We are a group of master’s students at New York University studying International Education. For the fall semester, we took a class that focused on Political Issues within International Education and were tasked with researching and writing a grant for We Love Reading. Over the course of the semester, we worked closely with Dr. Rana Dajani to craft a product to be submitted for the USAID Middle East Education Umbrella Grant to bring libraries and social-emotional support resources to refugee camps in Yemen and Syria. Below are our personal biographies:
Ashley Lynch is currently a master’s student at New York University in International Education. A Midwest native, she received her undergraduate degree in Global Studies with a focus on European cultural studies from the University of Minnesota. While there, she participated and led the TandemPlus language exchange program and student group. She also interned in the university’s study abroad office. Upon graduation, she worked at Reading & Math, Inc., a Minneapolis nonprofit that combines literacy and math interventions for elementary and middle school students with the power of national service. When not studying, she enjoys cooking, reading, and learning new languages. She’s attempting to learn Arabic and Italian.
Meichen Jin is a graduate from the Michigan State University with a degree in Elementary Education. She was a teacher assistant at Lyons elementary school at Michigan and gave lessons of Science, Social Studies, Literacy and mathematics to little children. She worked as a tutor for Read to Succeed at Cavanaugh Elementary School and conducted one-on-one tutoring sessions for children in the third grade to improve their reading and writing skills. Originally from Nanjing, China, she came to study International Education at NYU and hopes to focus on educational development in the future. Meichen enjoys trying different foods and watching action movies.
Alejandra Guevara graduated from Southwestern University cum laude with a major in International Studies and a focus in Latin America. This fall she started her master’s in International Education at NYU. She has worked in different private and non-profit organizations related to international education including Kaplan International, Education First, and Volunteers Abroad. She interned at the State Department’s Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs in the public diplomacy and public affairs office in the Spring of 2015 and worked on several projects, including the presidential initiative 100,000 Strong in the Americas and the Young Leaders in the Americas Initiative (YLAI). She has extensive experience and training in English to Spanish translation and interpretation and is a former intern at the New York District Attorney’s office in the Spanish Language Unit.