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Post-Baccalaureate Certificate Students
Katherine Stapko
Ms. Stapko’s main focus is on English literature. The GGI post-bac program is part of her process of preparing for further graduate studies with an emphasis on women and literature.
Contact: kstapko@ucdavis.edu
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate Alumni
Parivash Aram
An engineer and artist with numerous professional skills from administration to web design; Ms. Aram aims to refocus her career to work with women’s organizations. With the GGI Post-Bac, she aims to better position herself to help develop and implement programs that will assist women. Now at home with her two small children, she has created an online resource guide for parents in Davis (www.momscircle.com). Having completed the GGI Certificate in June 2007, she has moved on to start a program introducing girls to technology; particularly to computer hardware.
Contact: parto@sbcglobal.netSenovia Han
With a specialization in dramatic arts and comparative literature, Ms. Han aims to use the GGI Post-Bac as part of her path to develop her voice as a writer and artist before continuing further graduate education. She seeks to gain insight into the different voices of women particularly through the intersection with colonialism. Ms. Han has worked as a drama teacher and has been involved in productions with Cyprus College, at the Yale School of Drama, as well as with the “Summer 2005 New Play Festival” with playwrights from Los Angeles. A GGI graduate from June 2007, she has just started a Ph.D. program at the University of Rochester in New York.
Contact: ellechante@excite.comHtun Hla
A veterinarian from Burma (Myanmar) participating in the Humphrey Scholar’s Program, Mr. Hla has worked with United Nations Development Fund projects for rural areas included programs focused on women. A June 2007 graduate, Mr. Hla has returned to Burma and has been working on gender and environment issues such as with Hurricane Nargis.
Contact: ttheinhtunhla@yahoo.comMary Jennings
Our first Certificate graduate in June 2006, Ms. Jennings has worked with a broad range of international development non-profit organizations including Heifer International, Freedom from Hunger and Lift the Children. With the GGI Post Bac, she was able to gain more in-depth knowledge of feminist studies and specialized topics within the field of gender and development applicable to her work. She is now involved with projects in Romania and Guatemala with Lift the Children.
Contact: me.jennings@comcast.netYoung-Hye Kim
A researcher with the Korean Women’s Development Institute http://www2.kwdi.re.kr/, Ms. Kim has published on issues related to women and globalization, particularly in Korea. She has also worked collaboratively with United Nations agencies such as UNIFEM. Addressing the link between deep-rooted and socially structured gender inequality and poverty, her focus while at UC Davis was on gender mainstreaming for Korean Official Development Aid policies and programs in order to make them more effective. Ms. Kim participated in the joint Visiting Scholar Program with the Consortium for Women and Research. Since graduating in December 2007, she has returned to KWDI with a fresh perspective.
Contact: yhkim@kwdi.re.krRachel Messer
Working with the Yolo County Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence Center as a sexual assault victim advocate, Ms. Messer provides crisis-intervention, resource referrals, advocacy and counseling. She serves as the Chair of the Chancellor's Committee on LGBTI Issues and represents UC Davis on the UC LGBTIA Steering Committee. Working with the office of graduate studies for the McNair Scholars Program, she also participates on the Staff Affirmative Action and Diversity Advisory Committee. A stepping stone in her path to further graduate studies, participation in the GGI Post-Bac allowed her to merge her experience with academic discourse on sexual identity, gender and sexual assault and how these relate to diverse cultures and histories. A June 2008 graduate, Ms. Messer is continuing her graduate studies with a Master’s in Sexuality Studies at San Francisco State University.
Contact: rmesser@ucdavis.eduLisa Chang Sarine
A community activist, Ms. Sarine has spearheaded projects such as a short documentary film about women and neighborhood revitalization in Oak Park, Sacramento along with a critical needs assessment including interviews and surveys. Her current community projects aim to create a more supportive environment for children through a collaborative, “Coloring Book in Action” published in Hmong, Spanish and English and with a neighborhood, “What’s Really Cooking” cuisine exchange sponsored by a First 5 Child Action Grant. Ms. Chang was born in Taiwan and lived in Belize before moving to California. A March 2008 graduate, Ms. Sarine has developed a foundation in feminist theory with this program and taken the opportunity to hone her legal writing skills as she prepares for a career change into law. http://sparkplug.libsyn.com/ to download an interview.
Contact: lisasarine@gmail.comAgnieszka Zajaczkowska
The first feminist lawyer in her city of Lublin, Poland, Ms. Zajaczkowska saw first-hand through her work in criminal and family law how women were frequently not accorded the same advantages as men. A December 2007 graduate, the GGI Post-Bac helped her to deepen her understanding of gender studies, feminist theory and US legal structures. Her project in this program focuses on domestic violence. Ms. Zajackowska also participated in the joint Visiting Scholar Program with the Consortium for Women and Research. She is now in a doctoral program in Sociology at Simon Frazier University in Canada.
Contact: zajaczkowska.agnieszka@gmail.comGender and Global Issues Intern Alumni:
Adam Chang
ACCEPT, Bucharest, Romania: August 1 – September 14, 2006
An African American and African Studies and International Relations double major, Mr. Chang became involved in facilitating change both within the organization and outside. He has given presentations and facilitated discussions about feminism from a male perspective and the intersection between sexism and homophobia. As part of this, he began the process of starting a men’s group within the organization. Additionally, he managed to convince some local artists to let him paint a section of their mural near the National Theatre, and there, he created a piece to represent tolerance and understanding. In the future, Mr. Chang hopes to work for the United Nations High Commission for Refugees.Rupinder Chima
INDCARE, New Delhi, India: March 25 – May 10, 2006
A Biological Sciences major, Ms. Chima used the INDCARE experience to gain a ground level understanding of healthcare challenges of urban poor and how organizations such as INDCARE work to address these needs. She synthesized key information into an advocacy brochure. One of her goals is to join a group such as ‘Doctors Without Borders’ or UNICEF. Now in her first year of medical school at UC Davis, she is well on her way.Morgan Kanninen
INDCARE, New Delhi, India: August 15 – December 15, 2005
GGI Office Intern, Spring Quarter, 2006
A Community and Regional Development major, Ms. Kanninen researched re-use options for silt that was dug from storm drains (nalas) all over Delhi with the hope that the processing of the silt would provide employment for impoverished local women. She successfully brought together INDCARE staff, Delhi University professors and other Education Abroad Program students to investigate this topic. She also helped INDCARE document its programs. As our first INDCARE intern, Ms. Kanninen was able to use her experience to create in-depth materials to better prepare future interns and pass on her knowledge. She has a broad range of interests, but her focus is on the relationships of local populations to their environments.Liz Montegary
ACCEPT, Bucharest, Romania: June 22 - August 3, 2005
A doctoral student in Cultural Studies with an emphasis on feminist theory and research, her primary area of interest is the examination of transnational feminist/queer activist movements. She collaborated on the preparation of an extensive grant application, the organization’s annual report, letters to political officials, and public reports on relevant LGBT issues, as well as, attended meetings with the newly-formed women’s group, and assisted one of ACCEPT’s directors in compiling material for an LGBT studies anthology. She published a brief article describing her experiences with ACCEPT in the organization’s monthly magazine, Inklusiv. During this time she also developed an independent project which resulted in an article, Desiring Intervention/Intervening Desire: Queer Tourism & Activism in Romania.Tulsi Shah
INDCARE, New Delhi, India: September 1 – December 28, 2006
Minoring in Women and Gender Studies, Ms. Shah will make a documentary video on prostitution and the need for laws which protect instead of criminalize women. This topic intersects with the Women’s Empowerment groups that INDCARE organizes and the goals of advocating for the rights of poor women. Ms. Shah plans to start an NGO which helps sex-workers and their children in India.Amberann Sheikh
INDCARE, New Delhi, India: August 10 – December 20, 2006 An International Relations major, Ms. Sheikh’s research focus is on urban micro-finance. She is looking at this in the context of organizational capacity building from a business and marketing perspective to help assess strengths and weaknesses of INDCARE. She has been able to build upon the project that GGI intern, Radhika Tahilani started on micro-finance. Ms. Sheikh is concurrently enrolled in the UC Education Abroad Program taking classes at Delhi University. Her work with INDCARE is supported by a 2006 UCD Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship. She aims to pursue a career in International Women’s Development in the Middle East and South Asia.Mihaella Smith
APoWeR, Timisoara, Romania: June 11 – August 5, 2005
Now a graduate of the UC Davis School of Law, Ms. Smith prepared a report of her comparative analysis of U.S. and Romanian legal structures as it relates to domestic violence and specifically regarding restraining order legislation. To do this, she was able to pair her experience as an intern at the Yolo County District Attorney's Office where she handled a number of cases concerning domestic violence with her experience at APoWeR where she participated in training sessions, counseling and legal advocacy. Ms. Smith is dedicated to the struggle against domestic violence, child and sexual abuse.Katherine Simmons
CASA de la PAZ, San Cristobal, Mexico: June 28 – Nov. 8, 2006
An International Relations major, Ms. Simmons is working with Casa de la Mujer, one of CPHP’s partners which focuses on education, support and legal rights of women in the Chiapas. Building on her experience working at My Sister’s House in Sacramento helping to prepare Spanish language domestic violence prevention literature specific to their programs, she is now busy doing a variety of jobs such as co-leading workshops for 4-12 year olds while their mothers are doing their own workshop about domestic labor and their rights. She also participated in a seminar with students from the Universidad Ibero Americana about social service. Ms. Simmons hopes to develop a future graduate project inspired from this grassroots activism.Shana Summers
GGI Office Intern, Spring quarter, 2006
A Women and Gender Studies major and Sexuality Studies minor, Ms. Summers worked to further develop the Davis Feminist Film Festival structure for 2006 - 07. She is particularly interested in the role of media and gender studies. She can also be found at rallies supporting a woman's right to choose.Radhika Tahilani
INDCARE, New Delhi, India: May 25 – September 18, 2006
An Economics major, Ms. Tahilani’s created a report on INDCARE's micro-credit program including a brief history of micro-credit globally as well as regionally and how INDCARE’s work fits into this context. She also contributed to a training manual, which will be used to train mid-level management on development and business topics such as linkages and cost-benefit analysis. Ms. Tahilani is interested in pursuing a career in development focusing on public health, education and micro-finance.Naomi Voosen
GGI Office Intern, Spring quarter, 2006
A Women and Gender Studies major, Ms. Voosen worked to develop outreach materials for the Chiapas Peace House Project internship. She has studied in Cuba and works at the Davis Food Co-op. She aims to develop her social justice activism with more Spanish-speaking and indigenous peoples.Emma Williams
Shem Women’s Group, Xining, China Sept. – Dec. 2007
An International Agricultural Development major, Ms. Williams worked with the Tibetan women at Shem editing grant proposals, teaching English classes for children, and participating in the grassroots projects that they organized. The types of projects that the Shem women leaders bring to their rural home villages range from setting up solar panel arrays to micro-credit loans for yaks.
