1. Home
  2. Participants
  3. Our Alumni
  4. Alumni Spotlight

Alumni Spotlight

Alumni from the Emerging Scholars Program are successfully pursuing careers in a variety of fields. Here are a few of their recent achievements.

  • Kristina Bowdrie (CWR ’17, communication sciences and psychology) has received the 2023 Rising Star Award from Vanderbilt University’s Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences, where she will present an invited lecture this fall. Kristina earned her clinical doctorate in audiology (AuD) from The Ohio State University in May 2023 and was awarded a VA Quality Scholars Fellowship at the Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center for 2023-24. She is also on track to complete a PhD in audiology at OSU.
  • Laniece Thomas (CWR ’17, psychology) is a Clinical Research Coordinator II for the Maternal-Fetal Medicine unit at MetroHealth in Cleveland. Laniece earned a Master of Public Health degree in health education and communication from the Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine. 
  • Brittany Rabb McDaniel (CWR ’20, SAS ’20) has been named Director of Technical Assistance at the William Julius Wilson Institute at Harlem Children's Zone in New York City. In this role, she will support efforts to connect young people in marginalized communities with opportunities that lead to social and economic mobility and racial equity. Working directly with sites across the country, she will research best practices, assist in their implementation, evaluate progress, secure funding, and share findings with scholars and practitioners.
  • Israel Hill (CWR ’17, computer science) has joined the Core Data Science and Engineering team at Netflix.
  • Brianna Moore (CWR ’20, theater) earned a Master of Social Work degree, with a concentration in aging and health, from The Ohio State University College of Social Work in May 2023. After passing her licensing exam on her first try, she accepted a position at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center.
  • Keniece Gray (CWR ’17, MGT ’17, accounting), graduated from Georgetown Law Center in May 2023.
  • Zhara Edwards (CWR ’23, anthropology) was awarded a Bill Emerson National Hunger Fellowship for 2023-24. During summer 2023, she completed an internship with the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health in Washington, D.C. 
  • Nichola Bomani Gonzalez (CWR ’20, biochemistry and Spanish; MED ’23) began an OB/GYN residency at Lehigh Valley Health Network in Allentown, Pennsylvania, in summer 2023.
  • Aylisa Grenald (CWR ’21, NURS '22) is a behavioral health nurse at University Hospitals Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital.
  • Kristen Sanford (CWR '21, psychological sciences) entered the master's program in developmental psychology at CWRU this fall.
  • Obasi Ndukwe (CWR '20, sociology), a second-year student at CWRU School of Law, was awarded a summer 2023 clerkship at Porter Wright Morris & Arthur through the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association's Minority Clerkship Program. In addition, Obasi was elected vice president of the Black Law Students Association and 2L Senator for the Student Bar Association for the 2023-24 academic year.
  • Johnathan Hicks (CWR '21, biomedical engineering) has been promoted to the role of Supplier Engineer II at Boston Scientific.
  • Omar Mahmoud (CWR '20, chemistry) has entered the pilot training program at Southwest Airlines.
  • Robert Herd (CWR ’17, biomedical engineering) is a biomedical engineer for the U.S. Department of Defense at Fort Detrick, Maryland. Robert earned a Master of Public Health degree from the Bloomberg School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University.
  • Briana Sealey (CWR '17, biology) has passed her qualifying exams for a doctorate in ecology, evolution, and behavior at the University of Texas at Austin. Briana previously earned a master's degree in ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Michigan.
  • Yvonne Chappell (CWR '19, psychology and communication sciences) graduated with a Master of Arts degree in education from the University of Massachusetts Boston. She teaches fifth grade at Henry Grew Elementary School in Boston. 
  • Leah Nambajimana (CWR '17, nutrition) graduated summa cum laude from Ohio University with a Master of Public Health degree and a certificate in epidemiology.
  • Allan Willmon (CWR '21, medical anthropology) joined Teach for America.
  • Akwasi Duah (CWR ‘21, civil engineering) has been promoted to assistant engineer at Turner Construction Company.
  • David Carter (CWR '21, psychology) is a human resources talent acquisition associate at Wingspan Care Group, the nonprofit parent company of four Cleveland-area agencies providing mental health services, social services and education to children, adolescents and families.
  • Javon Colvin-Hatchett (CWR ‘21, computer science and economics) is a software engineer at INSIGHT2PROFIT, a consultancy firm specializing in pricing and profit strategies.