Ron Brown Scholar Leadership and Service (Sept. 2011)
Jeanine Pollard (2005) graduated from Boston University's Deaf Education Master's Program last May. She is beginning her first teaching job at the Delaware School for the Deaf. She teaches biology, chemistry, health, and earth science to 22 of the most motivated high school students she has met. Looking forward to building partnerships with local researchers in Philly and Delaware to provide opportunities for her students to answer their essential question for the year, "What do scientists do?"
Mya Thompson (2007) is currently working as the Director of Operations for the Michael Phelps Foundation. She is currently planning the Michael Phelps Foundation Golf Classic which will be held in Atlantic City mid-September of this year. She loves her job and it is keeping her VERY busy. She's looking forward to learning the ropes in this new position and cannot wait for the 2012 Olympics in London!
Ronnie Tisdale (2006) is in his first year of medical school in the M.D./M.P.H. program at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City. He also has an extremely small role as an 'Olympic Sprinter' in the upcoming Sacha Baron Cohen feature film The Dictator. Look for his face in your local grocery store's 'Dr. Pepper' aisle.
Cameron Drake (2006) is the busiest he's ever been in his life. Returning to Stanford for a fifth year Cameron went back to school for the free tickets to the Andrew Luck show this football season, to pen a screenplay on the founding story of Stanford, and finish getting the most possible out of the best university in the world. Cameron continues building the company that he founded (ohmmusic.com) and is prototyping a revolutionary new web music interface as well as managing social media and content for a small publishing company. Finally, Cameron is working on his own hip-hop/Rock/comedy mixtape inspired by the role he played a few years ago in the musical "Rent".
Brandon Cook (2003) is just beginning the second year of his PhD program in Medieval Studies at the University of Notre Dame. After his travels in Sicily this summer, he has decided to continue his research on the court of twelfth-century Palermo and the history of the veneration of the saints there, specifically in relation to the Palatine Chapel.
Margaret Ivey (2007) just moved to Cincinnati, OH to start an acting internship with Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park. She is understudying Celia in As You Like It on the mainstage while learning the role of Sophie in What's Buggin' Greg?, a show for children that will tour the tri-state area through November. She is excited to be part of the day-to-day operations of a major regional theatre and to get to know her new city.
Andrea Headley (2010) is currently double majoring in Human and Social Development, and Criminology. She was recently featured in an online article: The Institute for Advanced Journalism Studies entitled "2011 Black Overachievers Report." She is currently working on graduating a year early to then pursue a Masters in Community and Social Change, and then get her JD!
Crystal Paul (2004) is working as an Editorial Assistant/Assistant to the Director at Beacon Press, a non-profit, social justice press in Boston.
William Chichester, III (2001) is a Senior Campus Recruiter for Capital One and manages the bank’s highest yielding core schools: University of Virginia, Duke University, Washington University in St. Louis and Georgetown University. To enhance Capital One’s diversity efforts, he's partnering with Management Leadership for Tomorrow's (MLT) Career Prep Program. Outside of work, he's helping to charter the Collegiate 100, an auxiliary organization to 100 Black Men of America, Inc., at the University of Virginia. The new chapter will implement mentoring and tutoring programs for young black males who have few or no positive role models in the greater Charlottesville, VA area. On November 12, 2011, William will speak at the 33rd Annual AISES National Conference in Minneapolis to promote college readiness within the American Indian and Alaskan Native communities.
Alvin Hough, Jr. (2002) is about to embark on an exciting adventure around the country. He is the Musical Director/Conductor/Keyboard 1 player of the first national tour of the 2010 Tony-Award winner for best musical, MEMPHIS. While the show will remain on Broadway, an entire new cast and crew has been assembled to hit the road starting in October. The first year is booked, with intentions of booking a second while out on the first year of travel. Check out www.memphisthemusical.com to see if we're coming to a city near you!
Ihotu Ali (2003) sends her warmest greetings (mbote!) from Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) where she is working with UNFPA, UNICEF, and a local university on a collaborative effort to assess Congolese health facilities and their capacity to safely guide mothers through pregnancy and childbirth complications. She will soon return to continue this work from New York, while also supporting the Harlem-based creative community, "The Speakeasy" which has grown to nearly 200 members and has branches in progress in Washington DC and DRC. Join us second Saturdays or on facebook! She also just discovered a new favorite author, Octavia Butler (Parable of the Sower).
Amanda K. Johnson (2002) is a third-year medical student at Harvard Medical School currently completing a month rotation in community-based psychiatry at the Cambridge Health Alliance. Next week she starts the Medicine & Management course for her MD/MBA program. In her very limited free time, she remains involved in various efforts to strengthen primary care education.
Danielle Allen (2005) is starting her first year of a three-year joint MPA-MBA degree program at Harvard Kennedy School and Stanford Graduate School of Business. At HKS this year, she will be focusing on education policy and politics. She is also (mentally) preparing for her first Boston winter.
Maria Velazquez Earley (2000) is working on her proposal and third comprehensive exam. She recently published an article in WisCon Chronicles 5: Writing and Ethnicity. She has also became a book reviewer for Strange Horizons (http://www.strangehorizons.com/), the interview editor for FemSpec (http://femspec.org/), and received the Women of Color Caucus Graduate Student Essay award, to be presented at the National Women's Studies Association Conference in Atlanta.
Michael Robinson (2011) is now entering his freshman year at Yale University. He plans to either pursue a major in political science or physics. Getting acclimated to college life, activities, and its workload are his main priorities at the moment. He hopes to get involved in service projects at Yale and the greater New Haven area.
William Tarpeh (2008) is currently in the RBS office! He is headed off to Stanford for his senior year. He will be serving as the Resident Tutor in Ujamaa, Stanford’s Black theme house, directing Talisman, his a cappella group, and working with a mentor program called The Phoenix scholars that pairs Stanford students with minority, low-income, and first-generation high school seniors to help them navigate the college admissions process. He is currently trying to figure out what to do with his life, but strongly considering Masters and PhD programs in Civil and Environmental Engineering with a focus on water and sanitation in developing countries.
Dr. Carmelle Norice, (1997) - heeeyyyaah Scholahs!!! I'm finishing intern year in Internal Medicine at Johns Hopkins Hospital. Down the line....hope to get involved in healthcare/pharma entrepreneurship in Nigeria. Hope to collaborate with RBSs/their contacts to make an impact.
Crystal Boyd (2006) is currently producing and acting in the webseries, "The Girls," with 1990 Lex Productions in NYC...filming continues to be a treat for her, and it's a pleasure to work with fellow RBS Austin Henderson! She was cast in the film, "Poses," which will be shooting in Connecticut in late September and will be entered into several film festivals. Crystal also finished a reading of, "Rising," as part of the Castillo Theater's 2011 Mario Fratti-Fred Newman Political Playwriting Contest; she played Reena, a young Gullah woman living in St. Helena Island, South Carolina on the eve of Emancipation in 1862. She is working with Crystal Venning (06!) as a college essay tutor with The Write Stuff. AND she is ecstatic to be teaching in India in the New Year! www.crystalnboyd.com
Melanie Newell (2010) is currently a sophomore at Washington University in St. Louis. She is considering a dual degree program with majors in Psychology and Marketing, and a Writing minor. Melanie is also the Event Coordinator for the chess team and the Treasurer for Black Anthology. She works on campus for the Calling Center, calling alumni to help support scholarships and financial aid at WashU. She is a volunteer chess teacher for a nearby elementary school as well.
Robert Brutus (2001) has spent the past two years teaching Latin and creative writing at the high-performing, no excuses urban charter school Boston Prep in Hyde Park, MA. This school year is his first teaching at the Landon School in Bethesda, MD. He continues to teach Latin and advise students in addition to sponsoring the chess club and coaching strength & conditioning. In his personal life he continues to "cultivate his own garden" by meditating daily, reading (currently Infinite Jest, Plato's Apology and Walden) and working on his squash game.
Alex Wood (2003) is working as an account executive for CREATETHE GROUP (CTG) in New York. She's currently managing e-commerce and digital projects for Jurlique, Net-A-Porter, Neiman Marcus, Bulgari, Montblanc, and LVMH. Alex is also putting her culinary degree to good use by auctioning off cooking lessons for CTG's Race for the Cure benefit auction this fall.
Dextina Booker (2011) is beginning her first year of classes at MIT. She was lucky enough to gain access to the Media lab as a first year student by way of the Media Arts and Science Freshman learning community which is open to only 25 freshman per year. She is excited to try out for the dance team her at MIT. She has already began to apply what little engineering she has already picked up at MIT and is already in the process of turning a shopping cart into a couch.
Kiah Thorn (2008) is shocked that it's senior year already! She's wrapping up her International Relations major, in the process of launching a college preparation and mentorship program for youth in her home community (Kick-Off is THIS Saturday!), and delving deep into her soul to figure out her next steps after graduation. Options include a Fulbright fellowship, teaching elementary school with Teach For America, pursuing a M.A. in Latin American Studies from Stanford or NYU or OTHER. Decisions, Decisions... mostly I'm just blessed :)
Gabrielle Cole (2009) - Just got back from summer travels around Europe. Finished 5th in the 23 and under World Rowing Championships and is looking forward to a fun and successful junior year!
Veronica Threadgill (2001) is currently working as an audit manager at Deloitte. She is also in her third semester of her MBA program at Baruch College.
Derick Gross (1999) and his band Aqua Cherry are getting ready to perform at the Utica Music and Arts Festival, and working on new material for their second studio album.
Keon Pearson (2011) is entering his first year at Harvard, and will be pursuing a concentration in Molecular and Cellular Biology or Philosophy. He is involved in the Harvard Marching Band, and plans to join the Harvard Glee Club or the Collegium Musicum, as well as the Harvard College Consulting Group.
Sarah LaBrie (2003) recently moved to Brooklyn to begin her appointment as a Writers in the Public Schools Fellow at New York University. She will volunteer weekly as a fiction instructor at a lower east side public school, while spending the rest of her time writing. Her short story "In The City of Our Lady the Queen" is forthcoming in the literary magazine Epoch this fall.
Angela Smedley (2000) is well into her year+ as a deferred associate working in the Legal Department of the National Basketball Players Association. She's enjoying the opportunity to participate in the inner workings of collective bargaining leading up to and during the NBA lockout, and plans to apply her experience to her work at the firm of Dewey & LeBoeuf once she returns to the office in January. After a recent move, Angela is also taking full advantage of her new neighborhood, NYC's Upper West Side.
Chris Lyle (2008) - Is entering his senior year at UNC-CH. Currently, he is seeking full-time employment within financial services and studying for the GMAT that he plans to take in December. As president of his chapter, he is also busy trying to help the Theta Omicron chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc win national Chapter of the Year.
Raymond Grissom (2008) Began his Junior Year at Yale in Film Studies and Biomedical Engineering. Currently he is designing his own class with the possibility of it being taught for future years at Yale on the Skill set of Writing Fiction from Prose to Screenplay. Over the summer, he worked in Buenos Aires, Argentina and São Paulo, Brasil in Publicity and Advertising for Latin American and US Corporations. His etiquette for Pepsi Kick will be displayed in January of 2012 in Mexico, Cetnral America, and Argentina.
Mondaire Jones (2005) is exceedingly blessed and, above all else, thankful. First, he had a fantastic experience helping to prosecute white-collar and other crimes during his internship in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. And now, after a few intensive weeks of interviews, he is in a position to choose between job offers from some of the most prestigious law firms in the world, including his first choice. He is looking forward to learning more in law school this year and to the responsibilities his new editor’s position on the Harvard Civil Rights-Civil Liberties Law Review entails. But first … Martha’s Vineyard.
Joseph Browne (2005) is currently working at Brown University supporting under-represented students in the sciences. He reflects often on the academic disparities among different groups in the sciences and how he can, with a small program and a smaller budget, make a difference. He sees great value in his work, but keeps eye out for potential next steps.
Megan Donovan-Davis (1997): I am still living in NYC and was recently promoted to Senior Fashion Planner at Bloomingdales.com. My responsibility encompasses buying key basics as well as managing all financial aspects of the business for all of women's shoes online and developing my direct report. On Labor day I will be celebrating my 2nd wedding anniversary.
Jeff Nelson (2006) currently lives in Palo Alto and is working as an engineer at Palantir Technologies. Jeff is also busy writing code and building a new technology startup he founded to create a virtual mentoring platform to assist high schools with the college application process. Finally, Jeff is preparing to teach computer science next summer to high school students participating in a residential program housed at Stanford.
Carolanne Sanders (2009) has entered her junior year at Vanderbilt University. This semester she is assisting a graduate student in the Peabody College of Education and Human Development with her dissertation study, which focuses on symbolic learning in 2.5 to 4 year olds. In her free time, she keeps busy by researching graduate programs in Anthropology or museum studies as well as fulfilling duties as vice president of her sorority and Advertising Manager at Vanderbilt Student Media. She looks forward to getting to know her fellow Commodores, Kaila Gilbert (2011) and Desmond Garner (2011)!
Qaren Quartey(2011) is now in Cambridge, MA, entering her first year at Harvard College. She is exploring different academic fields to her heart's content. Qaren plans to concentrate in Molecular Cellular Biology , with a secondary field in Studies of Women, Gender, and Sexuality. College is a blast so far and she looks forward to enjoying herself thoroughly.
Petra Sander (2000) is starting her second week as a Yerby Postdoctoral Fellow at Harvard School of Public Health. She defended her dissertation on alcohol and HIV acquisition in July and is looking forward to doing more research in the areas of HIV and pediatric health in the future.
Koryse Woodrooffe (2001): is in her third year of pediatric residency at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center and is applying for fellowship in neonatology. She is anxiously awaiting to start her career as a neonatologist and has recently published her first article in a medical journal on the use an antibiotics in asymptomatic neonates with risk factors for sepsis.
T.J. Berrings (2000) graduated from Stanford for the second time in June - this time with an MBA - and is currently working at a stealth-mode start-up in Palo Alto, CA.
J.Paulson Tuffet (1997) is working on developing an entreprenuerial venture with international reach from the sunny Florida bases of Tampa and Miami. He is also planning to take the Florida Bar in July 2012 and considering entering solo practice.
Camille Everhart (2009) returned from a 2 month stay in Osaka, Japan, attending an intensive language and culture immersion program. She has just taken her language department's placement exam to continue her study of Japanese, and looks forward to starting her Junior year.
Folake Dosu (2007) returned last month to the best city in the world, Chicago, where she is getting involved in the entrepreneurial scene. She is an in-office volunteer for Chicago Ideas Week, a series of talks and events organized to promote Chicago as an innovation hub. She is also starting a tech start-up and strives to work with an incubator in the area to turn her business plan into a reality (so far, reception from VCs has been promising!). She is still working on The Birthday Party Project, which has held large-scale parties for refugee youth in Chicago. This time she is planning a surprise Veterans' Day luncheon at a veterans' hospital with the help of middle-school students at which they will present handmade thank-you cards. She will also be taking those same students to the National Veterans Art Museum beforehand as a service-learning project. Wish me luck!
Robert Kabera (2007) is currently working as a Marketing Specialist for Siemens Energy Inc in San Ramon, CA. After winning at this year's Stanford University BASES Product Showcase, he is continuing the launching of Access Solar (www.access-solar.com), a firm whose aim is to provide cleantech (solar-powered) appliances to the developing world. He will be spending this fall in Botswana and hopefully next spring in India conducting filed testing & evaluation of the firms innovated/invented devices such as solar cook stoves, ovens, water purifiers, chargers and blankets.
Elizabeth Alicea (1998) is in her second year of law school at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law. After being out of school for several years and working in the field of entertainment, returning to the academic world was quite a challenge, but Elizabeth enjoyed her studies and adjusted well to the change, even earning a position as a staff editor for Cardozo's Law Review. This summer she interned for Judge Robert Patterson of the Southern District of New York and this fall she will be interning for Judge Denny Chin in the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. She hopes to pursue a career in entertainment or employment law after graduation.
Aaron Gravely (2009) is beginning his Junior year at Harvard University. He is still pre-med and plans to apply to medical school in the upcoming application cycle (2012-2013). This year at Harvard, Aaron is serving as President of KeyChange (an A Cappella group) and Director of Publicity for the Health Policy Society.
Julius Mitchell (2009) recently returned from a summer internship with the Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats (CALD) based in Manila, Philippines. His work in political party management took him to Malaysia, Singapore, and all over the province of Luzon in the Philippines where he was able to connect with legislators, activists, and political figures from all over Asia. He is excited about his upcoming junior year and hopes to retain and apply his newfound knowledge of Asian and international politics in future Political Science courses at Yale. He looks forward to his new position as head recruitment coordinator at the Yale Office of Undergraduate Admissions as well as his appointment to business manager of his a cappella group, Shades of Yale.
Marquise McGraw (2002) is beginning his third year of the economics Ph.D. program at the University of California, Berkeley. His fields of specialization are labor economics and urban economics. Working with Berkeley economics faculty members, he recently published research examining the diffusion of energy-efficient building technology in office buildings. He is currently working to define his research agenda and to continue to carry out high-quality, high-impact, empirically-grounded research. In addition, in his role as Graduate Student Instructor, he teaches two 30-student sections of an introductory economics course.
Dora Duru (2008) is studying abroad in Barcelona and trying to figure out how to use Spanish in any career she chooses. She is already in senior year and is dreading questions about life after college.
Robert Poole (2011) will be an incoming freshman at Stanford this fall and he absolutely cannot wait. He just got back from a month long Stanford engineering academy, where he was able to get to know the campus, faculty and curriculum that he'll be dealing with. Robert plans to major in mechanical engineering and get music, science and technology minor as well. During the year, he hopes to also be a part of an a capella group, NSBE, and the spring production of The Color Purple. Good luck, fellow freshmen!
Mike Anderson (2000) has just begun a research year at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. He'll be working in the field of cardiovascular imaging, helping to find new ways to improve emergency room and long-term care for people with coronary artery disease. And he'll get to look at some pretty pictures! (Seriously, google "coronary CTA" or "SPECT" images and you'll see for yourself!)
Saundra Quinlan (2001) recently left Overbrook Entertainment as the Director of Business Intelligence, and has decided to remain in LA to focus on herself (read: getting back into shape) until she determines her next career move. She is currently working with Hill Harper's foundation MANifest Your Destiny on two projects, including preliminary research for an international travel program for youth. Since in LA, Saundra (a MIT graduate) is considering finally taking acting classes, so if you know of any roles - let her know.
Chanel Washington (2011) is very busy adjusting to life at Harvard. She is enjoying her classes, especially a special seminar on Presidential Elections. She is very excited to get involved in activities, hoping to be a part of Mock Trial, Health Leads, the Black Student Association, the Harvard Democrats and volunteering for special needs children.
Chaz Beasley (2004) is starting his second year as a law student at Georgetown in Washington, DC. He recently completed summer internships at the state Supreme Court and the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in Raleigh, NC.
Efren Bonner (2007) is enjoying his first couple of weeks of teaching as a Teach For America corps. member. The teaching is hard, the hours are long. Then again, he's back home in Denver with cool mountain air, which is nice. Life is good.
Ethan Monreal-Jackson (2008) is beginning his last year at Wharton at Penn. He cannot wait to graduate. He's trying to get a consulting (or finance-related) job in Dallas, Texas. And he's looking forward to regular season and college football.
Lucas Habte (2007) just moved to Australia for a year on a travelling fellowship from Harvard. He is currently living in Alice Springs, Northern Territory, working with the Central Australian Aboriginal Media Association on a new 15-part series about indigenous languages. He is very much enjoying the changes associated with living in a small desert town in the middle of the outback."
Donielle Buie (2000) along with her husband, Cullen (professor at MIT), are serving as Associate Housemasters in MIT's newest undergraduate dorm, Maseeh Hall. Donielle is an Associate Sales Director in pharma / biotech market research with AlphaDetail and just returned to work after being home with her son, Jeremiah, who is now 8 months old!
Brandon Hill (2011): Brandon has recently began his Year On project, which is his year long global assessment of education policy and achievement disparities. His travels have brought him first to Morehouse College for a semester. At the Alma Mater of Rev. Dr. King, Jr., Brandon is analyzing the role of the HBCU in Black scholarship in America. This spring he will embark on a Semester at Sea to undertake assessments in eleven nations across the globe. He will begin his freshman year at Stanford University in the fall of 2012.
Brent Cash (2004) is working as a marketing engineer for Baltimore Aircoil Company, helping to develop sales tools and guide new product development. He is eagerly awaiting the birth of his first child, a daughter named Aerys, in late October.
Tamika Bailey Smith (2002) has just started her second year as an internal medicine resident at UCSF Medical Center. She is still determined to be a primary care physician when she is done with residency and hopes to innovate chronic disease management in the outpatient setting. She is amazed each day by her dedicated husband, Eric, and their beautiful 3 year old daughter, Bailey, who can now recite her favorite books by heart! She loves the greenness and diversity of San Francisco, although living in the Bay comes with a hefty price tag :)
Charday Adams (2010) just started her sophomore year at USC where she is double majoring in African-American Studies and Economics. She is in the final stages of creating a spoken word collective and is learning how to play the double bass. The Sacramento Observer recently named her one of the top 30 young leaders and professionals from the Sacramento Area.
Jay Williams (1999) is beginning his third year of PhD studies in theology at Harvard University (Graduate School of Arts and Sciences), in which he studying for his comprehensive examinations and serving as a teaching fellow for two classes: "19th century religious thought: Theology and the critique of religion" and "Introduction to Ministry Studies". In addition, Jay is the lead pastor at Glendale United Methodist Church in Everett, Massachusetts.
Ryan Hatten (2007) just graduated from the University of Chicago where he earned a Bachelor's of Arts in Law, Letters & Society. He just moved to the Boston area and is currently beginning his first year of law school at Harvard Law School where he will focus his curriculum on Intellectual Property, with the ultimate goal of graduating with a JD and an MBA.
Karla J. Hardy (2001) is moving back to Washington, D.C.! Leaving her work as an Assistant District Attorney in Palestine, Texas, Karla will start in early October as an Associate in the Washington, D.C. office of Hogan Lovells LLP, an international law firm. Until then, catch her at RBS Jazz on the Lawn, for a week in Miami, and at Volunteers Weekend at UVA Law!
Jasmine Browne (2007) is currently working at Procter & Gamble in Cincinnati, Ohio as a Product Supply engineer for the Mechanical Technologies group at the Corporate Engineering Technology Labs. Her first project will be working on speeding up the production rate of Pampers Easy-Ups. Currently she is looking into joining the Young William Cooper Procter Society, a P&G group of people from 0-7 years, who donate their time and money to the United Way foundation to improve the surrounding community.
Morgan Harper (2001) finished clerking for the Honorable Judge Algenon L. Marbley of the Southern District of Ohio in June. She spent the rest of the summer traveling around Senegal and studying French. Later this month, Morgan will move to New York City to start as an associate at the law firm Cravath, Swaine, & Moore.
Victoria Tate (2004) just started her second year of medical school at Yale School of Medicine. She had a great summer as SMDEP director, working with undergrads from all over the country interested in going into medicine and dentistry.
Tracy "Ty" Moore (2002) is busy with the start of the school year, inspiring and empowering inner-city youth to reach their full potential as leaders. For Leadership Scholars, he is executing a planned expansion into 20% more schools by the 2012 - 2013 school year and 60% more schools by the 2013 - 2014 school year. In addition, he is developing a strategic sales and marketing strategy for Jason's startup Mindblown Labs.
Geraldine Pierre (2004) is in her 2nd year of her PhD at Johns Hopkins School of Public Health in Health Policy and Management. She is currently taking health services research methods courses, working on her dissertation proposal, and interning at CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield in Baltimore, Maryland.
Jade Craig (2002) is in his third year of law school at Columbia University in New York. He is also serving as Editor-in-Chief of the Columbia Journal of Race and Law and is in the process of planning a symposium entitled "Show Me the Money: Race, the Debt Crisis and the Growing Wealth Gap." The symposium will welcome scholars, practicing lawyers, business professionals and activists from across the country to discuss the national divide between rich and poor and the impact of federal budget cuts on programs that benefit communities of color. Next year, he plans to begin a career in private practice, government and public policy or academia.
Jonathan Marable (2004) is now beginning his fourth year as a high school English teacher at Marshall Islands High School in the Republic of the Marshall Islands. He is also currently directing the Marshall Islands Gospel Choir, starting a Chapter of the Junior Statesmen of America, and making a yearbook for the high school. He is also serving as the Youth Director at his church and teaching Sunday school classes. He also looks forward to coaching sports teams again and possibly participating in the high school's first musical! Jonathan has been very entrenched in his work and activities, but is also thinking about the next step. He is thinking of working (probably as a teacher) and/or going to graduate school for Public Policy and/or Education.
Brandon Nicholson (2001) is enjoying the sun in Oakland, California, and doing his best to make his RBS contemporaries proud. He is working as a Social Scientist at Social Policy Research Associates, an independent policy research and evaluation firm. He is also extremely active in his Buddhist organization (SGI-USA) and getting ready to celebrate his first wedding anniversary at the end of the month.
Lisa Kelly (2006) is graduated with her Master's Degree in Education and is beginning a new adventure in her first of teaching at a public school in Berkeley, CA. When she's not teaching her diverse group of incredible fifth graders, you can find Lisa on a tennis court improving her USTA ranking or working with adopted youth for a local Oakland adoption organization.
Marco Ellis (1997) Is deeply committed to practicing general plastic and reconstructive surgery, however, he’s developed an interest in craniofacial surgery and plans on pursuing a fellowship that will further his knowledge in adult cosmetic and reconstructive surgery of the facial skeleton. He would like to work in a teaching hospital with a large referral base to give him opportunities to practice a wide range of surgical procedures.
Kristian Henderson (2005) was recently accepted to the DrPH program at Johns Hopkins School of Public Health and is still serving as an Administrative Fellow at Johns Hopkins Hospital. She is interested in exploring the role that health delivery systems play in eliminating health disparities. Kristian is also engaged, and will be getting married in July 2012!
Hana Page (2011) has completed the Summer Institute of Africana Studies and the PennCAP Pre-Freshman Program at the University of Pennsylvania. Hana will soon be starting her fall classes in the School of Engineering and Applied Science, and she is thrilled to be pursuing her interest in bioengineering and meeting amazing professors, professionals, and her peers.
Michael Mekonnen (2009) is back at MIT studying Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, and Mathematics after spending a wonderful summer interning at Google Inc. as a software engineer. Aside from the busy class schedule, he is serving as a lab assistant for a class in discrete mathematics, and he is also completing a project in which he and a professor at MIT develop a toolbox for the Geographic Information System (GIS) that enables a graph theoretic analysis of the centrality of entities in urban networks.