John is a recent graduate of Boston College, where he studied International Studies with a regional focus in the Middle East. This fall, he will be in Turkey as a Fulbright Scholar. An Institute for International Public Policy (IIPP) Fellow, John has significant teaching and work experience in South Korea. Last year, he interned at the Korean Broadcasting System and at the Republic of Korea National Assembly in Seoul. One of his passions is learning languages—he has studied Spanish, Korean, Arabic, Hebrew, and Turkish. John is a Korean-American who grew up in Lawrenceville, GA. In his free time, he enjoys playing sports, watching movies, and having good conversations with friends.

Tasneem is a Palestinian American born and raised in Arizona. She recently received her B.A in Education at Arizona State University and is currently pursuing a Journalism and Mass Communications degree.  Tasneem is an active member in her community and has a strong passion to work with children. As a result of her dedication and passion, Tasneem founded Students for Justice in Palestine at Arizona State University and was a lead mentor for a Youth leadership program. Tasneem hopes to work with children all over the world and continue advocating for justice. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, swimming and editing and creating videos. 

Mark is a rising Junior at Tufts University majoring in International Relations and Arabic. A passionate student of conflict resolution, he is a member of the Tufts New Initiative for Middle East Peace and recently completed an on the ground study of Kurdish-Iranian relations in Iraq. Mark also studies sustainable development and has traveled to Bangladesh to research NGO practices and to Geneva to report on the international humanitarian community. In his free time, Mark enjoys singing in a campus a capella group, playing the cello, and engaging in ultimate frisbee and photography. 

Dana was born and raised in California, and in 2005 moved to Jordan where she lived for five years before moving to Massachusetts. She is a currently a Global Scholar and rising sophomore at Clark University, where she is studying history and economics. She is a member of Clark Students for Palestinian Rights and does volunteer work with non-English-speaking members of the Worcester community. In her free time, Dana enjoys rowing for Clark Women's Crew and reading.

Lorenzo Brown is a rising senior at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he is majoring in Mathematics and Computer Science, with a concentration in Middle East Studies. At MIT, Lorenzo has held various leadership positions with Palestine@MIT, the Arab Students Association, and Latino Cultural Center. He has also served as a software engineer for Hewlett Packard. He is fluent in Spanish and is conversational in Arabic and Portuguese. In his free time, Lorenzo enjoys tinkering electronics and practicing Arabic with his friends.

Huda Bayaa is a Palestinian-American born and raised in California. In 2007, she received her B.A. in History from the University of California-Santa Barbara. She volunteers with various organizations including The Palestine Children's Relief Fund, which provides medical care to children who cannot receive that treatment in their countries, and Camp Ronald McDonald for Good Times, an overnight camp for children with cancer and their siblings. She intends to pursue a dual MA in Public Health and Social Work and continue working with nonprofit organizations aimed at the betterment of the lives of children. Huda is fluent in Arabic.

Stephanie Baker is a 2010 Harry S. Truman Scholar studying rising senior studying Sustainable Justice at NYU. In 2008, she took off a semester of school to work as field organizer for Barack Obama’s presidential campaign in Seattle, WA. She is an active member of the NYU Civic Team, director of NYU’s Gospel Choir, and has interned for the Young People's Project in Boston. Stephanie hopes to pursue a M.A. in Human Rights with a focus in democratization and education policy. In her free time she enjoys playing her guitar and watching anime.

Samuel Schneider is a sophomore at Georgetown University where he is a Government major. Sam is an Assistant Editor and Op-Ed columnist for the student newspaper, The Hoya, and involved with the campus chapters of Habitat Humanity and the Students for Justice in Palestine. In his free time, Sam enjoys watching, teaching, and playing soccer—he is a supporter of the U.S. Men’s team, a youth coach for goalkeepers, and a member of Georgetown’s Club Team. Sam aspires to found and direct his own international humanitarian NGO.

Brad O'Brien is a Master's student in Middle East Studies at the University of Utah, with a focus on migration’s role in international relations. He was named a FLAS Fellow for his academic work on migration in Iraq and Palestine and commitment to the study of Arabic. He also holds a Master's in English Literature from the University of South Carolina. Before beginning his current graduate program, he taught English for five years. In his free time he tutors Iraqi refugees at International Rescue Committee in Salt Lake City. Brad enjoys chess, reading, and playing soccer with his dog.

Hannah Schafer is a recent graduate of Brown University, where she studied Comparative Literature. Last summer, she was in Pune, India, teaching English to 15 Kashmiri orphans. One of her passions is filmmaking, which she studied at the Rhode Island School of Design. A Humanity in Action Fellow, Hannah has studied and worked abroad in Vietnam, China, and Thailand. Hannah’s love for cultures stems from her experience growing up in the Virgin Islands. In her free time, she enjoys learning languages and reading.

Omar Noureldin is a recent graduate of Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service, where he majored in in Science, Technology, and International Affairs at the School of Foreign Service. He is an American-Egyptian and grew up in the Middle East and Los Angeles. At Georgetown, Omar was involved with the Students for Justice in Palestine, the International Relations Club, and the largest student non-profit organization in the world, the Corp.