Alumni Directory Display

Ahyeong graduated from Messiah College with a BA in Sociology and Anthropology and minor in Psychology. Her passion for diversity steadily grew as she became exposed to different cultures at an early age. As an international student, she dedicated herself to bringing diversity to the campus through various involvements. As a research assistant at the Office of Institutional Research, she conducted an independent research project regarding prospective international students’ recruitment process in efforts to increase the total international student enrollment. During her academic career, she pursued various cross-cultural experiences. In Ecuador, she participated in the Street Children Project, assisting children with the development of academic and social skills, building nutrition and hygiene awareness, as well as learning English. In Rwanda, she participated both in an internship and independent research project related to child malnutrition and the role of agriculture in rural nutrition. In Fiji, as a field researcher, she explored the sociological impact of clean water and focused on sustainability efforts to maintaining clean water systems. Ahyeong is grateful for the opportunity to work with Nyaka AIDS Orphans Project as a Monitoring and Evaluation Fellow and looks forward to being part of the Nyakagyezi community.

Akinyi Ochieng started her professional journey working with fast-growing innovators like Nova Credit and WorldRemit to design programs, initiatives and campaigns to advance economic mobility. After several years in the financial services industry, she joined APCO as a social impact consultant to help organizations align profit and purpose.

Akinyi is currently a senior associate director at APCO in New York where she works with leading corporations, foundations and nonprofits within North America, Europe and the Middle East, to improve and advance their social impact in the world. She has worked across various sectors such as technology, entertainment, financial services, consumer goods and education.

She holds a deep expertise in economic development and food security in Africa, with a successful track record of mobilizing multi-million-dollar public-private partnerships to accelerate sustainable business practices in the region. Her insights on business, culture, and politics in Africa have been featured in Forbes, CNBC, BBC, African Business Magazine and the World Economic Forum. She has continued her pursuit of sustaining and developing the African continent and its resources by serving as Board Chair of SOS Sahel USA and a Trustee of Operation Fistula, organizations that have proven to be dedicated to food security and maternal health in Africa. In 2019, she was named one of the 100 Most Influential People of African Descent under 40 . She has previously served as a co-president of the inaugural PiAf Alumni Board and was a Fellow at Global Shea Alliance in Accra, Ghana during her time as a Princeton in Africa Fellow.

Akinyi holds an MSc in Global Politics from the London School of Economics and a BA in Political Science and African Studies from Yale University. She also holds a certificate in Strategic Philanthropy from the University of Cambridge’s Judge School of Business.

Alumni Update:

After her fellowship, Alexandra has stayed on with her fellowship organization, eleQtra, as a financial associate and now splits her time between New York City and Kampala. She is currently working on developing and investing in a number of power projects in Uganda and Rwanda, including gas, solar, and hydro.

Fellow Bio:

Alie is from Tucson, AZ, and is a 2011 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School. Alie majored in Finance and minored in Mathematics, Economics, and French. While at Penn, Alie lived abroad twice in Compiègne and Paris, France, studying at the Sorbonne and Sciences Po. Since graduation, Alie has worked in the Public Sector and Infrastructure Investment Banking group at Goldman Sachs in New York City. In her free time, Alie enjoys dance, yoga, cooking, traveling, and running half marathons. While in Uganda next year, Alie looks forward to exploring East Africa, learning a new language, and influencing international infrastructure development through her work with EleQtra.

Amanda graduated from Georgetown University in 2017 with a degree in International Health.  While at Georgetown, Amanda volunteered as an Emergency Medical Technician and ambulance driver in Washington DC. She held a number of internships during her academic career including at HIPS, a harm-reduction NGO that works with high risk populations for HIV prevention and health promotion. She also interned in the Social and Behavior Change Communication department at FHI360, a nonprofit human development organization. Amanda was able to pursue her passion for public health while doing research abroad at the Western Australian Centre for Rural Health, where she focused on social resilience programs for at-risk youth. She conducted evaluations of a social resilience program implemented in schools and helped deliver youth empowerment programs in several schools across Western Australia. Originally from France, Amanda has lived in Colorado for the past 10 years. She loves the outdoors, good food and coffee. She looks forward to exploring Togo and working with Hope Through Health!

Andrew graduated summa cum laude from Vanderbilt University with a degree in Mathematics and Economics, minoring in Computer Science and Financial Economics. At Vanderbilt, Andrew was involved in the school’s business fraternity (Alpha Kappa Psi), serving as a mentor to the new members, and The Afterschool Program, tutoring low-income students. He has significant exposure to finance through internships across varying sectors. Andrew has worked in mezzanine lending (high-risk debt), private equity investing, and impact investing (using investments to help the environment and society). During these internships, he learned various financial modeling tools and gained a strong understanding of the ways companies grow. In addition, he spent a summer working for a healthcare startup, looking to change the way the American Healthcare system works. Through his academic and professional experiences, Andrew is very well prepared to make an impact on his organization through quantitative and qualitative work. 

Alumni Update:

Currently, she is working as a consultant for the International Organization for Migration (IOM) Regional Office for West and Central Africa. Her work focuses on a regional research project to assess recruitment and protection mechanisms for migrant workers from the region abroad, primarily in the ECOWAS and Gulf Cooperation Country regions.

Fellow Bio:

Anna graduated in May 2017 with a Bachelor’s degree in Global Liberal Studies (concentrating on Politics, Rights, and Development) and double minoring in French, and Public Policy and Management. Anna has worked for several nonprofit organizations throughout her academic career, from Girl Rising, a documentary campaign to promote girl’s education, to Human Rights Foundation, an organization which supports political dissidents in countries with authoritarian governments. Her interest in development work in Africa was strengthened last summer, which she spent in Dakar, Senegal, interning and conducting research for her thesis on female migration and its’ impact on social and economic development. Anna returned to Senegal for a month last January to finish her research, and was awarded the best thesis overall in NYU’s Global Liberal Studies class of 2017. In her free time, Anna loves to read and hike, she is an avid backpacker, adventurer, and “Couchsurfer”. Lastly, she can’t wait for the fellowship to explore Benin, continue her research, make new friends and practice her French!

Alumni Update:

Nina is currently serving as a Special Projects Officer at the Akilah Institute, a Kigali-based higher education campus and online school for women in East Africa. In the fall of 2021, she will begin her studies as a dual Master of Social Work and Master of Social Policy candidate at the Brown School in Washington University, St. Louis. 

Fellow Bio:

Nina graduated from the University of Virginia with degrees in English and Arts Administration. At UVA, she worked primarily in the arts community as a producer of student theater, co-chair of the Student Council Arts Committee, and as an Arts Mentor to local elementary-aged students. Her thesis focused on the representation of death in children’s literature, which she supplemented with a self-published children’s novella. After graduation, Nina moved to Memphis, TN, where she has spent the past two years. There, she worked as an assistant fifth-grade English teacher at a Title I public school and implemented mental health procedures to support her students suffering from trauma and anxiety. She additionally worked as an Urban Fellow for the City of Memphis to foster summer literacy among youth. Currently, Nina is finishing up a service year at The Well, a pediatric wellness center, where she teaches nutrition, movement, and mindfulness to children. For fun, she dabbles as a lounge singer, attempts to cook, and loves to explore the Delta region. Nina is excited to pursue her interest in the intersections of educational and health equity at More Than Me and can’t wait to meet her wonderful new students.

Anny, a native of Bogotá, Colombia, graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Massachusetts with majors in Anthropology and Women’s and Gender Studies. A passionate reproductive health advocate, Anny was selected as a Reproductive Rights Activist Service Corp fellow, in 2015 and interned for Ibis Reproductive Health researching the intersection of maternal and child health and abortion access. At UMass she organized and led a service-learning initiative focused on indigenous women’s empowerment and safe stoves for improved indoor air quality in Guatemala. After this trip, she became the Education Coordinator for the Beacon Voyages for Service program at UMass, overseeing the social justice-based education for the program at large. Anny is also a former executive board member of Colombia Vive, a Boston-based human rights organization. Following graduation, she joined Timmy Global Health as their Medical Programs Coordinator in the Dominican Republic (DR). In this role she oversaw a community health promotion program and led regular medical service trips to several communities straddling the Haiti-DR border. Anny hopes to continue learning and advocating in the area of global public health and to dedicate her career to advance health as a human right across geographical borders.

Anthea graduated from Georgetown University with a Master’s in Public Policy. She is originally from Singapore but has spent almost a third of her life studying, working, and living in the United States. Her first encounter with international development was during her time at Georgetown where she learned how data could be used to understand more about people, policy, and what works. After graduation, she joined Burness Communications, a public-interest communications firm specializing in spreading the news about social causes ranging from public health to environmental conservation. But with a data itch that wouldn’t quit, she then went on to work as a Senior Analyst for a data consulting firm, helping non-profit organizations and the US EPA to better visualize their data and extract meaningful insights. Outside of work, she volunteered at the National Aquarium as a diver where she fed the fish and waved at visitors. Anthea is excited for her move to Sierra Leone where she will work with the WARC Group as a monitoring and evaluation fellow, using data to measure the impact on improving the lives of farmers. During her time in Freetown, she hopes to learn to love dancing and okra, while picking up a bit of Krio in between.

Arielle Ford graduated from The George Washington University with high honors in 2014 where she received a BA in Sociology. After graduating, she joined CityBridge Education, an organization vested in the creation and redesign of DC public schools that lead with intentional equity. At CityBridge, Arielle worked with teachers and school leaders to bring innovative educational practices to local classrooms and schools. She also facilitated conversations around race and identity with educators, emphasizing the intersection of human centered design and equity. Her commitment to equity work began long before college as she witnessed how disparities in public education adversely impacted the life trajectories of her childhood friends. During her undergraduate years, she was heavily involved with the Multicultural Student Services Center, working to illuminate the stories and needs of students of color on campus, in addition to serving as the Student Association Director of Diversity and Multi-Religious Affairs. She also served as a campus campaign coordinator for Teach for America, where she worked arduously to increase the number of black, Latino, and LGBTQ applicants. Arielle is excited to continue her commitment to educational equity with Equal Education in Johannesburg, South Africa where she will work with students, teachers, and parents striving for equality in South African education.