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ALUMNI

Our alumni

Since 2022, participants have come from more than thirty colleges and universities across DC, DE, MD, VA, and WV – and gone on to graduate study, research, and evidence-based policy careers around the world.

2025 2024 2023 2022

Where alumni have continued their studies

AMERICAN UNIVERSITY · COLLEGE OF WILLIAM & MARY · GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY · JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY · KING’S COLLEGE LONDON · LEIPZIG UNIVERSITY · MARY BALDWIN UNIVERSITY · MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY · OLD DOMINION UNIVERSITY · REICHMAN UNIVERSITY · SETON HALL UNIVERSITY · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, RIVERSIDE · UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE · UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO · UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND · UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT CHAPEL HILL · UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD · UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA · WEST VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY · YALE UNIVERSITY

Our alumni also hold government, law, and policy roles at organizations including the Federal Reserve Board, the White House Council of Economic Advisers, the U.S. House of Representatives, and the Maryland General Assembly, and have earned Rhodes, Fulbright, and Rangel Fellowships, among others.

2025

COHORT · 19 PARTICIPANTS

Angela Tracy

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at Johns Hopkins University. Her research focuses on the strategies Filipino veterans and their families employed to achieve social and political empowerment.

Brian Ng

attended the PS-PSI as a sophomore at the University of Virginia. His research focuses on how information about out-party associations affects in-party behavior in primary elections.

Leah Winston

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at the University of Virginia. Her research focuses on black motherhood as political resistance and resilience in the U.S., especially the South.

Natalie Bernstein

attended the PS-PSI as a sophomore at Johns Hopkins University. Her research focuses on the relationship between dating frustration, sexism, gender linked fate, and political sexism.

Noah Hamrick

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. His research focuses on how environmental toxins and socioeconomic factors affect student success in Appalachia.

Phaedra Hyche

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at Hampton University. Her research focuses on how the relationship between African Americans and Chinese Americans has impacted their ability to develop solidarity and coalition movements.

Brenda Romero

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at the University of Maryland College Park. Her research focuses on El Salvador’s historical trajectory and how the nation’s future is being shaped by its current president Nayib Bukele.

Luke Arnowitt

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at the University of Richmond. His research focuses on what factors contribute to a sense of security in land ownership.

Maysia Mateos

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at Virginia Tech. Her research focuses on the effects of Vietnam’s anti-corruption initiatives on political stability and human rights.

Noor Kaifee

attended the PS-PSI as a sophomore at the University of Richmond. Her research focuses on state violence and possible genocide against Baloch communities in Pakistan since 2006.

Lilly Rosier

attended the PS-PSI as a sophomore at Virginia Tech. Her research focuses on the impact of political corruption on healthcare access in Venezuela.

Ibrahim Alkaseer

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at the University of Richmond. Her research focuses on the conditions under which a conflict-generated diaspora politicizes its homeland identity and mobilizes to influence host-state foreign policy.

Savannah Morris

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at the Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU). Her research focuses on how foreign authoritarian influence and democratic allies affect democratic resilience in East Asia.

Kua Ngilbus

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at the University of the District of Columbia. Her research focuses on whether China’s approach in Sub-Saharan Africa constitutes a new form of imperialism or offers African states greater agency.

Andrew Swank

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at Georgetown University. His research focuses on how member state preferences drive outcomes in the form of the EU Common Security and Defense Policy.

Jeanne-Mariam Ehui

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at the University of Virginia. Her research focuses on whether the Belt and Road Initiative is promoting African development or fostering dependency.

Leland Blanchard

attended the PS-PSI as a sophomore at Hampden-Sydney College. His research focuses on defense policy under Thatcher and Gandhi: gender, leadership, and political pressure.

Nicole Visan

attended the PS-PSI as a sophomore at Shepherd University. Her research focuses on how and when Iran would use nuclear weapons.

Tonia Attie

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at the University of Mary Washington. Her research focuses on the effectiveness of international law enforcement in Middle East conflicts post-Cold War.

2024

COHORT · 18 PARTICIPANTS

Abbigail Harless

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at West Virginia University. She is interested in the role of non-governmental actors in shaping international relations.

Adedoyin Dada

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at Howard University. Her research focuses on racial and gendered gaps within the carceral systems of the United States.

Aira Yoshida

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at Mary Baldwin University. She is interested in comparative immigration policies between the United States and Japan.

Alexiya Mikerina

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at the Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. Her research explores whether communism reduced gender disparities in the USSR.

Caroline Motley

attended the PS-PSI as a sophomore at Mary Baldwin University. She focuses on educational disparities affecting Hispanic communities.

Caylee Sheaffer

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at Hood College. She is researching political polarization.

Cristina Salas

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Her research focuses on healthcare disparities among underrepresented minorities.

Danielle McNerney

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at Towson University. She is studying how local news reporting impacts public perceptions of race and crime.

Do Sinh Tran

attended the PS-PSI as a sophomore at American University. His research focuses on corruption and governance in Vietnam.

Elene Japaridze

attended the PS-PSI as a sophomore at Marymount University. She is interested in how international organizations like the UN and NATO perform in conflict prevention and resolution.

Elyssa Parker

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at Hollins University. Her research explores Vietnamese refugees and how U.S. policy was influenced by great power rivalry.

Emily McKenna

attended the PS-PSI as a sophomore at Christopher Newport University. She is studying public opinion on Title IX.

Gabby Landis

attended the PS-PSI as a sophomore at American University. Her research focuses on the role of women in peacemaking and peacebuilding efforts.

Hope Kabura

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at the University of Delaware. She is studying Afrophone newspapers in colonial Africa.

Ian Gould

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at the University of Maryland, College Park. His research applies game theory to explore whether election decisions are rational.

Liberty Tennyson

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at Shenandoah University. She is researching U.S. policy toward South Africa during the development of apartheid.

Nehal Naqvi

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. His research focuses on student sentiment regarding methods courses in political science.

Nicholas Grempler

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. His research explores right-wing populism in Argentina.

2023

COHORT · 19 PARTICIPANTS

Lilibeth Arzate

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at Hollins University. She is interested in law and policy at the intersection of immigrant rights, farmworker rights, and environmental justice.

Vivian Llanes Borquez

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at Georgetown University. She is interested in the politics of segregation and education in the United States and Latin America.

Zoe Byer-Wein

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at the University of Delaware. She is interested in the geopolitics and political economy of the former Soviet Union.

Kathryn Crummitt

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. She is interested in studying the politics of labor migration and human trafficking.

Nikolas Dore

attended the PS-PSI as a recent graduate of the University of Richmond. He is interested in studying the role of new media in social mobilization and political action in Palestine and Israel.

Joe Gray

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at Virginia Wesleyan University. He is interested in the politics of the US Supreme Court.

Christian Herald

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at the University of Richmond. She is interested in the role of young people and youth activism in American politics.

Nardos Amanuel Kebede

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. She is interested in the political economy of development in Africa.

Rakshya Khadka

attended the PS-PSI as a recent graduate of Hollins University. She is interested in researching dynamics of violence and displacement in South Asia.

Jairo M. Nuñez

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at the University of the District of Columbia. He is interested in exploring the role of emotions in political attitudes and behavior in the United States.

Bryanna Parice

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at the University of Delaware. She is interested in researching dynamics of political violence and democracy in Haiti.

Shivam Rami

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. He is interested in studying the politics of criminal justice and mass incarceration in the United States.

Joshua Spicer

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at the Batten Honors College of Virginia Wesleyan University. He is interested in the politics of civil and proxy wars in Africa.

Navara Syed

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. She is interested in researching gender and politics in Asia.

Olivia Todd

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at Hood College. She is interested in racial and education politics in the United States.

Kainaat Trehan

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at the Batten Honors College of Virginia Wesleyan University. She is interested in studying peace-building and collective healing in post-conflict societies.

Rachel Two Bulls

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at Georgetown University. She is interested in the politics of indigenous populations and indigeneity among Native American peoples and those of Mexico, Central America, and South America.

Nadia Velasco

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at St. Mary’s College of Maryland. She is interested in constitutional politics and reform in Latin America.

Ady Weng

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at the University of Maryland, College Park. She is interested in studying authoritarian persistence, democratic backsliding, and the role of civil society in democratization.

2022

COHORT · 19 PARTICIPANTS

Alexander Allen

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at Mount St. Mary’s University. He is interested in authoritarian persistence and democratic backsliding and is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Political Science at West Virginia University.

Miles Barton

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at The University of Maryland, College Park. He is interested in the relationship between race, ethnicity, and political polarization in American politics.

Bo Belotti

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at Virginia Commonwealth University. He is interested in the relationship between queer and trans rights, labor, and race in American politics.

Steven Berit

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at the University of Maryland, College Park. He is interested in the relationship between higher education, labor markets, and the comparative politics of the United States and China.

Adarra Blount

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at Hollins University. She is interested in the politics of incarceration and incarcerated populations.

Ryan Bookstein

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at Towson University. He is interested in the relationship between religious identity and political polarization in American politics. He is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Government and Politics at the University of Maryland.

Rachel Delgado

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at Virginia Commonwealth University. She is interested in inequality, social mobility, and political economy in Latin America. She currently works at Porter Wright in Washington, D.C.

Justin Garming Fox

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at the University of Maryland, College Park. He is interested in the politics of far-right militias in the United States.

Leo Hojnowski

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. He is interested in the politics of environmental protection and wildfire response in the United States and Russia.

Marzia Hussaini

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at the University of the District of Columbia. She is interested in the politics of citizenship and immigration in the United States. She is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Political Science at Michigan State University.

Kassidy Jacobs

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at the University of Maryland. She is interested in urban politics, redlining, and environmental racism in the United States.

Sharon Jeon

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at the University of Maryland, College Park. She is interested in post-conflict peacebuilding in Africa.

Rafael Jorge

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at the University of Baltimore. He is interested in public policy on education and urban planning. He is currently pursuing a Master’s in Government at Johns Hopkins University.

Jessica Martin

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at the University of Maryland, College Park. She is interested in the politics of gender and sexual violence in American elections.

Kawika Ke Koa Pegram

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at American University. He is interested in the politics of indigenous collective action and social mobilization in Hawai’i.

Alyson Reynolds

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at the College of William and Mary. She is interested in the development of international treaties and the politics of treaty compliance.

Ross Richter

attended the PS-PSI as a senior at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. He is interested in theories of political autonomy and peace.

Kabita Sen

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at St. John’s College, Annapolis. She is interested in the dynamics of political violence in South Asia. She is currently pursuing a Master’s in International Relations at the University of Chicago.

Roseanna Yeganeh-Kazemi

attended the PS-PSI as a junior at American University. She is interested in the politics of the US Supreme Court.