2025 Recipients

Michael Ruiz, a Montana State University- Bozeman graduate in the class of 2016, pursued a graduate degree at the Tufts Graduate School of Engineering with a Master of Science in Bioengineering in the class of 2020. He works as an Engineering Project Manager doing Research and Development at Bioventus. Michael will use this funding to transition from his current role as a project manager to an intellectual property manager at Bioventus by participating in training at the Patent office preparation course by PLI.

Caroline Hayes graduated from Trinity College Connecticut in the class of 2015 and continued her graduate journey at the Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy, MALD, in the class of 2022. Caroline is a Senior Strategic Initiative Officer at Equimondo: Center for Masculinities and Social Justice. She has worked in International development, specifically in the Middle East and North African Region, for most of her career. She plans on using this funding to continue her academic journey at the Nueva Lengua school in Colombia, learning Spanish to expand her professional development capabilities!

Samantha Bone, a Columbia University graduate, was in the class of 2009. She pursued a graduate degree at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy with an MS in Food Policy and Applied Nutrition in the class of 2015. She is a Senior Consultant at the Public Consulting Group. Samantha will use this funding to participate in the NevNET Live Summer 2025 Conference In NYC to discover consumer packaged goods (CPG) trends in the beverage industry. She aspires to start her own business, Grow, using her nutritional knowledge from the Friedman School to build formulas that fill nutritional gaps and provide active benefits

Nancy Phear graduated from Tufts School of Arts & Sciences with a Bachelor's in English in 2001. She continued her graduate journey at the California State University, Northridge, with an Ms.Ed. in Education Administration in 2008. She is an Instructional Coach at the University High School Charter in the Los Angeles Unified School District. Nancy will use this funding to participate in training at the Bright Morning organization, which is designed to help school-site coaches thrive in their roles through tools and resources supporting educators to meet their students' needs.

Vishal Manve, a University of Mumbai graduate, was in the class of 2013. He pursued his graduate degree at the Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy, MALD, in the class of 2023. He is an intern with ITIC and Columbia Climate School. Vishal was admitted to the Yale Clean and Equitable Energy Development Certificate Program, which focuses on equipping participants with tools to drive equitable clean energy projects, he intends to use this funding to participate in this program and continue promoting equitable solutions.

Carl Jackson graduated from Tufts School of Arts & Sciences with the class of 1999 and continued his graduate journey at Harvard University with a Masters in Urban Planning in 2005. He is the principal Transit Planner at Pioneer Valley Planning Commission and a member of the Conference of Minority Transportation Officials. Carl will be using this funding to attend the COMTO 2025 National Meeting and Training Conference in NYC. COMTO is the Voice of Equity in Transportation and represents every facet of the transportation industry. Attending this conference will give him new skills and industry standards for maintaining equity and inclusion in the transportation industry.

Rachel Nobel Fields is a graduate of Brandeis University with the class of 2005. She pursued her graduate degree at Tufts University with an MA in Child Development in the class of 2007. She is the Director of Communications with the New York Early Childhood Professional Development Institute. She will use this funding for an “all-access pass” for training webinars, workshops, resources, and templates from the Nonprofit Marketing Guide, Providing training and coaching for nonprofit communication strategies. This program will allow her to continue establishing best practices for her new organization and connect with other communications professionals. She’s excited to return to her ‘roots’ in early childhood.

Makiko Harris was a Tufts University graduate in 2011 and pursued a graduate degree at the Royal College of Art with an MA in Contemporary Art Practice in 2023. He is a self-employed professional fine artist producing an underwater film titled Needle Dance. The film is inspired by the Japanese legend of the red thread of fate and explores the tension between autonomy and intimacy. This funding will allow him to participate in the Art’Otel Hoxton in 2025, which will provide critical visibility and new opportunities for international exhibition and will advance his career by engaging with contemporary themes through multiple mediums

Xochitly Castro is a graduate of the Tufts University School of Arts & Sciences class of 2013. She then earned his graduate degree at The George Washington University School of Education and Human Development in the class of 2020. She is a Senior licensed Mental Health Clinician at the House of Ruth in Washington, D.C. Xochitl will use this funding to attend the 2025 Futures without Violence conference on health by the FUTURES National Health Resource Center on Domestic Violence. This opportunity will allow her to enhance her programming knowledge from other providers in the field. Her team at House of Ruth is working on launching their first virtual skills group, so this would allow her to enhance her work at House of Ruth.

Besmah completed her undergraduate degree at CUNY Hunter College as part of the Macaulay Honors College program with the class of 2018. She then pursued her graduate degree at Tufts University at the Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy with a Master of International Business in Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods in 2024. She is a Cyber Policy Analyst at the Department of Defense. She intends to use this funding to enroll in a Japanese language course offered by the Japan-America Society of Washington D.C. As someone who has previously lived in Japan, she intends to improve her proficiency in Japanese across key areas like communication, reading, writing, and listening, which are critical to her current role and will benefit future roles she would like to take on.

Martine-Pascale is a Tufts University graduate in the 1996 class. She pursued her graduate degree at Columbia University GSAS with an MA in French Cultural Studies in 1999. Then, she earned her JD at the University of Richmond School of Law in 2009. She is currently a Counsel and Trust & Compliance officer at IBM. Martine-Pascale intends to use this fund to attend a Corporate Counsel Women of Color 21st Annual Career Strategies Conference to enhance her career, teach her valuable practical skills through professional development, and enhance the voice of women of color in the legal field.

Daniel Mandell, a Tufts University graduate in the class of 2005 who then earned his JD/LLM in international & comparative law at Duke University in 2010, is currently a visiting assistant professor at the Chicago-Kent College of Law, Illinois Institute of Technology. He will use this fund to attend the Southern association of Law Schools (SEALS) annual summer conference and participate in the well-known Prospective Law Teachers workshop as part of the conference. It will allow him to network with law school faculty from different schools and also allow him to obtain specific feedback on his application materials and presentations. He hopes that what he learns at this conference will give him success on the job market in the fall, leading him to a tenure-track position.

Kena Mena graduated from Cedarville University in 2009. In 2013, she pursued an MA in child development at Tufts University Graduate School. She is a social service supervisor at Kids in Need of Defense (KIND). She intends to attend the Latino Social Workers Organization (LSWO) conference in Seattle to network with social work faculty and professional social workers and learn from other practitioners who believe in the recruitment and retention of LatinX students in higher education

Anisha Reza is a Tufts University graduate with the class of 2016 who continued her educational journey with an MS in Biology(Medical Sciences) at Mississippi College in 2020. She is a newly certified Child life specialist (CCLS) as a career changer from medicine. She will co-present a webinar at the Association of Child Life Professionals supported by this funding. This will further her professional development as she increases her audience through podcast episodes, extended-form writing, and resources available to caregivers, child life specialists, and students. This funding will allow her to impact change in recruiting and retaining diversity in the field domestically and internationally.

Stephen Grossman earned an undergraduate degree in 1979 at the Tufts School of Engineering. He pursued higher education in Architecture in 1986 at The Cooper Union. He is a self-employed artist and intends to use this funding to attend a residency at La Napoule Art Foundation, which will allow him to engage with artists, writers, and curators from around the world, which he will benefit by increasing his understanding of professionals from different cultures. It will also grant him exposure to European art institutions, galleries, dealers, and other places, expanding his sales and exhibition opportunities.

Monica Mutinda pursued her undergraduate degree at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology in 2016. She pursued higher education at the Friedman School of Nutrition and earned an MS in Food and Nutrition Policy and Programs in 2023 at Tufts University. She is a Nutrition and health services program specialist at Holt International. She will be using this funding to support her early career membership dues with the American Society of Nutrition (ASN), which will change her career trajectory by providing her with valuable resources and networking opportunities in the field of nutrition.

Karen Carpenter, a Tufts University graduate with the class of 1980, is the CEO & Founder of Speak it Own it Communication LLC. She is a CHIEF guide who facilitates executive coaching and roundtables for C-suite women leaders. CHIEF offers an opportunity to become fully certified through the Gogan assessment training. She will be using this funding as one of the guides of CHIEF to pilot the CHIEF executive advisory coaching programs, which would allow her to be competitive within corporations and more.

Esther Bernstein is a Tufts University graduate with a 2013 class. She is a resident stage manager at Broken Box Mime Theater. The Broken Box Mime Theater wishes to attend the Association of Performing Art Professionals in NYC. Attending this will allow her and her team to meet [performing arts presenters interested in booking the BKBX at their performing arts centers nationwide. This will also allow her to network and provide a big step up for the company

As an undergraduate at Tufts, Zaya Jargalsaikhan studied International Relations and Community Health, interned in research studies at Harvard T.H, Chan School of Public Health and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, and worked in the Health Services, Society, and Equity Lab. These experiences allowed her to develop a passion for health law and its ability to expand healthcare access, leading her to her current role as a legal assistant at a firm that focuses on health policy. Zaya will use these funds for LSAT preparatory materials to improve her candidacy for law school applications.

Rachel Shiloach is graduating from the National Film and Television School this year with an MA in Directing Animation. Since receiving her BFA from SMFA in 2018, she has developed a passion for animation, honing her skills by attending festivals such as the Ottawa International Animation Festival, participating in workshops, and completing summer courses. She will use this funding for Dragonframe and Adobe Creative Cloud, two software applications necessary for her to continue her creative work after graduation.

Imanol Varela, a member of the class of 2024, studied International Relations at Tufts and then advanced to law school. As an undergraduate, he developed a passion for the intersection between constitutional law and global issues and participated in the Latin American Committee through the Institute for Global Leadership. He plans to pursue an LLM at the Fletcher School after law school graduation to study changes in constitutional law in the Caribbean. He will use these funds to buy textbooks for coursework and the writing of his thesis next semester.

Fiona Collins, a 2024 graduate, studied both chemistry and film while attending Tufts. After graduation, she struggled to find the intersection of those two interests, first working as a research assistant in a chemical engineering lab, then working as a research assistant on a public television documentary series before landing her current position as a manager at Somerville Theatre. These experiences have led to a passion for film preservation and communal film screenings. With this funding, Fiona will gain membership in AgX film collective, a local Boston organization whose members are dedicated to the preservation of analog filmmaking. This will allow her to hone her skills before applying to graduate school to pursue film archival studies.

Mariel Kieval graduated from Tufts in 2018 with a degree in International Relations and Environmental Sciences. She is passionate about Arctic Science and currently attends a master’s program. Since 2018, she has been a member of the Association for Polar Early Career Scientists, and she has written articles on Arctic geopolitics for The Arctic Institute. She will use this funding to attend the 4th International Conference on Arctic Research Planning (ICARP) Summit, where she will present her research findings related to sustainable and equitable Arctic economies. This work will lay the groundwork for Mariel’s PhD research proposal, which will focus on Arctic sustainability.

While at Tufts, Aroha Mackay’s involvement in the Tufts University Prison Initiative sparked an interest in international human rights, motivating her to conduct research about ending solitary confinement as a Gerard Gill Fellow. She then went on to intern at the UN Committee for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and to work at the ACLU. She is currently a master’s student studying the use of law in advancing human rights and protecting minority groups. With this funding, she will apply to JD/PhD programs as Harvard, Yale, Northwestern, UChicago, and NYU. She hopes to study Anthropology and to conduct research on the use of international human rights at the domestic level for the protection of Indigenous people and descendants of slavery.

Benjamin Kraft graduated from Tufts in 2024 with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. He will use this funding to take a preparatory course and to take the Fundamentals of Engineering exam. This license is necessary for many civil positions and will allow him to make progress towards his dream career in nuclear energy.

While at Tufts, Sean Lee created his own Interdisciplinary Studies major, “Conservation Through Multimedia Storytelling,” which combined Film and Media Studies, Ecology, and Anthropology. Through his thesis work, he studied the power of stories in the environmental movement and the necessity of diverse voices to increase the involvement of historically excluded communities in the climate solution. He will use this funding to attend the Hollywood Climate Summit 2025, a conference that showcases climate solutions in the mainstream media.

Claire Pernat, a member of the class of 2020, is a current PhD student at Boston University, where she studies Health Services and Policy Research. She is particularly interested in access to preventative services among African Muslim migrants in the US and several European Countries. After graduating from Tufts, Claire received her master’s degree from University of Bergen. While in Norway, she worked as a research assistant at the Norwegian Research Center, and she conducted research on SARS-CoV-2 vaccine hesitancy in Somali communities in Norway and the USA. She will use this funding to attend the 14th Nordic Public Health Conference in Gothenburg, Sweden to present a paper on this research.

Maitreyi Kale graduated in 2022 with a degree in Cognitive Science and Child Development. Her coursework led her to Assistive Technology and Occupational Therapy, and through her work, she hopes to bridge the gap between engineers and healthcare professionals through the designing of Assistive Technology. After graduation from Tufts, she obtained a master’s in Human Factors Engineering and went on to work as an Assistive Technology Coordinator at the University of Colorado Denver. She hopes to become a licensed occupational therapist, and she will use this funding to apply to occupational therapy graduate programs.