Meet the 2011 India Fellows
AJWS is pleased to announce the 12 World Partners Fellows who will serve in India from October 2011 to September 2012.
Misha Clebaner
Misha, from San Francisco, California, graduated from Emory University in May 2010 with a degree in Religion and Sociology. In his junior year, Misha spent a semester in Jerusalem, Israel studying at the Hebrew University and interning at Rabbis for Human Rights. Since college, Misha has served with AmeriCorps at a vocational and agricultural high school in Western Massachusetts. Originally from Yalta, Ukraine, Misha has also traveled to China, France, Honduras and Guatemala. He went to Poland and Israel on the March of the Living. Misha endures the trials and tribulations that are commonplace in being a Golden State Warriors Basketball fan, and is also blessed to have amazing friends, family and a loving girlfriend. Misha will be supporting the work of Sahbhagi Shikshan Kendra (SSK), in Uttar Pradesh, where he will be working with their Vocational Training Institute, a livelihoods program for the state’s rural poor.
Matt Cohen-Price
Matt, who hails from Oakland, California, has worked on the 2008 Democratic Presidential Campaign, served as a White House intern, is an alumnus of AmeriCorps and has volunteered in both Honduras and Costa Rica. He attended Baltimore’s Goucher College, where he directed the school’s annual volunteer trip to New Orleans, sat on the Student Government Social Justice Committee and organized various service and environmental sustainability programs. He graduated in 2010 with a degree in Peace Studies after completing a thesis investigating the potential for justice-seeking sustainable development after catastrophic disasters. Matt currently works at Tresendas, Inc. and as an Emergency Medical Technician. He looks forward to bridging the gap between disaster management and sustainable development efforts, both with AJWS and after completion of the Fellowship. Matt will volunteer with Hunnarshala, in the Kutch region of Gujarat, where he will support their disaster management, reconstruction and rehabilitation work.
Justine Dowden
Justine graduated from Brandeis University in 2010 with a degree in Sociology, French and Art History. She has travelled to 33 countries where she has: volunteered with HIV/AIDS patients in Tanzania and at a school for orphans in Pune, India; worked for the UN in Geneva on disaster preparedness issues; interned with an international African development organization in Amsterdam; and backpacked through New Zealand. Originally from Sacramento, California, Justine loves to paint, read and write her blog about water and environmental sustainability. After returning from India, she plans to pursue a graduate degree in global health and to go on to work in the non-profit sector. Justine will volunteer with SAHAYOG, in Uttar Pradesh, where she will work on a maternity benefits program, supporting the livelihoods of expecting mothers.
Raina Fox
Raina is from Mendota Heights, MN and graduated in 2008 from Macalester College with a degree in Art History and Humanities, Media and Cultural Studies. Since graduation, she has been exploring the intersections of art and social justice in the a variety of settings including serving in the education department of the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, working with HIV-affected youth as part of Avodah: The Jewish Service Corps and, currently, helping students express themselves through the art of playwriting at Young Playwrights’ Theater in Washington, DC. She spent time living in France and the Basque Country as part of her studies, and is excited to expand her experience of the world to India. She is thrilled to now be able to play five whole chords on the guitar. Raina will volunteer with Khamir, in Kutch, where she will work on fair trade and labor issues.
Adva Gadoth-Goodman
Adva was born in Haifa and grew up in metropolitan Detroit. She graduated from the University of Michigan where she earned both her bachelor’s degree in environmental biology in 2010, and her master’s degree in public health in 2011. While at U-M, she also studied Arabic and Middle Eastern history, taught Hebrew and Judaic studies at a local synagogue and volunteered through alternative spring break. Adva has worked in many public health settings, including the National Israeli Cancer Control Center where she aided in epidemiologic research regarding ethnic disparities in lung cancer and type 2 diabetes. She is passionate about international development and is eager to begin a new adventure in grassroots health work as a World Partners Fellow. Adva will work at the Centre for Health Education, Training and Nutrition Awareness (CHETNA) where she will work on child nutrition.
Aliza Grossberg
Aliza grew up in St. Louis, Missouri and graduated from George Washington University in May 2011, majoring in Women’s Studies and Psychology. Aliza has worked for several nonprofits, both domestically and internationally, ranging from a homeless shelter in St. Louis to gender empowerment organizations in rural El Salvador and India to a human rights organization in Washington, DC, and more. She lived and studied in Bolivia in 2010, where she and her peers created a documentary on the World Peoples’ Climate Change Conference held in Cochabamba, Bolivia. It is Aliza’s commitment to social justice and feminism that guides her actions and pursuits, both present and future. She hopes to utilize her passion for social justice to promote women’s empowerment and equality on a global scale. Aliza will volunteer with the Integrated Development Foundation (IDF), in Bihar, where she will support monitoring and evaluation of IDF programs.
Sophia Manuel
Sophia grew up in New Jersey and graduated from Brown University in May 2011. She concentrated in Development Studies and Economics and wrote an honors thesis on the Peruvian American lobby. With interests ranging from local politics to international human rights, Sophia has worked with the ACLU, the North American Congress on Latin America and J Street U. She spent a summer in Jerusalem, connecting Americans to local organizations and educational tours of the West Bank. She has also volunteered and traveled throughout Latin America, and has visited India several times. Sophia hopes to eventually work for an organization that pursues social justice, whether at home or abroad. Sophia will support the work of the Daudnagar Organization for Rural Development (DORD), in Bihar, assisting their women’s entrepreneurship program.
Lauren Nelson
Lauren grew up in Massachusetts and graduated from Boston University in 2009 with majors in International Relations and Political Science. As a student, Lauren lived and studied in Peru and Ecuador, where she volunteered with local NGOs in the fields of youth mentorship and the education of indigenous populations. She spent a semester in Israel volunteering with the New Israel Fund, as well as a semester in Washington, D.C. conducting foreign policy research. Since graduation, she has resided in southern China, where she taught secondary and university level English, and now acts as the educational director for the Guilin-based Chinese Language Institute. Lauren hopes to continue her budding career in the field of international education development. Lauren will volunteer with Navsarjan, supporting their Dalit Shakti Kendra program, which provides leadership and vocational training to rural Dalit youth.
Ariella Pasackow
Ariella graduated from Connecticut College with a BA in Human Development and minors in Religion and International Relations with a concentration in Human Rights in May 2011. Ariella was born and raised in Vermont, where she worked at a local non-profit farm teaching the public about farming, agriculture and sustainability. As a junior, she studied abroad in South Africa completing a program in Multiculturalism and Social Change. Last summer, Ariella volunteered on the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation in South Dakota working with at-risk teens. She has also travelled to Greece, Turkey and Israel, and hopes to someday return to live and work in Cape Town. Following the fellowship, Ariella plans to work in the refugee resettlement field. Ariella will volunteer with Abhiyan, in Kutch, where she will work on the issue of preserving cultural livelihoods.
Simon Rosen
Simon, from Weston, Connecticut, graduated from Colgate University in May of 2008 with a B.A. in Peace & Conflict Studies and Economics. While at Colgate, Simon interned at the Clinton Foundation, where he gained an initial interest in philanthropy for its ability to seed and support positive social change. Upon graduation, Simon pursued his interest in philanthropy and was hired by Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors (RPA). As a Program Associate at RPA, he developed, supported and executed the philanthropic strategies of a broad range of clients. Simon has also volunteered with Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy (EPIP) as the Programming Committee Chairman and with Streetwise Partners as a mentor. He is passionate about beach volleyball and eager to learn how to play cricket. Simon will be volunteering with Dasra, in Mumbai, where he will assist in donor management, investor relations and supporting Dasra’s social entrepreneurship programs.
Abigail Russo
Abigail, originally from Highland Park, IL, graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Washington University in St. Louis in May of 2011. Some of her professional experience includes conducting psychology research on development and cognition in young children, working as a teaching assistant in a nursery school, and interning at a non-profit devoted to providing students from under-resourced backgrounds the tools to succeed in college. She spent a semester studying in Cape Town, South Africa and mentored at a high school designed to counter racially-based educational inequities. She hopes to pursue a career in education and social policy with a potential focus on international education. She loves extreme sports: bungee jumping, skydiving, and shark cage diving are some of her recent favorites. Abby will work with Mumbai Mobile Crèches (MMC) where she will support MMC’s fundraising efforts and help develop communications materials.
Rebecca Stern
Rebecca graduated from Brown in May 2011 with a degree in Global Development Studies, with a focus on global health. Rebecca was raised with four sisters in New Orleans, where she worked for a 911-response Emergency Medical Service. During college she spent a summer in a rural village in the Mpigi district of Uganda, assisting Professor Susan Kiene with research on HIV/AIDS Routine Testing & Counseling. Rebecca has also worked with several NGOs and public health organizations, including PHASE, Maternova and Project Health. She studied abroad in South Africa, where she conducted independent research on the narratives surrounding intimate partner violence, the subject of her senior thesis. Rebecca will support the work of Sankalp Rehabilitation Trust, in Mumbai, assisting their harm reduction and peer education initiatives.
