Politics and Sports. She will graduate with an equivalent to a Master’s Degree in Summer 2007. She successfully applied for and won a scholarship to study this past year in the International Security and Conflict Resolution Program (ISCOR) of San Diego State University. To acknowledge her outstanding performance Ursula received a certificate equivalent to a Bachelor of Arts degree in ISCOR at the official graduation ceremony in May 2006. Ursula has worked for a German television station and interned with a newspaper in Cape Town, South Africa. In her teens, Ursula excelled in competitive track and field. She was German champion and an 11-time state champion. Next to sports, Ursula’s passion is languages. She speaks English and French and is learning Spanish and Russian. Ursula was an altar server for 10 years and involved in youth projects for the Roman Catholic Church in her home town.
Maya Lau graduated with honors from Vassar College in Spring 2007 with a B.A. in International Studies, focusing on Africa through History and Political Science. While at Vassar, Maya spent her junior year studying in Rabat, Morocco and Cape Town, South Africa, where she learned to speak French, Arabic and Xhosa. Her achievements include conducting independent research on an emerging South African dance form while studying in Cape Town. This culminated in her senior thesis titled, "Dance Theory and Political Reality: Contemporary South African Dance as a Social Force," a project for which she received distinction. Maya now resides in Brooklyn, NY and is a legal assistant for the Manhattan law firm of Vladeck, Waldman, Elias & Engelhard, an organization that centers on employment and anti-discrimination law. Maya continues to dance in New York City and is devoted to public interest and human rights law. She plans on attending law school in the near future. Maya is from San Diego, CA.
Catherine Quizon received her MA this past May in International Relations from USD, where she worked as a graduate fellow. She also contributed to a volume on student and faculty essays on the war on terror. In 2002, she interned with Living Rivers, an environmental advocacy group, and spent the summer traveling down the Colorado River campaigning for better protection of river ecosystems. Her academic interests are international law and African politics.
Lydia Strunk received her B.A. from USD in May 2006, with a major in Political Science and minors in Gender Studies and Sociology. She was Vice President of USD’s Amnesty International chapter and an active volunteer at various sites across San Diego including the South Sudanese Refugee Center and St. Vincent de Paul’s Homeless Village. Lydia spent a semester in Washington, D.C. interning on Capitol Hill, as well as a summer semester in Guadalajara, Mexico. She has a particular interest in the influence of gender in policymaking and promoting social justice.
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Spring 2006 Interns
Melanie Moore received her B.A., magna cum laude, from the University of South Carolina at Columbia in May 2004 with a major in Government and International Studies and a minor in Spanish. Subsequently she served for 14 months in Argentina with Campus Crusade for Christ, working variously in an orphanage, on a university campus developing a campus ministry, and in a rural community in the north of the country. Melanie spent a semester in Guanajuato, Mexico taking courses in International Studies, Spanish, and Art. She is fluent in Spanish and has a special interest in promoting social justice through the use of the arts. Melanie has worked with Joyce Neu on the Uganda project as well as helping with other IPJ projects.
Meredith Stocking graduated from USD in May 2006 on the Dean’s List with a major in International Relations and a minor in Spanish. Through Amigos de las Americas she worked for a summer in the Dominican Republic, near the Haitian border, engaging in AIDS education. In San Diego, Meredith has volunteered at the Sudanese English Project and the South Sudan Community Center and the International Rescue Committee’s mother-and-preschool program. She is fluent in Spanish and has traveled to western Europe and studied in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Guadalajara, Mexico. Meredith has worked with Shelley Lyford on the Women PeaceMakers program and WorldLink.
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Fall 2005
Nicole Haxby received her B.A. in Anthropology from the University of Colorado at Boulder in July 2005. In the fall of 2003 she participated in the Semester at Sea program of the University of Pittsburg, circumnavigating the globe by ship and visiting 10 countries. Nicole later spent a semester studying Spanish at the University of the Basque Country in San Sebastian, Spain, and has worked at a UN refugee camp in Zambia. She lives in Corona del Mar, California. Nicole spent some months in Cambodia in the spring of 2006 working with former Woman PeaceMaker Thavory Huot. Nicole is now (summer 2006) in Barcelona where she is taking classes to become a teacher of English as a foreign language.
Eoin O’Sullivan completed an M.A. in International Relations from University College, Cork in 2004, and his master’s thesis was on “Al Qaida and Militant Islam: The contemporary terrorist threat.” Eoin has also completed study programs on global terrorism and humanitarian assistance with the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), and once hiked 800 km to raise funds for cancer research. He is from Cork, Ireland.
Victor Salcido is a USD senior majoring in Political Science and History. He has interned with Congresswoman Susan Davis and at the Mexican embassy in Washington D.C., and for MTV’s Rock the Vote in San Diego. He also has volunteered with the One Campaign and with Amnesty International; worked on the Howard Dean for President campaign in Iowa and then for the Kerry-Edwards campaign in Arizona; and has been a member of an award-winning Model UN team as well as the Co-Founder of the University of San Diego Young Democrats. Victor is from Yuma, Arizona.
DeMark Schulze graduated this past May from the University of Notre Dame with a B.S. in Biology. He has worked with Notre Dame’s Center for Social Concerns and is keenly interested in Catholic social teaching. He spent his last summer in Uganda interviewing Congolese refugees for Notre Dame’s Kellogg Institute for International Studies. DeMark also has worked with the local campus chapter of the Children’s Defense Fund as its president and founding member. He is from Middletown, Ohio.
Andrea Szabolcsi graduated in 2006 with an M.A. in American Studies and in 2007 completed a Secondary School Teacher Certification, both from Eötvös Loránd University in Budapest. Andrea has worked in Hungary’s Ministry of Education as a project assistant in the ministry’s English Language Fellow program, where she was responsible for designing and conducting workshops for Hungary’s teachers of English on the meaningful use of the Internet in language teaching. Andrea is currently translating television scripts for Hungarian television, including for the show, Married . . . with Children. She also has volunteered with Amnesty International and worked as a camp counselor in Wisconsin for three successive summers. Andrea is from Nyiregyhaza, Hungary.
Alix Valenti received her B.A. in Business Management and Urban Development from Westminster University in the UK, and completed an M.Sc. in Urban Development Planning at University College, London. Her research interests are in the need to address reconciliation at the local level. Alix has done consultancy work in Accra, Ghana, and has worked as a translator. She is a French national who has lived in Italy and is currently a resident of the UK. After her internship at the IPJ, Alix worked as a trainee at the European Commission (the executive body of the European Union), in the unit that deals with relations with the Southern African region. She drafted End of Term Reviews for various countries, including for Mozambique and for SADC (South Africa Development Community), as well as flash reports that go to the Director General for Development. After her time at the EU was completed, Alix contacted Woman PeaceMaker Mary Ann Arnado and went to the Philippines to help her with her work. Alix accompanied Mary Ann and her colleagues of the Initiatives for International Dialogues on most of their field missions in Mindanao, which usually took place when there was a breach of an existing ceasefire. The trips usually entailed meeting with government military officials on the ground and in command as well as the rebel forces in order to determine what happened and how it was affecting the communities; and then sending out reports to try to clarify the situation. Alix also accompanied a lobbying mission in Manila that met with the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process. She also got the chance to draft the proposal for the creation of the secretariat of a grassroots nongovernmental organization. Following her time in the Philippines, Alix traveled around China and Thailand before returning to Europe.
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Summer 2005 Interns |
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Sophie Besancenot is studying for her M.A. in International Relations at the Institute of Political Science in Paris (the Institut d'Etudes Politiques, also known as the Sciences-Po), expecting to graduate in 2007. During the academic year 2004 - 2005, Sophie participated in an exchange program at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, and, also through Cornell, attended educational conferences at the United Nations. Sophie served on the student council at the Institute of Political Science, and earlier worked in the office of the Mayor of Dijon. While at Cornell, she has been active in Americans for Informed Democracy; in France she was involved in SOS Racisme. Sophie, a French national, traveled in Tunisia as a child and has also been to Sweden. She is interested in art history, world music, and film.
Merav Kweskin just grduated from Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts, and majored in International Relations. She has worked for Americans for Peace Now and has tutored in Worcester public schools. At Clark, Merav has been active in Hillel and in a recycling project for Habitat for Humanity. She has studied under Colman McCarthy at The Washington Center in D.C., and has traveled to El Salvador with American Jewish World Service's Alternative Spring Break. She has knowledge of Spanish and Hebrew, and has both lobbied, and campaigned for, Congressman Jim McGovern (the representative for Massachusetts' 3rd district.)
Kathryn Marshall is studying at the University of California, Berkeley, where she is pursuing a double major in History and Peace & Conflict Studies, specializing in the Civil Rights movement and nonviolence. She expects to graduate in 2007. As president of Bears for UNICEF, Kathryn has helped organize a benefit concert, a speakers forum, a 5k run/walk, and a petition campaign, for causes ranging from ending the war in Darfur to providing tsunami relief. She has worked as an undergraduate research apprentice helping to organize the Emma Goldman papers, and has served as the recruitment chair, and a member of the Standards Board, of her chapter of the Pi Beta Phi sorority. In Spring 2006, Kathryn is continuing her studies at the University of California at Berkeley, taking courses in peace and justice issues, specifically in Sub-Saharan Africa. She continues to volunteer and organize for UNICEF, and plans to spend the summer of 2006 in San Sebastián, Spain.
Sanaz Meshkinpour graduated in May 2004 from the University of California, Berkeley with a B.A. in political science with an emphasis in International Relations/Mid-East Politics. She studied abroad in the Fall of 2002 at the Anglo-American College in Prague, Czech Republic, and has worked as a research analyst at the Berkeley Roundtable on the International Economy, and as a campaign management intern with Global Exchange in San Francisco. Sanaz has also served as publicity director and board member of the Iranian Student Alliance in America (ISAA). She published a series of interviews with Iraqi immigrants in Prague, in The Prague Pill, an English-language newsmagazine, and has regularly contributed articles to other publications. Sanaz speaks some Spanish and is fluent in Persian. Sanaz Meshkinpour is working at Global Exchange, in San Francisco, as of July 2006. Sanaz’s job is to coordinate educational and policy tours to Israel/Palestine, Iran, Afghanistan, Syria/Lebanon, Jordan and Libya. The position also entails outreach to introduce Americans of different backgrounds to the Middle East and give them a chance to learn what is happening in these countries, “on the ground.” The outreach also aims to give the travelers an important chance to become involved in local and national campaigns and peace movements upon their return to the United States.
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Spring 2005
Nicholas Frampton earned his B.A. in Politics from the University of Nottingham in England, with specializations in: Issues and Concepts in Social Justice; the Government and Politics of the USA; Political Utopianism, Soviet Politics from 1917 to 1953; and The Politics of Democratic Spain. He has worked at GlaxoSmithKline in Worthing, England; and at the Department of Work and Pensions, also in Worthing, among other posts. Nicholas has traveled extensively throughout Europe, as well as to Fiji, Mexico, and South Africa. His interests include soccer, surfing, and music, including organizing a weekly student/community music event at Nottingham.
Stacey Olson received her B.A. from the University of Wisconsin, Madison last December with a double major in International Studies and Spanish. She studied the previous year in Madrid, and since last summer has worked at the Interfaith Coalition for Worker Justice in Madison, mediating between employees and employers to resolve work issues, translating for clients who speak only Spanish, and generally advocating for worker rights. Previously, Stacey worked as a literacy intern at the Madison Area Literacy Council teaching English and helping with fundraisers, and as a tutor at the Centro Hispano Juventud Program in Madison. Her academic interests include developing countries, Russian politics, and African international relations.
Rowena Espíritu Paz is majoring in International Studies-Political Science at UCSD, with a minor in Chinese Studies, and is graduating in June 2007. After graduation, Rowena plans to move to the San Francisco Bay Area, as she has accepted a position with Google. From June 2005 to January 2006, Rowena studied at the UC-Peking University Joint Center for International Studies in Beijing. At UCSD, Rowena was an active member of the Chancellor’s Undergraduate Leadership and Diversity Initiative; as a UCSD College Ambassador; and as an Orientation Leader at Eleanor Roosevelt College. Rowena also interned at the Victim/Witness Protection Program of the Fullerton County Court, and at the International Cooperative Child Care Center at UCSD. She served as the Secretary General in the Model United Nations Program at Whitney High School where she directed the creation of the MUN Research Database. Her interests include reading, politics, debate, theater, surfing, and cooking.
Annie Vikengren is studying for her M.A. in International Relations at Alliant International University, having received her B.A. in International Relations from Alliant. She has worked as mentor coordinator at Alliant, supervising 22 mentors and tutors and others, and organizing the "Student Opportunity Program" for at-risk Freshmen. Annie has been active in many other university activities, including as a Resident Advisor and Student Orientation Coordinator. Annie is a Swedish national who is bilingual in Swedish and English and worked as an activity coordinator at the Frolunda Refugee Camp in Frolunda, Sweden, managing "Open House" activities for 120 young refugee camp residents. She has traveled extensively in Europe, Southeast Asia, and North Africa.
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Fall 2004
Bree Del Sordo graduated from the University of California at Santa Cruz in Spring 2004, earning a B.A. in Politics, with a concentration in political theory, and a B.A. in Philosophy with an emphasis in continental theory. She studied at Cambridge University, UK during the summer of her senior year. Her undergraduate collegiate achievements include the Dean of Humanities Award in philosophy for a sixty-page senior thesis titled “Genesis and Job: An Investigation of Suffering and Healing,” a publication in the UCSC Philosophy Journal, and Honors in the division of politics upon graduation. After serving as an intern with the IPJ in the fall of 2004, Bree went on to volunteer with the IPJ program, WorldLink ~ Connecting Youth to Global Affairs. She then spent several months with the International Rescue Committee, San Diego Chapter. Bree is currently studying for a Master’s degree in Ethics, Peace and Global Affairs at American University in Washington, D.C. – a joint program administered through the School of International Service and the Department of Philosophy and Religion. She received an Award of Distinction on her Qualifying Paper, a requirement for successful completion of the M.A. and has maintained a 4.0 GPA. She has been a research assistant for Professor Farhang Erfani, and is currently a Facilitator for Amnesty International’s Human Rights Education Service Corps at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Office. Bree will participate in Global Majority’s Jordan Program “Promoting Peace Through Dialogue” held in Amman, Jordan this summer. She will also be a participant in American University’s Summer Peacebuilding Institute: “Youth, Conflict and Peacebuilding.”
Leslie Gabrielson graduated in May 2004 from the University of Southern California with a double major in political science and public relations. During the course of her studies she became interested in conflict resolution, particularly the way women can be instrumental in the peace-making and peace-keeping processes. During her internship, she is focusing on gender and peace and working on the first conference on UN Resolution 1325, the official inclusion of women in the peace process. She hopes to attend law school in the future and work in the area of gender law.
Joanna Haszek, a native of Poland, is a graduate in International Relations from the Poznan University of Economics, Poland. While at school, she was a part of the student organization Corpus Mundi, and has worked on two projects on social change: Nepal & India in 1998, and Zambia & Malawi in 2000. Visiting different cultures inspired her to focus more on human rights issues and conflict resolution. She lived for a year in Germany studying German language, history, political science and journalism. Currently she is interning at the Joan B. Kroc Institute of Peace & Justice, and hopes to work with different ethnic groups in post-conflict situations, with particular interest on Africa.
Amy Super graduated Fall 2003 from UC Berkeley with an interdisciplinary major in Contemporary International Relations. During her studies at Cal, Amy focused on Peace and Conflict Studies, and wrote her senior thesis on Humanitarian Intervention in the Rwandan Genocide. She spent a semester abroad in Paris where she studied the European Union and French politics and society and has also traveled to Israel on a fellowship to do community service projects and study the various communities living there together. She became familiar with the intricacies of international law while interning at Earthjustice International, an international environmental law firm in Oakland, California and honed her interest in public policy working for the Disability Compliance program for the City of Berkeley government. Amy plans to pursue a master's degree in International Affairs with a focus on African Studies.
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Summer 2004
Jeff Achen graduated from the University of North Dakota with his Masters in Communication in May 2005. Today he is the editor of Thisweek Apple Valley, a weekly newspaper serving a suburb of Minneapolis/St. Paul in Minnesota. He also continues his efforts to contribute to peace and justice in the academic field having presented a paper entitled “News Frames in Conflict: A Case Study of News Framing During Nepal's Maoist Insurgency” at the War, Media and Conflict conference at Marquette University in April 2007. Jeff and his wife Jennifer are also expecting their first baby, a girl, in September 2007.
Jared Leiderman graduated from Swarthmore College with High Honors in May 2005, where he majored in Religion and minored in Peace & Conflict Studies and English Literature. After working for economic development in central Ohio, Jared was awarded an Insight Fellowship to apply negotiation, effective communication, and conflict management techniques in a series of international placements. He focused on communication with senior mediators at the International Criminal Court in The Hague; on developing effective structures for reconciliation in northern Uganda; and on enhancing civil society through conflict management techniques in Jordan. In Fall 2007, Jared will pursue a Master of Public Policy at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, where he was awarded a Catherine B. Reynolds Foundation Fellowship in Social Entrepreneurship.
Natasha Mikha, after completing her B.A. in Peace Studies at the University of Notre Dame in May 2006, enrolled at the American University in Washington D.C. where she is currently pursuing a joint J.D./M.A. in Arabic. She has studied abroad at the American University in Cairo, and will be taking summer courses in international law in The Hague, Netherlands, through the T.M.C. Asser Institute; the courses are International Criminal Law and International Approaches to Terrorism. Natasha is also a Research Associate for the Public International Law and Policy Group, a global pro bono law firm providing free legal assistance to states involved in conflicts.
Nicole Thompson recently graduated from the University of California, San Diego with a BA in International Studies and a minor in Spanish Literature. She spent two weeks in Oaxaca, Mexico after the IPJ internship, and is currently interning at the National Democratic Institute in Washington, D.C. She is working with the Political Party Development office to research and develop programs that strengthen political parties by improving their financial transparency, public accountability and internal structuring. Through NDI she also works with the Latin America and Caribbean team. She plans to attend graduate school.
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Spring 2004
Dawoon (Donna) Chung received her M.A. from the University of San Diego's Graduate Program in Peace and Justice Studies in summer 2004. Subsequently, during the fall of 2004, she was selected to be a Writing Assistant for the Institute for Peace & Justice's Women PeaceMakers Program. Donna worked with Shreen Saroor from Sri Lanka, documenting her peacemaking story and writing a narrative that will be published with the other women peacemakers' stories. During the summer of 2005, Donna worked with the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Seoul, South Korea, for four months as an External Relations Intern, where she was involved in organizing a series of World Refugee Day events. In the fall of 2005 she began post graduate research in peace studies at Bradford University, in the United Kingdom. Her research theme is the role of civil society in building conflict resolution capacity in politically transitional countries.
Erina Fischer graduated from the University of California, Irvine, with a B.A. in International Studies. Erin followed up her internship at the IPJ with an internship at Project Concern International (an international health and development organization in San Diego, California), in order to gain a better understanding of nonprofit relief efforts in the developing world. She is currently applying for graduate studies and hopes to enroll for the fall 2005 semester as a student of international conflict resolution. Her long-term goals include working for a non- governmental organization to address the implications of conflict on women's and children's rights.
Hilary Stauffer graduated from law school at the University of San Diego in May 2005. She received her B.A. from James Madison University with a degree in International Affairs and a minor in Spanish. Throughout law school she has focused on international law and hopes to work for an NGO in Europe upon graduation. In addition to international law, Hilary has also become interested in immigrant, refugee and asylum issues. To that end, she completed an internship with Casa Cornelia, a public interest law firm that focuses on asylum for indigent refugees. She has also interned at the U.S. Immigration Court in San Diego, and currently works for the immigration law firm of Larrabee & Zimmerman. Since leaving the intern program at the IPJ, Hilary has served as a volunteer for Institute events. In July 2005, she sat for the California Bar exam, and then temporarily relocated back home to the Washington DC area before beginning a six-month internship in Geneva, Switzerland. Hilary will be working for the NGO "International Bridges to Justice," a group dedicated to helping establish Legal Aid organizations in China, Cambodia, and Vietnam, based on the principles enumerated in the U.N.'s Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
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Fall 2003
Lara Cunanan, after completing her internship with the IPJ, joined the staff as the Internship Coordinator for the Spring 2004 term. In October 2004, she will begin her graduate studies at the University of York in England, where she will be a student in the MA program on Post-war Recovery Studies. While pursuing her masters degree she intends to focus her attention on issues concerning the rehabilitation and social reintegration of children in post-conflict societies.
Kim Edmunds, prior to joining the IPJ as an intern, worked as an English teacher in Barcelona, Spain after graduating from Emory University in 2002. She is currently completing her first year as a law student at the University of San Diego's School of Law where she plans to focus on International Law.
Mercede Goates is currently a second year law student at the University of San Diego's School of Law where she focuses on International Law and Human Rights issues. In addition to attending law school, she volunteers with the San Diego Lawyer Program in the Domestic Violence Restraining Order Clinic.
Michael James graduated from the University of California, San Diego, in June 2003 with a degree in Political Science/International Relations. He is currently working as a freelance abstract writer and planning to attend graduate school in the Fall of 2004.
Vanessa Lucas graduated from the University of San Diego in December 2003 with joint J.D. and MBA degrees. While attending USD she was actively involved in mediation training, the Human Rights Education Programs, and the San Diego Volunteer Lawyers Program “AIDS Team.” After graduation, she moved to the East Coast to pursue her various interests. In the spring of 2006, Vanessa has represented the National Lawyers Guild on a visit to the Philippines, organized by the GABRIELA Network and co-sponsored by the Vanguard Foundation, to investigate “the prosecution, the extrajudicial killings, the targeting of women leaders, and the Philippine and the U.S. Government’s role in these human rights violations."
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Summer 2003
Carolina Cometto graduated in 2006 from UCSD's Graduate School of International Relations and Pacific Studies. Her studies focused on International Development and Nonprofit Management. Since then she has been working at Winrock International, an international development NGO based in DC. As part of the New Business Unit, Carolina assists in preparing grant proposals in a variety of program areas including agriculture, the environment and civic empowerment and engagement.
Abigail Ruane is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Southern California’s (USC’s) School of International Relations (B.A., Psychology, Cornell University, 2002; M.A., International Relations, USC, 2006). She is fascinated by opportunities for intercultural conflict resolution and has visited over 20 countries. Abigail has enjoyed assisting in teaching and researching about international conflict resolution and gender at USC, and her dissertation draws studies how women’s rights have been negotiated in the United Nations. She has also advocated for student interests at USC, edited the Journal of Public and International Affairs, published in International Studies Perspectives, and interned in the U.S. Senate and in conflict-resolution-focused nongovernmental organizations. After graduation, Abigail hopes to pursue a career that promotes public policy which enables more just conflict-resolution practices and greater security and opportunities for vulnerable people. Abigail was recently awarded a Josephine De Karman Trust Dissertation Fellowship, a nationally competitive fellowship, which she intends to use to help complete her dissertation in 2007/2008.
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Spring 2003
Keelia Bannon graduated from Saint Mary's College of California in 2002 and relocated to San Diego. She was first a volunteer at the IPJ and then was accepted as an intern. She stayed on as a research assistant during Summer 2003 and in Fall 2003 began teaching at an elementary school and pursuing her Teaching Credential.
Anna Gabriele graduated from the University of San Diego in 2003, and enrolled in and completed USD's Paralegal Certificate program with a specialty in Business and Environmental Law. She is currently searching for a position in a law firm as a paralegal preferably in business or intellectual property law.
Diana Vlasova graduated from USD in 2005 with a B.A. in International Relations with a Business Minor. After working for a time as a Legal Assistant in the Law Offices of James L. Pocrass, in Beverly Hills, she enrolled in Whittier Law School and plans on graduating in 2009.
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Fall 2002
Amir Masliyah is a Foreign Service Officer with the U.S. State Department. He is currently posted to the Consular Section at Embassy in San Salvador, El Salvador. After his internship at the IPJ, Amir worked as an Economic Analyst at the San Diego Association of Governments where he helped publish a report related to transportation and binational border issues along the U.S.-Mexico border. He then served as the Director of Operations at ACCION Southern California, a non-profit organization that provides credit and training to groups who have historically faced barriers to obtaining business financing, such as women and minorities. Amir holds a bachelor's degree in Economics and a minor in Education from the University of California, Berkeley.
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Summer 2002
Chelsea Hanson, after her internship at the IPJ, spent a semester of study in Prague, and then another semester in Kenya. Chelsea interned during Summer 2003 for the Central Asia Institute (www.ikat.org), a grassroots organization, located in Bozeman, MT., which builds schools in northern Pakistan and the rural mountain regions of Central Asia. Central Asia Institute is the only organization in the area permitted to build secular schools for Muslim children and one of its goals is to increase female enrollment in the schools. Chelsea anticipates graduating from Connecticut College in Spring 2004.
Jael Jordan is pursuing a J.D. and an M.A. in International Relations at the USD School of Law and anticipates graduation in May 2004. During summer 2003 she studied Comparative Criminal Justice & International Human Rights in Dublin, Ireland, and then Russian Law and East-West Trade Law in Russia. She is fluent in Spanish and also can speak some French. As an officer in the Black Law Students Association at USD, she is closely affiliated with the undergrad's Black Student Union. Jael received a B.A. in International Studies & Political Science, with a minor in Spanish from Whittier College. In addition she studied in Salamanca Spain for five months in 2000 at the University of Salamanca, and interned with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees in Geneva, Switzerland during the summer of 2000. Her focus is currently International Law and she plans to take the Foreign Service exam next spring. She looks forward to a career in either diplomacy, or work in an NGO (most likely the UN) or an NGO that focuses on human rights or sustainable development. In addition she is also pursuing a gospel-singing career.
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Spring 2002
Mark Cottrell graduated from the USD School of Law in May 2002 near the top of his class and was honored at graduation with the Justice Brown Award, recognition for a student with the greatest increase in academic achievement fro the first to third year of study. After graduation he passed the California Bar Exam and began working for the U.S. Department of Justice. Mark had been recruited through the Attorney General's Honor Program and was assigned to the Executive Office for Immigration review. Since October 2002 he has been splitting his time between Las Vegas, NV and Phoenix, AZ, assisting five Immigration Judges and hearing cases at those sites. Mark was one of five law clerks selected for a second year assignment and will be assigned to San Diego, CA in October 2003.
Beth Rogers-Witte graduated from the University of San Diego in 2002 and relocated to the Washington, D.C. area shortly after graduation. After spending several months in 2005 with a relief organization in Aceh, Indonesia, she decided to pursue a Master's degree in Global Health and a Master's Degree in International Development Studies at the George Washington University. Currently she is taking a one-year leave of absence from school to work in southern Sudan for the international NGO, Mercy Corps, after completing a summer internship in Sudan with the same organization in 2006. In Sudan, she manages a regional office in a village along the border of north and south Sudan for a USAID-funded civil society program called LINCS – Localizing Institutional Capacity in Sudan. She will return to graduate studies in D.C. in September 2007.
For a first-person report on her time as a humanitarian aid worker in Indonesia after the December 2004 tsunami, click here.
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Fall 2001
Hany Besada is the Senior Researcher working on the Weak and Fragile States research program at the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI) in Waterloo, Canada. CIGI ’s initiative focuses on the challenges posed by weak and fragile states. The initiative incorporates a multilateral approach to finding sustainable solutions. The Weak and Fragile States research theme aims are essentially three-fold. First, the research seeks to define what is meant by weak and fragile states and to look at some of the indicators of state fragility. Secondly, it tries to define the role of international institutions and national governments in responding to the challenges posed by fragile states. Thirdly, it seeks to create a better understanding of the risks to international peace and security.Hany Besada’s research interests include African economic development, Middle East studies, international diplomacy, and conflict resolution. He holds an M.A. and a B.A. in International Relations from Alliant International University (formerly U.S International University) in San Diego, U.S., where he specialiZed in peace and security studies. Prior to joining CIGI, he worked as the Business in Africa Researcher at the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA) in Johannesburg, South Africa. Prior to that, he worked a research manager at Africa Business Direct, a trade and investment-consulting firm in Johannesburg. While studying in the U.S., Hany Besada worked at a number of nongovernmental and governmental research institutes and offices. In addition to the Institute, these include Amnesty International, the office of U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein, and the United Nations Association.
Leila Shifteh graduated from McGill University, Montreal, Quebec in June 2001 with an Honors degree in Political Science and a minor in Economic and Political Development, and is now enrolled in a two-year Masters Program in Conflict and Security studies at l'Institut d'Etudes Politiques in Paris, France. In Fall 2003 she was on an academic exchange at Columbia University in New York City to study at the School for International and Public Affairs and the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. While in New York City, she was an intern at UNHCR where she assisted with research on gender and small arms issues for refugee security. She will receive her degree in June 2004 and hopes to work at the UN High Commissioner for Refugees in Geneva.
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Summer 2001
Sarah Laubach graduated from law school (UC Berkeley-Boalt Hall) in May 2005 and is spending a year clerking for Judge Tashima of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in Pasadena. The clerkship exposes her to many areas of the law, including asylum and immigration law. Sarah is applying for fellowships at some non-profit legal organizations in the Bay Area following the clerkship.
Tiffany Santos graduated from UC Berkeley in 2001 with a degree in Political Science. After her internship at the IPJ she worked as a legal assistant for a Family Law practitioner in San Diego. She entered law school at UCLA in Fall 2002. During Summer 2003 she worked for Federal District Judge Irma Gonzalez as a Judicial Extern in San Diego.
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Spring 2001
Heidi Knuff, after her internship at the IPJ, graduated from University of San Diego in 2001. She then worked at an international children's camp in England. She is currently working at Pacific Intercultural Exchange in San Diego overseeing the placement and counseling of high school aged foreign exchange students throughout the U.S.
