Alumni Directory Display

Schmidt_Joe_WebsiteJoseph Schmidt 2016-2017 Fellow with Maru-a-Pula, Botswana University of Wisconsin-Madison Class of 2013

Alumni Update:

Joseph is continuing to work as a secondary science teacher at Maru-a-Pula School in Gaborone, Botswana. He also helps teach swimming, produces a student-run podcast, and trains older students to be peer mentors.

Fellow Bio:

Joe attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison, graduating in 2013 with a degree in biology and a certificate in global health. While at school, he conducted pre-clinical research on potential therapeutics for prostate cancer before focusing his studies on public health. He traveled to Kenya to learn from healthcare providers and community organizers about their methods of managing the HIV/AIDS epidemic. While there, he worked as a sexual health educator with HIV-positive adolescents, focusing on opening a dialogue about sexuality, stigma, and relationships between Kenyans and Americans. After graduating, Joe joined Teach For America in Milwaukee, WI to strengthen his teaching skills. He has taught high school science for the last three years in both the public and charter school systems while simultaneously earning a Master’s degree through Marquette University’s Department of Educational Policy & Leadership. He looks forward to moving to Botswana for his first extended trip abroad teaching science at Maru-a-Pula in Gaborone. He wishes to learn more about the role of culturally relevant teaching in an era of global competition as well as the intersections between educational and public health policies.

Schmidt_Lauren_WebsiteLauren Schmidt 2016-2017 Fellow with International Rescue Committee (IRC), Uganda Colorado College Class of 2015

Lauren grew up in Plymouth, MN. She was granted a leadership award to attend Colorado College, where she earned a B.A. in International Political Economy with minors in African and Asian Studies in December 2015. Following a semester in China becoming proficient in Mandarin and studying 20th century history and art, she spent the summer of 2014 trekking through the Annapurna region of Nepal investigating sustainability, religion, and the consequences of outmigration for Tibetan refugees. Lauren then traveled to Uganda, where she spent the fall semester studying Luganda and issues of East African development. During this time, she conducted an internship with the Uganda Red Cross Society at the Mungula Refugee Settlement and carried out independent research which culminated in a published report: “Agency of the South Sudanese: Compensating for Health Care in Mungula Refugee Settlement.” Lauren then spent the summer of 2015 traveling around Turkey, Greece, Hungary, Austria, and Germany to conduct research for her thesis, which analyzed market failures in the international provision of protection for Syrian refugees. Following graduation, Lauren worked in Minneapolis as a refugee resettlement assistant at the International Institute of Minnesota. She will spend the summer of 2016 developing extracurricular activities at the Highland Boarding School for Tibetan refugees in Dhunche, Nepal on a Kathryn W. Davis Projects for Peace Grant. Lauren is thrilled to have the opportunity to continue refugee work within Uganda as a Grants Fellow with the International Rescue Committee. She can’t wait to dust off her Luganda and explore all of the incredible hikes, dance clubs and whitewater rafting the region has to offer!

Kristin Schmitz 2013-2014 Fellow with Save the Children, Ethiopia Stanford University Class of 2012

Kristin graduated in 2012 with a degree in Urban Studies and a minor in African Studies. While at Stanford, Kristin interned for a legal aid organization where she designed a court-monitoring project to track trends of bias and legal mistakes in restraining order proceedings.  In South Africa, she studied, interned at gender-based violence and urban development organizations, worked at a rape crisis center, and performed research on behalf of three NGOs. In this research, Kristin analyzed township residents’ conceptions of justice and pathways towards finding formal and informal justice and health services. While in Ethiopia, Kristin looks forward to travelling, learning Amharic, and immersing herself in the local culture.

Marielle Schweickart 2012-2013 Fellow with Sanergy, Kenya Rice University Class of 2012

Alumni Update:

Marielle is the Impact Manager at Women Win, a multi-dimensional women’s fund with two main areas of work: Girls’ rights through sport and play, and women’s economic resilience. She is responsible for Women Win’s monitoring, evaluation, research, and learning practice. Marielle is also the co-founder of RefugeeForce, a social enterprise that develops the skills and careers of Refugees while bringing talent and diversity to the Salesforce ecosystem.

Fellow Bio:

Marielle graduated with a degree in History and a minor in Poverty, Social Justice, and Human Capabilities. While pursuing her degree, she captained the club soccer team, volunteered her time with mentally disabled adults in Houston, and studied public health in Copenhagen, Denmark. Through past internships, Marielle has studied Swahili in Kenya, researched family planning in Zanzibar, Tanzania, and built rainwater harvesting systems in Lesotho. Marielle is excited to return to Nairobi to gain experience in the field, brush up on her Swahili, and run the Lewa half-marathon next summer!

Isaiah Sciford 2017-2018 Fellow with International Rescue Committee (IRC), Kenya Washington University in Saint Louis Class of 2017

Isaiah graduated as an Ervin Scholar from Washington University in St. Louis in May 2017 with a BA in International and Area Studies, concentrating in Global Development, and a minor in Religion and Politics. On campus Isaiah was  involved with Sigma Iota Rho, an international affairs academic honorary, and the Washington University International Relations Council, which hosts the university’s model United Nations team. He has also spent the last four years working for Development Programs at the university for the School of Engineering and the Siteman Cancer Center on projects including donor outreach and management, third-party event coordination, and report writing. Isaiah spent the Spring of 2016 studying abroad in Tunis, Tunisia where he was able to work on his French and Arabic skills while exploring the causes and effects of the Arab Spring movement up close. The end of his semester abroad was spent researching the effects of state land policy in a small town in rural Southern Tunisia. Isaiah interned with The Carter Center’s Democracy Programs in summer 2016 where he was involved in grants and program management for the Center’s Tunisian field office and a limited election observation mission to Zambia’s national elections.

Elijah Scott 2018-2019 Fellow with Legal Resources Centre (LRC), South Africa University of Georgia Class of 2018

Elijah graduated from the University of Georgia with majors in international affairs and economics. He spent six months in Kenya working with the African Prisons Project, where he taught law courses and served as a paralegal to death row inmates in three maximum-security prisons around the country. He was an investigative intern at the Georgetown University Law Center Criminal Justice Clinic, where he worked with attorneys to create defense theories for indigent and mentally ill clients. Scott also conducted client intake and legal research at the Department of Education, Office of Civil Rights to investigate claims of education discrimination. In addition to his experience in the legal field, Scott has extensive experience mentoring and educating youth, as he spent over a year facilitating weekly restorative justice trials and leading courtroom etiquette and public speaking trainings for middle- and high-school students with Athens Peer Court. He has researched the intersection of minority rights and conflict in northeastern Kenya and the Xinjiang region of China through the Universitatea Babeș-Bolyai Conflict Studies Center in Cluj, Romania. Scott has studied abroad at the University of Oxford and the London School of Economics, and he has conducted independent research on the future of the regulatory structure of Antarctic Treaty in Ushuaia, Argentina and West Antarctica. Finally, Scott was the Operations Director of the Georgia Political Review for one year, during which he managed an eleven-person Editorial Board and thirty-person Writing Staff and planned and organized lectures and debates. He is looking forward to exploring his host country!

Oluseyi Segun website photoOluseyi Segun 2014-2015 Fellow with Gardens for Health International, Rwanda American University Class of 2012

Alumni Update:

Oluseyi is currently finishing her first year of graduate school at the University of Pennsylvania where she studies Social Work and Global Public Health. This is a three year program that will result in an MSW/MPH with focuses on health communications and health communications for mental health.

Fellow Bio:

Originally from Lagos, Nigeria, Oluseyi graduated with a BA in Print Journalism and French. Oluseyi is passionate about the study of the African continent in addition to nutrition, global food systems/the policies that govern them, and the intersection of food and politics. During her year in Rwanda, Oluseyi hopes to explore the beauty of a country rich in history and nature, to learn everything she can about agriculture and nutrition from her host organisation: Gardens for Health International, and to sharpen her French language skills while gaining new ones in Kinyarwanda.

Anisha Sehgal 2019-2020 Fellow with International Rescue Committee (IRC), Sierra Leone Georgetown University Class of 2019

Anisha Sehgal, a native of Cleveland, Ohio, graduated from Georgetown University with a B.S. in Global Health. She is committed to working towards the social, political, and economic empowerment of all people and believes in the power of sustainable, high- impact public health initiatives to aid in this objective. Anisha has published research on antibiotic resistance, written blogs on reproductive health policy, and contributed to an accepted grant proposal regarding the inclusion of individuals with disabilities in research activities. As an advocacy intern at Save the Children, Anisha successfully organized an event at the Open Government Partnership Summit in Tbilisi, Georgia. The event brought together civil society organizations and government officials from Kenya and Liberia to discuss and advocate for increased public participation in governance. Most recently, she lived in Tanzania for four months where she interned at the National Institute for Medical Research. While there she designed and conducted a study on the prevalence, drivers, and reproductive health implications of child marriage in Mwanza, Tanzania. Anisha is excited for the opportunity to return to the continent as a Princeton in Africa fellow and looks forward to working for the International Rescue Committee in Freetown, Sierra Leone.

Our History

In 1999, a group of Princeton alumni, faculty, and staff launched Princeton in Africa as an independent affiliate of Princeton University inspired by the University’s informal motto, “Princeton in the Nation’s Service and in the Service of All Nations.” In 2010, the program opened up to include graduates of any US accredited university in order to meet the growing demand from host organizations and allow more young professionals access to the unique opportunities afforded by PiAf. During the past 20 years, we have placed over 600 Fellows with more than 100 organizations in 36 countries, while developing more strategic partnerships across Africa and creating more opportunities for our alumni community to engage with the continent and with one another.

Testimonials

The International Rescue Committee has been so fortunate to have had a longstanding relationship with Princeton in Africa since our very first Fellows landed in Rwanda in 1999.  Whether it was Emily or Renee in 1999 or the 110 Fellows across 14 IRC countries over the years, we have been blessed by the relationship, the quality of the Fellows and the impact on what IRC does on the ground every single day.

Brian Johnson
Chief Human Resources Officer
International Rescue Committee

My fellowship has been the most impactful personal and professional development opportunity of my life. I wanted a post-college experience that would push my limits, expand my comfort zone, and help me discern the next steps in my career journey. And this has been the case.

Ryan Elliott
2014-15 Fellow
Baylor Pediatric AIDS Initiative in Lesotho

I can honestly say that this year has changed my life and my view of what’s possible for the future. Princeton in Africa isn’t just a one-year fellowship, it’s an introduction to a particular way of life and a new way of thinking about the world. I feel like so many doors are open now that I never would have considered before.

Katie Fackler
2010-11 Fellow
UN World Food Programme

My Princeton in Africa fellowship was everything I could have hoped for and much more. The myriad of experiences makes my head swim, and it has strengthened my desire to help underserved populations worldwide.

David Bartels
2006-2007 Fellow
Baylor Pediatric AIDS Initiative

Princeton in Africa was an invaluable experience for me. I learned an infinite amount through my work and through living in Uganda. I also realized that I want to continue working on African issues as long as I can.

Alexis Okeowo
2006-2007 Fellow
The New Vision

The International Rescue Committee’s experience with Princeton in Africa has been exceptional. Each Fellow brings excellent writing and analytical skills as well as unique interests and passions that enrich the program and the field office environment. We were so pleased we expanded the program to more field offices.

Susan Riehl
Human Resources, IRC

The Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation has been working in Africa for over 11 years through its Secure the Future program.  One common theme in all aspects of program implementation is having passionate, energetic individuals on the ground who can think outside the box and then transfer the skills for sustainability.  The Princeton In Africa Fellows have been a huge asset in this regard and our programs and patients have been better for it.

John Damonti
President, Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation