Alumni Directory Display

Melissa previously worked as a Partnership Analyst at the United Nations Office for Projects Services (UNOPS) Brussels Liaison Office. She was born in San José, Costa Rica and in 2009 she moved to Northampton, Massachusetts to pursue a Bachelor’s Degree in Government at Smith College. In 2014 she completed a Master’s Degree in International Security at the Institut d’études politiques de Paris (Sciences Po Paris). She is fluent in English and Spanish, and proficient in French. Throughout her career Ms. Salazar has worked at a variety of international and governmental institutions such as: the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the Presidential House of Costa Rica, and the Permanent Mission of Costa Rica to the United Nations Office in Geneva. Her international experience has given Ms. Salazar an insight to the world of international diplomacy, and has made her passionate about development and security issues. Previously, Ms. Salazar was a member of the Smith College Club of France, where she acted as Point of contact for the Smith College Junior Year Abroad (JYA) students in Paris. She is also an active member of the Pi Sigma Alpha National Honor Society in Political Science. She is a huge fan of travel, and her desire to discover the world has taken her to places like Israel, Malaysia and Chile. Melissa is looking forward to her work with Olam next year.

Fellow Bio:

Aliya Sanders ‘07 is an ecology and evolutionary biology major, with certificates in African studies and Portuguese language and culture, from New York City. Aliya will be working for Mothers2Mothers, a non-profit organization based in Cape Town, South Africa. This will be her third time in Cape Town; she studied for a semester at the University of Cape Town and returned for a month to conduct thesis research on invasive acacias in the Western Cape. At Princeton, Aliya was involved with tutoring and was one of the head coordinators of an SAT and college preparation course for underprivileged high school students in the area. She was also a member of the Terrace Eating Club. Aliya is excited to return to Cape Town to connect with her old friends and to meet new ones; to experience working with an international non-profit organization; and to learn as much as she can next year.

Nicole graduated magna cum laude from Duke University with a double major in Public Policy and Global Health and a minor in French Language. Prior to joining PSI, Nicole worked at the United Nations Foundation in Washington, DC, where she developed policy and advocacy tactics to advance the mission of UN health agencies. While at UNF, Nicole spent six months on detail to the World Health Organization in Geneva, Switzerland, supporting WHO’s resource mobilization and partner engagement efforts. She has previously held positions at Global Health Strategies in New York and at the U.S. Department of State’s Office of Global Health Diplomacy. Nicole’s passion for global health was sparked by a trip to Haiti, where she learned Creole and conducted research on mental health following the 2010 earthquake. A native of Los Angeles, California, Nicole enjoys going to the beach, hiking, listening to live music, and supporting LA and Duke sports teams. She is thrilled to be joining PSI’s West and Central Africa team and looks forward to improving her French, exploring the region and culture, and learning about the intersection of technology, data, and health care delivery in Senegal.

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Maya is a recent graduate of Tulane University, holding a Bachelor of Science in Public Health, a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Music Performance, and a minor in International Development. Her professional interests include infectious diseases, reproductive health, and advancing equity within global health. During her undergraduate studies, she studied abroad in Dakar, Senegal, where she interned with the Senegalese National Malaria Control Program and conducted an independent research project on female genital mutilation in Senegal. At Tulane University, Maya served as a research associate in the Center for Applied Malaria Research and Evaluation, where she led projects related to the costs of malaria vector control and supported the New Nets Project, a joint venture between Unitaid, PATH, and The Global Fund to accelerate the scale-up of next-generation insecticide-treated nets to combat growing insecticide resistance among mosquitoes. Maya also interned in fundraising for Global Health Corps, working to support the development of global health leaders in both the United States and Sub-Saharan Africa. Following the Princeton in Africa fellowship, Maya plans on attending graduate school in Switzerland, where her family is originally from, to pursue a career in global health. In her spare time, Maya enjoys playing the violin and baking. She is so excited to be joining PSI in Côte d’Ivoire!

Alumni Update:

Since his fellowship Mike has revisited Africa a number of times for work and study. His most recent trip was last March to Kenya to study the country’s aviation industry as part of research for his thesis at Oxford, from which he graduated in July with a master’s in African Studies. He’s also passionate about government innovation, which is the focus of his current work at Bloomberg Philanthropies in New York City.

Fellow Bio:

Mike Scharff ’08 is a politics major from Far Hills, NJ. At Princeton, Mike was president of the Princeton Nassoons, Princeton’s oldest all-male a cappella group. Mike was also a member of the University Glee Club, and performed the leading role of the Count in the Department of Music’s production of The Marriage of Figaro. A devoted camper, Mike looks forward to his experience working with the International Rescue Committee in Uganda.

Katie graduated from Harvard University with a degree in Economics and a secondary degree in Energy & Environment. During her time at Harvard, Katie pursued her passion for sustainable and inclusive economic growth both internationally and domestically, culminating in a thesis quantifying the political and economic impact of China’s growing presence in Africa. Katie has spent a significant amount of time living in China, with a summer conducting economic research in Beijing for the Harvard-China Project and a fall semester studying at Shanghai University of Finance and Economics. Domestically, Katie has explored her interest in the intersection of economic and environmental issues as a Sustainable Finance Intern at the Environmental Defense Fund in Boston, where she led a project to catalyze state level investment in clean energy. On campus, Katie worked as an analyst for the Harvard Consulting on Business and the Environment club, offering data-driven insights and actionable solutions for clients, and also served as a Freshman Outdoor Orientation Program leader. Additionally, Katie was selected as a Young Future Energy Leader to discuss solutions to climate change with a global cohort of students at the 2017 World Future Energy Summit in Abu Dhabi. Katie is deeply grateful for the opportunity to continue to explore her interest in development while working for eleQtra in Mozambique!

Alumni Update:

Since her fellowship, Molly has moved back home to the Washington, D.C. area and has been working at USAID for the past couple years (as the Public Affairs Advisor for USAID’s Office of HIV/AIDS), traveling back to Africa as much as she can! She’s very excited to be getting married this June, and she and her fiancé are currently planning a yearlong trip around the world!

Fellow Bio:

Molly (UVA ‘10) is a graduate of UVA’s Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy and hails from Arlington, VA. While an undergraduate student at UVA, she majored in sociology and African/African-American studies. Through Alternative Spring Break at UVA, Molly traveled to South Africa on a service trip to build a school in Venda. After graduation, she interned at the US Embassy in Lilongwe, Malawi for the US Department of State. While a graduate student at Batten, Molly traveled to Botswana, Swaziland, and South Africa as a consultant for the World Bank and served as the Senior International Editor for the Virginia Policy Review.

Alumni Update:

Joseph is continuing to work as a secondary science teacher at Maru-a-Pula School in Gaborone, Botswana. He also helps teach swimming, produces a student-run podcast, and trains older students to be peer mentors.

Fellow Bio:

Joe attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison, graduating in 2013 with a degree in biology and a certificate in global health. While at school, he conducted pre-clinical research on potential therapeutics for prostate cancer before focusing his studies on public health. He traveled to Kenya to learn from healthcare providers and community organizers about their methods of managing the HIV/AIDS epidemic. While there, he worked as a sexual health educator with HIV-positive adolescents, focusing on opening a dialogue about sexuality, stigma, and relationships between Kenyans and Americans. After graduating, Joe joined Teach For America in Milwaukee, WI to strengthen his teaching skills. He has taught high school science for the last three years in both the public and charter school systems while simultaneously earning a Master’s degree through Marquette University’s Department of Educational Policy & Leadership. He looks forward to moving to Botswana for his first extended trip abroad teaching science at Maru-a-Pula in Gaborone. He wishes to learn more about the role of culturally relevant teaching in an era of global competition as well as the intersections between educational and public health policies.