Addison Larson
Addison Larson is a graduate student of geospatial information sciences (GIS) at The University of Texas at Dallas, focusing on applications of spatial data analysis to policy research. Previously, she worked as a research intern at the DC Fiscal Policy Institute
1 Post
Alexa Tavarez
Alexa Tavarez is a first-year Global Policy student with an interest in security policy in Latin America. This is her first year with Baines and looks forward to producing new media content. She is a former journalist, previously with The San Antonio Express-News.
2 Posts
Alison McGuigan
Ali is a first-year Master of Global Policy Studies DC Concentration candidate, with policy interests in the role of international institutions in conflict zones and aid delivery. Prior to attending to the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs, Ali received her Bachelor’s in Political Science and International Relations from Texas Christian University. While earning her undergraduate degree, she worked at Dream Outside the Box, a non-profit designed to propel children in underserved communities to higher education through career-centered programming led by college student volunteers.
1 Post
Amara Uyanna
Amara Uyanna is a Master of Global Policy Studies Candidate specializing in the Economics of Development with particular interests in West Africa. She received her B.Sc Honors in chemical engineering with a minor in French from Louisiana Tech University, and is recognized by the US National Academy of Engineering as a Grand Challenge Scholar. Prior to enrolling at LBJ, Amara worked with ExxonMobil in Nigeria and ConocoPhillips in the United States. At LBJ, she served as the Parliamentarian of the Graduate Public Affairs Council in her first year, and she will be serving as the Council's Vice President in the coming academic year. When she is not doing homework or studying at LBJ, Amara works as a Development Associate with Sustainability International, likes to listen to music, and enjoys opportunities to speak different languages.
2 Posts
Cassie Davis
Cassie Davis is a dual-degree Master’s student at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs and the School of Public Health. Her focus is on the intersection of food security and barriers to food access due to policy. While serving as the LBJ MA intern at Bread for the World Institute this summer in Washington D.C., she will focus on developing a report on the 2018 Farm Bill in relation to the UN Goals to end hunger. In addition, she will research for her thesis focusing on the effects of immigration policy on food security. Prior to attending graduate school, Cassie received a BA in Anthropology from the University of Texas at Austin.
3 Posts
Cody Brasher
Cody Brasher is a native of Moody, Alabama who got to Texas as soon as he could. After earning a B.A. in International Studies from Baylor University, he served an active duty contract in the US Army before returning to Texas. He is currently pursuing a Masters of Global Policy Studies at the LBJ School, while serving in the Texas Army National Guard, participating in the ROTC program at UT, and interning as a Legislative Aid for Austin's District 49 Representative, Gina Hinojosa, at the Capitol.
1 Post
Cynthia Van Maanen
A native Texan, Cynthia returns home after living in Western New York State and the Washington, D.C., area. Her interests in voting rights, fair representation, and governmental accountability spurred her to pursue an M.P.Aff. degree at the LBJ School, and from there, Cynthia hopes to pursue her interests as they relate to Texas state government. She has held positions as a lead data analyst and compliance specialist at a national affordable housing intermediary, an adjunct instructor of political science, and a legislative intern in the office of a Texas state legislator. In her free time, she likes to fawn over neighborhood dogs, play video games about the French Revolution, and be glib on social media.
1 Post
Dane Ulik
Dane Ulik is working on a Master’s in Global Policy Studies, with a specific focus on economic and social development at the University of Texas at Austin. This summer as a Crook Fellow, Dane will work for Artists for Soup, a small non-profit organization located in La Paz Centro, Nicaragua. As an intern, Dane will perform a variety of research and data analysis projects focusing on food security and educational retention. Dane is also a research affiliate with Innovations for Peace and Development at the University of Texas at Austin. Before attending graduate school, Dane taught English as a second language in Linares, Chile for three years. Dane is from Scottsdale, Arizona and received a BA in Political Science and Environmental Science from the University of Arizona.
1 Post
Daniel Jimenez
Daniel Jimenez is a graduate student at the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin. He is currently completing an MA in Global Policy Studies, with a specialization in Human Rights, Law, and Diplomacy. He received his BA from UT Austin in History, and Russian and East European Studies in 2013, and recently completed his MA in Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies at UT in August 2015. Daniel is a native Texan, hailing from hill country San Antonio, though he would readily call Austin his second home. Daniel’s primary policy interests center on human rights, social and economic inequalities, national security, and international development policy. He focuses on a broad range of human rights issues, but most of his work at UT focuses on LGBTQ rights, and economic inequality. After graduation, Daniel hopes to work in the field of human rights advocacy for an NGO, IO, or non-profit organization. He would like to later return to work in academia, and plans on pursuing his PhD in History or Political Science after Washington.
1 Post
Elizabeth Petruy
As a native Californian who was raised in Florida, Elizabeth made it to Texas as quickly as she could. She is pursuing a Masters of Public Affairs at the LBJ School, as well as a portfolio in Nonprofit Studies. Elizabeth's policy interests include children's welfare, education, social policy, and public private partnerships. She's previously interned with the National Children's Alliance, and is a Presidential Management Fellow Finalist. She is a former editor-in-chief of the Baines Report.
5 Posts
Ghida Ismail
Ghida Ismail is pursuing her Master of Global Policy Studies in the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin. While she holds an undergraduate degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the American University of Beirut in Lebanon, the influx of a significant number of Syrian refugees into her home country of Lebanon has shifted her interest from engineering to public policy, particularly in experimental research to generate evidence-based policies and programs.
1 Post
Jessi Stafford
Jessi Stafford is currently pursuing her Masters in Global Policy Studies at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs, specializing in International Development. Prior to attending the LBJ School, Jessi earned her Bachelors in Spanish with a minor in Mathematics at Texas Tech University. She plans to combine the two disciplines and pursue a quantitative career assessing impacts on interventions aiming to empower women. She has worked on various projects throughout Latin America and will spend her time as a Crook Fellow conducting an impact evaluation in Nicaragua.
2 Posts
Katherine Whitton
Katherine Whitton is a first-year Masters of Global Policy Studies Candidate at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin. She studies International Development and Governance and started working with Innovations for Peace and Development (IPD) in Fall 2016. Prior to graduate school, Katherine was in the US Peace Corps serving as an education volunteer in Ethiopia (2013-2015). This summer she will be interning through the AidData Summer Fellowship Program at the Economic Policy Research Centre (EPRC) in Kampala, Uganda. She will either work in the Trade & Regional Integration Department (agriculture policy) or the Micro department (infant mortality). Both positions will involve a feasibility assessment, production of geocoded data, geocoding and GIS training, and research plan development.
1 Post
Kathryn Lundstrom
Kathryn Lundstrom is a graduate student at the University of Texas at Austin in global policy studies and journalism with an interest in global affairs, human security and stories that connect us.
1 Post
Kelsey Ritchie
Kelsey Ritchie is a graduate student interested in the intersection of nationals security and international religious freedom. She's pursuing a Masters of Global Policy Studies at The LBJ School of Public Affairs at The University of Texas, and is the Graduate Assistant at the Clements Center for National Security. Kelsey is the Head Writer of the Global Section for the Baines Report.
5 Posts
Margaret Fox
Margaret Fox is pursuing dual degrees in law and global policy studies. Prior to graduate school, she worked as a writer and editor at a foreign affairs magazine in Austin, where she dealt primarily with issues related to trade and national security. Her focus is now on international human rights promotion and alternative dispute resolution. She is an articles editor for the Texas Review of Law and Politics, a board member of the Texas Law chapter of the American Constitution Society, and a staff editor for the Texas International Law Journal. She is also an enthusiastic member of Texas Law Fellowships, a 501(c)(3) that supports students in public interest.
1 Post
Maya Efrati
Maya Efrati graduated from the University of Michigan Law School, earning both her J.D. and her M.P.P, from the Ford School of Public Policy, in May 2016. She is currently a legal fellow with FairVote, where she works on issues related to fair representation and election law.
1 Post
Michael Deegan
Michael Deegan is a dual master’s candidate in Global Policy and Russian, Eastern European, and Eurasian Studies at the University of Texas at Austin. Before moving to Austin for graduate school, Michael lived in Bulgaria for three years as a Fulbright scholar and English teacher. While there, he co-founded the BEST (Bulgarian English Speech Tournament) Foundation, a Bulgarian non-profit that organizes national speech and debate tournaments and youth leadership programs. He received his bachelor’s degree in Communications at King’s College in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. This summer, Michael will be interning at the the Office of the Coordinator of Assistance to Europe and Eurasia with the State Department in Washington D.C. There, he will be helping steward development projects that are ongoing in Eastern and Central Europe and Eurasia as well as take part in planning new projects for the coming year.
2 Posts
Molly Adler
Born and raised in the D.C. area (Alexandria, VA), Molly has ventured out of her east coast bubble and settled in Austin, TX. After a long year in Russia working on her Fulbright, she is happy for the warm TX weather. Her long time interest in international security and conflict resolution has led her to work towards a dual degree in Global Policy Studies and Russian, Eastern European and Eurasian studies. When not studying or stuffing her face with tacos, Molly likes to read, cook and try not to creepily stare at the dogs that live in her apartment complex.
1 Post
Nicholas Broussard
Nicholas is a Masters of Public Affairs candidate. Before attending LBJ he served five years as a US Army infantry officer, deploying to Afghanistan and the Horn of Africa. He plans to transition into city management upon graduation.
1 Post
Paige Menking
Paige Menking works in public health and immigration and is the former director of the Ventanilla de Salud at the Consulate General of Mexico in Austin. She is currently a graduate student at the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin.
1 Post
Patricia Hart
Patricia Hart is a dual degree student at the LBJ School of Public Affairs and the McCombs School of Business. Before graduate school, she was a policy analyst at the think tank New America, where she provided research and analysis on the relationship between work and wealth, developments in tax policy, and financial inclusion in the developing world. Prior to New America, Patricia worked for FairVote, a research and advocacy group focused on structural electoral reform. Her hobbies include tacos and beer.
1 Post
Paul Kuhne
Paul Kuhne is a second year Global Policy Studies student at the LBJ School and joined the program after seven years in the nonprofit sector. He is focusing his time at LBJ on international development and has an interest in program evaluation and monitoring. He currently volunteers with Innovations for Peace and Development and works part-time at the Center for the Study of Race and Democracy. Outside of school, he enjoys bouldering, live music and cooking.
2 Posts
Ryan Duffy
Ryan is a first-year GPS student and the Editor in Chief of the Baines Report. His interests at LBJ include national security, energy and the environment, and technology, and he also enjoys to write on the side. He graduated with a degree in International Studies and Political Science from Boston College in 2016. He is a Texas native but has lived in Boston, Washington D.C., Italy, and the United Arab Emirates.
2 Posts
Samer Yousif
Samer is a first-year Masters of Global Policy Studies DC Concentration candidate, with policy interests in entrepreneurship and international development. Prior to coming to the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs, he was a fellow for the global poverty advocacy organization, RESULTS, and worked to pass legislation on maternal and child health issues.
2 Posts
Sarah Blumberg
Sarah Blumberg is an Austin native, pursuing a masters' degree in Global Policy Studies at the LBJ school with a specialization in development. Previously, she worked in refugee resettlement in Houston helping new refugee families become self-sufficient. She received a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and a Bachelor of Arts in Judaic Studies a the University of Arizona.
3 Posts
Sarah Hampton
Sarah Hampton is a first-year MGPS student, specializing in Security, Law, and Diplomacy, with a focus on cyber security. She received her undergraduate degree from Brigham Young University in Middle Eastern Studies and Arabic, and her law degree from the J. Reuben Clark law school.
1 Post
Sarah Pollock
Sarah is a second-year graduate student in the Master of Public Affairs program at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs. She is a native Texan who came home to roost after nearly a decade living in the Sacramento area in California. She did her undergraduate work in Communication and Psychology at UC Davis, and hopes to increase the application of evidence and research to policymaking at the state and local level. She interned in the office of State Senator Eddie Lucio, Jr. during the most recent legislative session, allowing her to bring both an inside and outside perspective to her analysis of Texas policy issues. If she had any free time, she would spend it cuddling with her cat, reading novels and listening to “Hamilton.”
4 Posts
