Alumni Directory Display

Katie graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a major in English and minor in consumer psychology. At Penn, she was involved in Wharton’s undergraduate marketing club, MUSE, where she led projects for their nonprofit consulting division. During her junior year, Katie spent a semester studying at the University of Cape Town, where her passion for serving marginalized communities grew. Following graduation, Katie developed her marketing and communication skills at Rabin Martin, a global health consulting firm, where she communicated public health programs and corporate social responsibility initiatives. She then moved to Edelman, a global communication firm, where she worked in their Corporate and Public Affairs sector driving communications strategy, executive leadership positioning and media relations for Fortune 500 companies such as eBay, Audible, and the PepsiCo Foundation. Looking for ways to further engage with her passions, Katie joined Amref Health Africa’s Young Professional Board where she works on event planning, fundraising and strategy development to forward their mission. She is excited to return to the African continent to work intimately with those fighting to protect and uplift populations most susceptible to systemic injustices.

Makeda graduated from Columbia University with a degree in Political Science and American Studies. During her time at Columbia, she served as a Research Fellow in the Laboratory of Intergroup Relations and the Social Mind under Professor Valerie Purdie Greenaway, studying intersectionality, stereotyping, and discrimination. A first-generation Ethiopian-American, Makeda has always been motivated by a passion for civil and human rights advocacy both in the United States and abroad. Prior to joining the International Rescue Committee, she worked at the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University Law School, where she focused on advancing innovative voting rights and democracy reforms. Before that, Makeda interned for the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor at the Department of State, as well as the Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia and for the Office of Speaker Nancy Pelosi. In addition, throughout college she served as an intern with NBC Nightly News and MSNBC, focusing on both domestic and international breaking news and ongoing deep impact coverage.

Alumni Update:

Jessica is currently the Development and Community Relations Coordinator at New Door Ventures based in San Francisco where her work focuses on leading individual giving development and New Door’s volunteerism program. She resides in San Francisco. 

Fellow Bio:

Jessica, a native of Hartland, Wisconsin, graduated from Macalester College with a B.A. in International Studies, minors in Anthropology and Political Science, and concentrations in African Studies and Human Rights and Humanitarianism. Jessica’s interest in Africa began when she volunteered at a children’s home in South Africa when she was 13 years old. She has worked with the home for over 8 years. That inspired her to create her own non-profit organization, 15:30 Project, providing the children she works with opportunities for higher education. Her work has been highlighted in local media outlets and earned her several nationally recognized awards. At Macalester, Jessica interned with the U.S. State Department at the embassy in Mozambique where she helped draft the 2016 Human Rights Report. Then, Jessica interned with Kakenya’s Dream in Washington, D.C., advocating for girls’ education and against female genital mutilation in Kenya and assisting with advocacy initiatives. She studied abroad in Gaborone, Botswana where her semester focused on urban development. In Botswana, she conducted human rights research about discrimination against people with albinism. Jessica is interested in the intersection of education, human rights, and diplomacy particularly in the Southern African context. 

Tesay, born and raised in the D.C. area, graduated from Stanford with a degree in International Relations and a minor in African and African American Studies. She is the proud child of Ethiopian immigrants and speaks Harari and Amharic and loves music and travel. While at Stanford, Tesay worked at the Center for African Studies as a Program Assistant where she coordinated events ranging from academic discussions to community events. While studying abroad in Cape Town, South Africa, she interned at the Iziko Social History Centre where she supported community research initiatives and forums working to shift the gaze of museums away from a colonial lens. Tesay also has experience in civil advocacy and spent a summer as a Communications Intern at the Council on American-Islamic Relations. She spent the last year working at Google coordinating candidate experience and supporting hiring efforts across Google and did significant work developing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs on her team. Tesay is extremely passionate about the intersection of digital media and social impact and hopes to pursue a master’s in International/Public Policy and/or an MBA.

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 Hannah was born in Kenya and raised in Zimbabwe, where she developed a passion for public health and youth mentorship while volunteering with children impacted by HIV/AIDS. She is a recent University of Virginia (UVA) graduate who majored in global public health and minored in sociology. Hannah’s commitment to supporting youth in her community motivated her to volunteer at the UVA Children’s Hospital and mentor high schoolers who volunteer with Habitat for Humanity of Greater Charlottesville. Growing up in Zimbabwe and attending an international school, Hannah valued learning from people of different backgrounds. Therefore, as president of the Global Student Council at UVA, she started roundtable discussions for students of all cultural backgrounds to identify differences and similarities in their UVA experiences. In addition, Hannah led independent research studies as an undergraduate. Most recently, she has continued to support people living with HIV/AIDS by investigating factors to improve access to HIV care at UVA’s Ryan White HIV Clinic. Hannah’s experience with remote Africa-based work solidified her interest in further developing her connection to the region. In 2021, she interned with the Zimbabwe Human Rights Association (ZimRights) and wrote reports on gender inequality in Zimbabwe and ZimRights’ financing options. That year, she also collaborated on a remote investigation of the best clinical practices at the University of Rwanda’s multidisciplinary pain management clinic. After this fellowship, Hannah intends to pursue a master’s in public health. She aims to increase global access to quality and affordable health care

Avukile was born and raised in South Africa. She recently completed her Bachelors of Arts Degree in Molecular Biology and a minor in Spanish at Colorado College. In addition to English, Xhosa, Zulu and Setswana, she speaks advanced Spanish after having studied abroad in Spain, Peru and Chile for immersive cultural programmes. Avu has always been passionate about the scientific and social impacts of HIV/AIDs. Thus, during a summer in her sophomore year, she interned in South Africa, doing public health community research and volunteering with the TB/HIV care association that offers care and community-based treatment adherence support. Then, she interned in Colombia helping youth find strategies to tackle prominent public health issues such as teenage pregnancy and drug addiction. In her junior year, she worked as the Diversity and Inclusion Programs Coordinator at Colorado College, organizing and planning student campus events, panels and lectures for minority and international students on campus. She served as a mentor for sophomores and led a cultural mentoring team for a local refugee family from Colombia. She loves playing volleyball, practices yoga and meditation. Avukile plans to get a master’s degree in public health after working a few years with public health organizations. Avu is excited for the wonderful professional and cultural opportunity in working with BIPAI in Botswana!