Scholars

Chloe Alexander graduated from Bentley University in 2016, where she combined her Business degree in Accounting with Liberal Studies in ethics and social responsibility. She was recognized for her civic leadership, was an active leader in the Bentley Microfinance Group, and continues to volunteer as a business competition judge each year. For three years, Chloe provided internal audit consulting, managed business services, and provided business process improvement services to banking and technology clients. After an opportunity to visit a refugee camp and meet with asylum seekers in Jordan, she decided to take the leap to pivot her career into the public and social sectors. In 2019, Chloe joined the Peace Corps as a Community Economic Development Volunteer in Ukraine, where she completed language, cultural, and technical training to successfully partner with local organizations seeking to build their capacity for social impact. Chloe hosted English-speaking clubs, assisted with grant development activities, and facilitated organizational capacity assessments to identify training opportunities. All Peace Corps volunteers globally were evacuated due to the global Coronavirus pandemic, which led to a new opportunity for Chloe to further develop grant management skills at a government agency and reconnect to her hometown of Prince George, Virginia, USA. Chloe is passionate and extremely curious about many facets of international development, including activating the private sector to bridge resource gaps between the needs of vulnerable groups and limited public and nonprofit capacity, social entrepreneurship as a tool for economic development, and the interconnectedness of religion, gender, and economic development.

Eamon Penney serves as a Project Lead with Partners In Health, where his work focuses on supporting health departments in the U.S. to implement data-driven, equity-first agendas as they rebuild following the emergency phase of the pandemic. Previously, he held a number of roles with MSF (Doctors Without Borders) including coordinating logistics in South Sudan, supporting the Board of Directors in New York, and most recently, leading advocacy and COVID-19 response efforts in Rakhine State, Myanmar. Eamon earned his master’s degree in Public Health from Columbia University where he focused on epidemiological methods in complex humanitarian emergencies. He earned his Bachelor of Science from the University of Vermont in Community and International Development. Eamon currently resides in Boston, Massachusetts but returns frequently to his home state of Vermont.\

Emily Brandt is a doctoral student at the University of Texas, Arlington, where she studies non-profit and citizen participation in poverty alleviation policy implementation. She previously earned Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from the University of North Texas, where her capstone project researched the Yugoslav Wars’ domestic policy implications. With eleven years of experience in non-profits working in domestic violence prevention, economic development, women’s financial independence, and arts education, Emily is passionate about sustainable non-profit growth, financial transparency, and community support for development initiatives. A Returned Peace Corps Volunteer, Emily credits her time working with the YWCA of Armenia with igniting a passion for grassroots development, women-led initiatives, and non-profits’ role in improving lives.

Keelia Sulak is a data analyst who is passionate about improving the world through data. Originally from Chicago, Illinois and now in Portland, Oregon, Keelia has a unique background that has brought her from boardrooms in New York City to organic farm fields in rural North America. After graduating school early with distinction she worked with ProWorld Volunteers in Belize, where she lived in a Mayan village and worked with community businesses. Once returning home, her business background led her to a position as a data analyst. There she had the rare opportunity to work alongside the Director of North American Analytics, which allowed her to gain a vast amount of knowledge and experience. She later transitioned to a position in project management working with schools and food pantries across the Midwest. For many years she worked with locations such as The Greater Chicago Food Depository and Chicago Public Schools with a mission to not only provide food for kids, but work toward equal access to organic and nutritious food for all. Keelia now works at Heifer International where she has found a home and is able to merge two of her greatest passions, data analysis and nonprofit work. Since joining the organization, she has helped expand the team’s analytics offerings and develop efficient methods of monitoring campaigns to help ensure fundraising goals are met. She looks forward to working with the team at Heifer International for many years to come.

Kevin Thor is a Nebraska, USA native dedicated to public service through international organizations. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies and Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Nebraska – Lincoln and will be attending Columbia University for a Master of International Affairs. Kevin works for Operation Smile as a Regional Program Manager in Asia leading multi-year strategy and implementation for comprehensive care programs and health system strengthening initiatives in the Philippines. He is responsible for relationship engagement and multi-year center strategy with local teams, hospital leadership, government agencies, and key corporate partners to expand the collaborative impact of the organization’s work. Kevin resided in the Philippines with extensive experience across the country. Kevin previously led surgical and education programs across eight additional countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America with Operation Smile, including reestablishing OS presence in Mozambique, multi-site programs in Madagascar, and programming following political unrest in Nicaragua. Prior to Operation Smile, Kevin lived in Viet Nam on a Fulbright Fellowship teaching and working with local nonprofits to increase student engagement. Kevin is committed to community development through cross-cultural understanding with a keen interest in human rights and humanitarian policy focused on access to quality education and reducing barriers to care. Additionally, Kevin devotes time to student development through leadership conferences and various mentorship and coaching opportunities.

Kris Reinhardt is a digital health and data science specialist with experience in the humanitarian and international development fields. Kris holds a Master’s degree in Development Practice from Columbia University. Kris currently works for Médecins Sans Frontières or Doctors Without Borders (MSF). In her work with MSF, she has gained expertise in the field of digital health through supporting the development, implementation, and use of multiple digital health platforms. She has extensive technical and implementation knowledge of DHIS2, a health management information system for the collection, storage, and analysis of data. She also has worked on and supported projects to analyze data from Bahmni, an Electronic Medical Record platform. Prior to working for MSF, Kris worked for an inter-United Nations initiative focused on governance, policy, and planning for nutrition. She supported data projects for several countries with the objective to provide multi-sectoral and geographical data analysis around nutrition to impact policy and government planning for nutrition.

Lisa Henry is a humanitarian leader who has worked for the past 25 years in humanitarian response, support to civil society organizations, and human rights work. Lisa’s experience stretches from the Rwandan genocide, the Balkans War, the Ethiopian famine, and the Haiti earthquake. The response was always organized through the input and opinions of local or national organizations and leaders. Affected populations and lived experience are valuable elements in a well-functioning team that relies on strict adherence to human rights. Lisa’s strength is understanding, spotting, and motivating the best response from her team members, while convincing external stakeholders to understand and believe in the results generated.

Lolade (Lolly) Durotoye has over fifteen years of experience in the nonprofit sector. She holds a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Health and Exercise Science from Wake Forest University, a Master’s of Science degree in Clinical Forensic Science from Drexel University, and a certificate in Global Health Delivery from Harvard University. In her current role as a Health Policy Advisor at Partners in Health (PIH) in Sierra Leone, Lolly provides technical guidance to the Ministry of Health (MOH) for the implementation of the National Health Sector Strategic Plan. She oversees program implementation, conducts policy analysis, and engages with stakeholders at a high level. Lolly also plays a leadership role as co-chair of MOHS’ Governance and Leadership group and the national representative body of health NGOs, serving as the liaison for the Ministry. Through her extensive experience, Lolly has acquired skills in scientific research, strategic planning, results-based project management, partnership development, and resource mobilization. Areas of particular interest to Lolly in the nonprofit sector include health policy development, program implementation, and partnership building for effective healthcare delivery.