2019 Summer Scholars

FATÈNE BEN-HAMZA | Summer Scholars 2019 : JORDAN Fellowship

Fatène Ben-Hamza is from Tunisia, and is a first-year student in the MPA-DP program at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA). During the summer of 2019, Fatène will be interning with UNICEF in Amman, Jordan and more particularly, in the ADAP (Adolescent Development and Participation) and HIV section for adolescents and youth.

Prior to joining the program, Fatène served as a program manager at the Drosos Foundation in both Morocco and Tunisia. Drosos is a non-profit, charitable organization based in Switzerland. Established in 2003, the foundation is involved with more than 100 projects which work to fight poverty, promote health, increase access to education and creative activities for youth, and protect the environment.

Fatène was a program manager at the Humanist Institute for Cooperation with Developing Countries (HIVOS), a development aid organization headquartered in the Netherlands.

Fatène is one of two SAP McDermott Summer Scholars

Read Fatène's blog HERE

EMILY BOYTINCK | Summer Scholars 2019 : SENEGAL Fellowship

Emily Boytinck is currently a candidate in the Master of Development Practice Program at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), focussing on disasters, emergencies, and crisis management. She in from Edmonton, Canada and holds a B.Sc. in Environmental Science from McGill University.

She has a diverse array of experience related to political advocacy and community development. As an undergraduate, she was deeply involved in social and environmental movements in Montreal, eventually working on mobilization and political affairs as an executive on her student union. After graduation Emily moved to Inukjuak, a remote Inuit community in the Canadian arctic, to work as an entrepreneurship project coordinator for an alternative education organization. In this role she worked directly with Inukjuamiut youth, implementing experiential learning projects that aimed at developing practical leadership and entrepreneurial skills and fostering youth involvement in the community. She currently works at the Earth Institute as a research intern, studying coastal adaptation to climate change in developing countries.

Emily is incredibly excited to be spending the summer in Dakar at the Senegal UNFPA County Office, where she will support the reproductive health team through research, data analysis, and communication.

Read Emily's blog HERE

RABIA JAVED | Summer Scholars 2019 : TURKEY Fellowship

Rabia Javed is currently pursuing a Masters of Public Administration at Baruch College’s Marxe School of Public and International Affairs, with a concentration in Health Care Policy. She completed her undergraduate studies at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, majoring in Cell and Molecular Biology, and minoring in Law. Rabia is interested in the intersection of science, health, and policy.

While in college, Rabia spent the summer following her sophomore year studying abroad in Morocco. There she analyzed the therapeutic properties of medicinal plants and their value as biopesticides. Upon the completion of the project, she decided to join a toxicology lab where she analyzed the toxic mechanisms of commonly used fungicides, and the application of plant-derived therapeutics to mitigate their toxicity. Over the course of her research, she realized that environmental related health challenges faced by the public are largely due to the lack of regulation and effective policies, rather than due to a lack of scientific research.

Her experience as a researcher has led her to pursue a career in public policy where she hopes to work with policymakers and scientists to better the quality of life and the environment.

Originally from Pakistan, Rabia grew up in Syria and moved to the U.S. when she was 17. She enjoys working with students, reading about the human brain, and experiencing new cultures.

Rabia is excited to spend the summer in Turkey interning with the UNFPA Regional Office’s Sexual and Reproductive Health program, where she will focus on the program’s goal to foster gender equality by increasing access of health services to vulnerable groups including women, refugees, and adolescents.

Read Rabia's blog HERE

CAITLYN PASSARETTI | Summer Scholars 2019 : CAIRO Fellowship

Caitlyn Passaretti is a current dual degree candidate studying for a Master’s of Science in Social Work and a Master’s of Public Administration at Columbia University.

She has worked on gender based violence analysis for UNICEF and the mapping of genocide prevention and historical memory organizations with the Institute for the Study of Human Rights at Columbia University. This past spring, she completed her capstone project with the International Peace Institute focused on the development of new technologies for the protection of civilians in conflict zones.

Prior to attending graduate school, Caitlyn worked in the largest homeless services center in Missouri running a therapeutic horticulture and job-training program for individuals experiencing homelessness and suffering from severe mental illnesses and drug/alcohol addictions. In addition to advocating for housing reform, Caitlyn has been involved in criminal justice reform, working with a reentry agency in Oakland, CA focusing on providing legal and social support to people who are currently incarcerated and those who are living with a criminal record. She created parole plans for clients so they can access housing, mental health services, employment services, and legal support in an effort to reduce recidivism throughout the state.

Caitlyn is very excited to work with UNFPA’s Arab Regional Office on Youth and HIV/AIDS Program this summer and extend her knowledge and experience of the intersections of social work and policy development.

Read Caitlyn's blog HERE

SARAH RASHID | Summer Scholars 2019 : EGYPT Fellowship

Fadumo Guhad is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Social Work at Columbia University with a focus on International Social Welfare, as well as a minor/focus in law. She is a Somali-American from Virginia and has a BS in Sociology & a minor in Women & Gender Studies from Virginia Tech.

Prior to attending CSSW, Fadumo worked with the Department of Labor as an immigration case processing analyst. She has extensive experience working within the refugee/immigrant population, this is where Fadumo discovered a deep passion for gender equality, which initiated an adolescent girls' leadership program as a result. Along with her mentor, Fadumo co-created Imani Nailah (“Faith in One Who Succeeds”), an after-school program for refugee girls from Africa and the Caribbean. They provided a space each week for the girls, ages 11-18, to explore their identities, passions, and sisterhood.

Furthermore, this led her to co-author a chapter in Difficult Dialogues about Twenty-First-Century Girls (SUNY Press, 2015). In their chapter, “It Means that I Am Knowledge’: GirlPAR as an Emergent Methodology,” Fadumo and her co-author discussed relational activism and explored questions around identities, specifically assumptions around African Blackness and how these assumptions shape our identity and impact how we navigate broader U.S. culture.

Fadumo is excited to intern remotely with UNFPA in Nairobi for the End FGM Program. She hopes to apply the skills she has learned throughout her graduate experience. She is eager and equally excited to pull from her experience/knowledge to support this program’s mission.

Sarah is one of two SAP McDermott Summer Scholars

Read Sarah's blog HERE