Urban Education Fellows

Tenesae is a junior studying Economics and Data Science at William & Mary. Her interest in Urban Education comes from personal experience with public education, which never quite met her academic needs. Through this course, she hopes to meet people with similar interests and have a deeper understanding of the education system in the United State. This may also provide as an important to see if academics is within her possible future. She is currently working in marketing and communication at IIC and volunteers with the Virginia Relief program.

CeeCee is a Master's student at the W&M School of Education studying Secondary Science Education and ESL Education. They graduated from W&M in 2020 with a B.S. in Physics and plan to teach high school physics. Currently, they are student teaching at Jamestown High School in Williamsburg. Coming from a high-poverty rural community, they have a passion for educational equity and driving policy change for justice at every level of public schooling.

Logan is a sophomore who is going to become a professor of History, maybe even at the College of William & Mary. He is currently working on his book, "History is a Tumor," to become published and garner reputation before and during grad school. He plans on studying at the William & Mary School of Education. His focus will be in the history of enslaved individuals, particularly slave diaspora in the Colonial Era. Logan participates in "Skiffy"(The Sci-Fi and Fantasy Club") as well as the Dog Street Journal. He hopes to be able to include his interest in writing and education to inform society on inequity through the school systems, as well as participating, hands-on, in reforming school systems through advocating for necessary public policies.

Alton Coston, III is a junior at William & Mary double majoring in Public Policy and Africana Studies. In addition to currently serving as the Village Initiative’s Community Fellow conducting educational policy research, he’s also a Jackie Robinson Foundation Scholar, a WM Scholar, the 2021 JRF Spike Lee Youth
Motivation Award winner, and TEDx Speaker. On campus, Alton serves as President of the African American Male Coalition, Vice-President of the Kappa Pi Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., and Undersecretary of Multicultural Affairs in Student Assembly. In his free time, Alton enjoys playing acoustic guitar, listening to music, and exercising. Although currently unsure, following graduation Alton intends to begin a career in public service in some capacity.

Macy Cummings is a senior at William and Mary. In December of 2021, she will graduate with a degree in English Literature. After completing the DC Winter Seminar on Urban Education Macy will seek employment opportunities in education and the publishing industry.

Katherine is a sophomore studying government and interested in minoring in either innovation and entrepreneurship or Hispanic studies at the university. She enjoys watching movies, especially rom-coms. She likes cooking and learning new recipes, and is open to trying food from different cuisines.

Taylor Fox is currently a sophomore at William & Mary. She is from Henrico County, Virginia. Taylor is heavily involved with campus organizations, initiatives, and task-forces dealing with student life and how to better it for her fellow constituents. The main organizations she’s involved in are Student Assembly where she serves as a class of 2024 senator, Residence Hall Association where she serves as the diversity and inclusion chair, and Student’s Rights Initiative where she is the inter-organizational liaison. She Majors in Government and Sociology with and concentration in criminology, law, and society on the Pre-Law track. She plans to be a federal attorney and after that create her own law firm and use part of her profits to start two nonprofit organizations. One that helps battered women and children with emergency housing and funds, and other resources to help them on their feet. Secondly, an organization that helps kids who are aging out of foster care to have a support system with tutors, career advisors, college advisors, scholarships, etc. She believes these children specifically need a support system that will help them become amazing and successful people in the world. And this currently does not exist, and it upsets her because they have already been in a system that has failed them. She plans to use her experience in the Urban Education seminar to learn more about education inequity and how can she translate that information into her future endeavors and initiatives. She also would like to use this program to build meaningful and intellectual relationships with her peers, but also professional staff at the W&M D.C. Center.

Abdi Hassan is a Junior at William & Mary studying Computer Science and Finance. Abdi is originally from Northern Virginia and spends his free time playing basketball, chess, and lifting at the Rec center. Abdi also serves as the Finance Chair for the Student Conduct Council and is a student representative on the Mason Student Experience Council. During Winter break 2022, Abdi will join the W&M DC program to study Urban Education under Professor Drew Stelljes. While Abdi does not intend to enter a career in Education immediately following graduation, Abdi sees himself entering the field in the long term and is confident this course will prove valuable in the pursuit of that goal!

Emmy Jankowski is a junior at William & Mary studying history and secondary social studies education. Outside of the classroom, she loves getting involved in the community. Emmy is on the executive board of Griffin School Partnerships, a student organization that runs multiple volunteer programs for Williamsburg K-8 students. She is also the Saturday Enrichment Coordinator and a Site Leader for one of the after school tutoring groups. Academically, Emmy is interested in American history with a specific emphasis on U.S. Constitutional history. Critical Race Theory is also a subject of interest for Emmy. At the end of her freshman year, Emmy was selected to serve as an Orientation Aide to new incoming students at William & Mary. Over the summer, she worked as a camp counselor in New Hampshire and loves working with kids. Emmy loves the outdoors, reading, Taylor Swift, and her family.

Ashanti is a junior from Ashland, Virginia. She is double majoring in Government and Public Policy. On campus she serves as the Variety Editor for the Flat Hat Newspaper, and treasurer for Circle K International, a member of the Conduct and Honor Advisory Program, and an Impact Committee Member for Alma Mater Productions (AMP). Additionally, for the fall semester Ashanti is taking part in Professor Mellor's health policy research lab. After she graduates from William & Mary, Ashanti plans to attend law school to study civil rights law.

Meg is a senior from Irwin, Pennsylvania, studying Government and Sociology with a concentration in Social Problems, Policy, and Justice. She works as the Development Coordinator for Branch Out Alternative Breaks and a research fellow for the Local Black Histories Project. Meg is also a part of the Students Rights Initiative and Aim 4 Civic Leadership Program at William & Mary. Her areas of academic interest include educational inequity and racial and socioeconomic disparities in criminal justice and housing, and she looks forward to learning more about urban education systems during her time in DC.

Lizzie is a Junior studying Psychology at the university. Lizzie is interested in Physiological Psychology as well as Behavioral Neuroscience and hopes to pursue a career in research. Lizzie is also studying Education at William & Mary and she is interested in the intersection between Psychology and Education policy reform. Lizzie has a part time job working for the W&M Athletics Department, she is a member of the W&M Debate Society, and Lizzie is also a neuroscience research assistant at the university.

Jordan is a senior majoring in Data Science on the Spatial Data analytics track. She entered the world of data science to explore her passion for modeling data and creating visualizations for timely social topics. As a scholar of William & Mary, class of 2022, Jordan is excited for what may come this last year. A couple long-term goals of hers are to integrate her love of law and health research with data science, and to share her knowledge with future generations who might not otherwise be exposed to such topics.

Elizabeth is a junior at William & Mary majoring in Government. She is from Arlington, Virginia and thrilled to be participating in Urban Education Seminar. Elizabeth is would like to pursue a career in education or public safety. On campus Elizabeth is involved with Ultimate Frisbee, Wesley Campus Ministry, Pep Band and the Delta Tau Omicron fraternity.

Kate is an academic junior studying Kinesiology & Health Sciences with a concentration in Premed. She has served active duty Coast Guard for eight years, and worked with the Loudoun County Health Department as a COVID vaccinator. On campus, she is the president of the Student Veterans of William & Mary. In the future as a medical provider, she plans to use her knowledge of urban education to better serve and educate patients about their health. She is also a passionate animal advocate, and has fostered several dogs.

Bridget is a sophomore from Northwest New Jersey. Currently an undecided major, she is leaning towards Public Policy with a minor in Russian Language and Literature. Her most valuable opportunities at W&M have been rooted in service, through involvement in Catholic Campus Ministry and the service fraternity APO. She is also involved in Branch Out Alternative Breaks, recently serving in the local Williamsburg community. In her free time, she can be found on a run in Colonial Williamsburg or practicing piano in Ewell! Bridget is excited to explore urban education in this seminar to work towards impactful, concrete action.

Eva is a sophomore from Northern Virginia studying Accounting with a minor in Sociology. She is the Treasurer of WMFIRE (William and Mary Fighting for Immigrant Rights and Equity) and the VP of Marketing for the Gibbs Accounting Society. She is also involved in Students Helping Honduras, Mason Investment Club, Smart Women Securities, and Latin American Student Union. She hopes to become a Certified Public Accountant. For fun, she enjoys binge-watching shows and movies, hanging out with friends, and eating ice cream! She is thrilled to be a part of the DC winter seminar and can't wait to be in DC learning about Urban Education.

Arisha Rehman is a sophomore from Northern Virginia. She is majoring in history, and plans to be a history teacher. She is a resident assistant and involved in MSA. In her free time, Arisha likes to do yoga, listen to music, bake, and spend time with her friends. She is looking forward to furthering her knowledge about education inequality.

Miho is a sophomore exchange student from Tokyo, studying International law & politics, US immigration history and French at William & Mary. She studies law in her home college, Keio University, and aiming to have a global career in her future. Outside of her academics, she enjoys playing lacrosse and tennis both in William & Mary and Keio University. In her free time, she loves spending time with her family and friends, cooking, and watching movies. Having an exchange year in Iowa during high school, she is very excited to learn more about urban education in the United States.

Relena Turner is a junior at the college, majoring in Biology on the Premedical track. She grew up in Norfolk, Virginia. After college she plans on going to medical school. On campus she is involved in Resident Life as an RA, TribeTHON as the small business director, Phi Mu as the Philanthropy chair, Classic club as the secretary and a courageous institute facilitator. She is excited to learn more about education inequality and role of policy making. She hopes to use this in the future as a physician.