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2007 Intern Profiles

Nana Bannor

NYU School of Medicine – Reproductive Choice Service, New York City
Hampshire College ‘08
Hometown: Ghana, West Africa
Major/Concentration: International Health and Women Studies
I would like to improve the health of third world women in the future.

Ada Caisse

The Care Center, Holyoke, Massachusetts
Greenfield Community College ‘09
Hometown: Holyoke, Massachusetts
Major/Concentration: Human Services
My goal is to work with teens who have a drug addiction or teen pregnancy.
Some of the things that I enjoy doing are spending time with my family I am a mother to 4 wonderful children three of them are boys and my youngest is a girl and I am married for the past 21 years. Hobbies include cooking and making sure that if you visit my home you don't leave hungry.

Vivienne Carlsen

The Center for Genetics and Society, Oakland, California
Mount Holyoke College ‘09
Hometown: Berkeley, California
Major/Concentration: Neuroscience and Behavior
I am currently a pre-med and Neuroscience & Behavior major. I love learning about the connections between the mind and the body. I love warm weather, beach time with friends and family, and listening to music. I enjoy going to underground concerts and any poetry slam.

Elena Cohen

National Advocates for Pregnant Women, New York City
Mount Holyoke ‘10
Hometown: Northampton, MA
Major/Concentration: Critical Social Thought
My passions include social justice, ultimate frisbee, yoga, sunflowers, and art! Some future plans... to travel the world, engage in meaningful work, spend time with interesting people, continue to be inspired, and learn life-long.

Cloee Cooper

Women’s Educational Media, San Francisco, California
University of Massachusetts ‘08
Hometown: Mt. Shasta, California
Major/Concentration: Social Thought and Political Economy, International Relations
I grew up in Kosovo/a, former Yugoslavia, between the years of 1999-2004 alongside her family of 10. My dedication to the application of social justice was refined through her engagement in documentary film and social dance theatre projects during my 6 years abroad. I am most concerned with issues related to women in international development and have been invited to work for the Truth and Reconciliation Committee's branch, The National Vision for Sierra Leone, upon graduation.

Olga Deshchenko

Cine Qua Non (Incite Pictures), New York City
University of Massachusetts ‘10
Hometown: Brooklyn, NY
Major/Concentration: Journalism & Legal Studies & Public Policy and Civic Engagement Certificate
I love the Travel Channel, Seinfeld, all things New York & fashion, reading, dancing, movies, languages, sushi, and Mexican food. In the future, I hope to become a traveling journalist, eventually a lawyer and work for social change.

Nicole Diaz

National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health, New York City
Smith College ‘09
Hometown: Edinburg, TX (southern border near South Padre Island)
Major/Concentration: Government and Latino/a Studies (particular focus on Mexican and U.S. relations)
I am a friendly, caring, and open-minded Texan to the core. Blue Bell Homemade Vanilla ice cream with fresh peaches are my weakness as is dark chocolate and honey. I love traveling to México and other Spanish speaking places with my whole family. In the future I plan to visit my grandmother's hometown in Cuba and work on social justice issues for Latino/as.

Melissa Estrella

Center for Reproductive Rights, New York City
Smith College ‘08
Hometown: Brooklyn, New York and Dominican Republic
Major/Concentration: Government/ International Relations
My interest in the international community comes as a result of my travels. I am passionate about learning languages and communicating with people. I enjoy the arts, particularly dance.

Stephen Figura

Committee on Women, Population, and Environment, Atlanta, Georgia
Hampshire College ’08
Hometown: Newport News, Virginia
Major/Concentration: Environmental Justice, Reproductive Justice, Social and Political Theory
I study a wide range of issues where environmental and reproductive politics intersect, such as population control and environmental contamination of breast milk, to name just a couple. My tentative future plans involve doing work around issues of militarism, environment, and gender in Vieques, Puerto Rico. I like playing guitar, reading, cooking, and eating what I cook.

Ellen Gattozzi

Native American Women’s Health Education Resource Center, Lake Andes, South Dakota
Hampshire College ’08
Hometown: Erie, PA
Major/Concentration: Public, Reproductive and Sexual Health
You’re likely to find me walking around campus on a lovely spring day strumming my guitar. You might otherwise find me making banana pancakes, learning Spanish or reading and writing about reproductive justice.

Ana Gordon-Loebl

COLAGE, San Francisco, California
Hampshire College ’09
Hometown: Brooklyn, NY
Major/Concentration: Histories of Social Justice
I love cities and public parks, subways and people watching. I am really interested in the creation of radical, collective memory through the construction of alternative history archives. I have been organizing at Hampshire mainly in opposition to racism and am committed to integrating multiple identities, oppressions, and perspectives into my agenda for social change. And I am SO SO excited to be going to San Francisco this summer!

Sarah (Sari) Grossman

Illinois Caucus for Adolescent Health, Chicago, Illinois
Hampshire College ’08
Hometown: Haddonfield, NJ (right outside Philly)
Major/Concentration: HIV/AIDS prevention, Reproductive and Sexual Health, Dance
When I have free time I try to spend it dancing, doing yoga, or with my wonderful friends. I love cooking, sewing clothing, Thai food, the ocean, breathing and traveling the world when I can.

Helen (Xiaojia) Hua

National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum, Washington DC
Smith College ‘10
Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky
Major/Concentration: Government (major), Education (minor)
I love people and food and my friends would call me vivacious, bubbly and assertive. I was born in China, but I have lived in Hawaii, Florida and Kentucky, which has allowed a unique perspective on the world. In the future I would like to work with legislation, particularly education reform.

Jacqueline Johnson

Justice Now, Oakland, California
Mount Holyoke College ‘08
Hometown: Northampton, Massachusetts
Major/Concentration: Politics
I love my family! I am very interested in work around labor unions. I love to wear nice shiny lip-gloss (Red/Brown). I have a great personality and I am extremely thankful and extremely excited to start working for Justice Now!

Petrolin J. Kelly

African American Women Evolving, Chicago, Illinois
Holyoke Community College ‘08
Hometown: Springfield, Massachusetts
Major/Concentration: Liberal Arts and Spanish
I want to explore the world, help people, and take pictures in the process. Places on my list of hopefully future excursions include Cuba, Jamaica, Honduras, and Haiti. I can't live without Maybelline blackest black mascara and fresh lipgloss. I love to laugh. I love my family. I love to travel; hop in the Blu Beast and just go!!

Anna Mester

Political Research Associates, Somerville, Massachusetts
Mount Holyoke College ‘09
Hometown: Amherst, Massachusetts
Major/Concentration: Romance Languages and Literatures / Critical Social Thought
I am originally from Hungary, but I have been residing in the US for 8 years. My academic interests are labor movements and unions. I hope to earn a graduate degree in Labor Studies.

Arielle Neal

Pro-Choice Public Education Project, New York City
Mount Holyoke College ‘10
Hometown: Nashville, TN
Major/Concentration: Psychology/Sociology/Study of Women and Gender
I enjoy college-hopping, fair warning, gluten-free, dance parties. Inevitably I'll become a professor, unless I come up with a better idea of how to stay in school for life. I wouldn't mind being a professional music-listener or show-watcher, though.

Gaia Oyarzun

National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, Oakland, California
Smith College ‘12
Hometown: San Diego, CA
Major/Concentration: Undecided
I like adventures - abandoned places, things I don't understand, the open road. I treasure radical art and radical politics, making things with my hands, unity and energy. Starting in September I'll be walking to South America.

Eliza Pesuit

Justice Now, Oakland, California
University of Massachusetts ‘08
Hometown: Northampton, Massachusetts
Major/Concentration: Bachelor's Degree with Individual Concentration: International Public Health and Science
I'm a wanderer. I love being in the mountains, making people laugh, creating things with my hands, and dancing. I do way too much most of the time, and I'm generally terrible at relaxing or stopping unless I'm sleeping. Someday, I want to be a nurse practitioner and work with international women's health.

Felipa Quiroz

New York Civil Liberties Union, New York City
Mount Holyoke College ‘08

Supriya Sharma

Choice USA, Washington DC
Mount Holyoke College ‘10
Hometown: Kathmandu, Nepal
Major/Concentration: Undecided
Tintin fanatic; Food-related-analogy-maker; Hindi movie/Shahrukh Khan aficionado; Traveler of lands real and not.

Josie Sourdiffe

Health Initiatives for Youth, Oakland, California
Hampshire College ‘08
Hometown: Lincoln, VT
Major/Concentration: Using Visual Art as a medium of Social Change
I like to go on random adventures that may or may not include barefoot dance parties. I'm studying and exploring how to use art as an effective and powerful voice of social change and how to make issues of positive and healthy sexuality accessible to youth.

Autumn Soucy

Women of Color Resource Center, Oakland, California
University of Massachusetts ‘08
Hometown: Wakefield, RI
Major/Concentration: Social Thought and Political Economy
I like cooking meals for friends, holiday crafting projects, and analyzing pop television shows. I hope to critically utilize the politics I've been developing for the past few years to do some effective community organizing post-graduation.

Bethany A. Tabb

Third Wave Foundation, New York City
Holyoke Community College ‘07
Hometown: Holyoke, MA
Major/Concentration: Liberal Arts at HCC and Women’s Studies when I transfer
I am very excited to intern this summer at Third Wave. I love to meet new people and learn new things. I enjoy spending time with my German Shepard. I will miss him this summer! I like running and pretty much doing anything outside. Favorite things: chocolate, traveling, sleeping, learning. I plan on being in school for the next couple of years and hope to get more involved in working toward social justice!

Yana Tallon-Hicks

The Center for Sex and Culture, San Francisco, California
Hampshire College ’08
Hometown: Worthington, Massachusetts
Major/Concentration: Sexuality Education/Dance
I love peanut butter everything bagels, pups, anything VH1, trashy magazines and learning. I don't like driving cars, heights, and unproductivity and/or disorganization. I hope to go to Argentina and get my PhD but not at the same time.

Melissa Tyrone

Legal Momentum, New York City
University of Massachusetts ‘07
Hometown: Parsippany, NJ
Major/Concentration: Legal Studies, Political Science
My future plan is to be a family law attorney and concentrate on issues of domestic violence. I enjoy playing the flute and being a member of the UMass Marching Band.

Charlotte-Rose Vieira

National Network of Abortion Funds, Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts
University of Massachusetts ‘08
Hometown: Pepperell, MA
Major/Concentration: English and Women's Studies
I work at the Everywoman's Center at UMASS. I like writing, hiking, good food and painting. I hope to do something with women's issues in the future but as of right now I'm not sure what direction I want to go in.

Margarite J. Whitten (Maggie)

Planned Parenthood of Massachusetts, Springfield, Massachusetts
University of Massachusetts ‘08
Hometown: Westfield, Massachusetts
Major/Concentration: Anthropology
I'm currently researching the abortion reform movement in Portugal. I would like to go to graduate school and research sexual politics and social change in lusophone countries. I like reading, community service, playing outside, tea, nutella, blanket forts, and science fiction.

Sam Young

LGBT Community Center, New York City
Holyoke Community College
Hometown: Washington DC
Major/Concentration: American Studies
I like bad action movies and good music. I am interested in connections. In the future I plan to be happy, enjoying life and writing.

Yana Yushkina

The CAIR Project, Seattle, Washington
Amherst College ‘10
Hometown: Vladivostok, Russia and Bellevue, Washington
Major/Concentration: Undeclared, but probably French and Political Science or European Studies
I love ballroom dancing, politics, languages, reading, my friends, traveling, meeting new people, the sunshine, the ocean, my amazing family, and seafood. I dislike ignorance, arrogance and peanut butter. I hope to attend either law school or the School Of Foreign Service and become a diplomat.

Annual Conference


April 3-5, 2009
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