Colloquium Members

At EPIIC's core is the year-long, multidisciplinary course on a global political theme. Undergraduate and graduate students of diverse nationalities, viewpoints, experiences, and interests, participate in this rigorous colloquium that stresses critical, analytical and normative thinking. Students are encouraged to confront the ambiguity and complexity of EPIIC's annual global theme through a multi-disciplinary examination of the issues and controversies that the topic reflects. They are taught the subject under investigation not only by a broad range of distinguished academics and practitioners, but also as active participants in defining the issues through classroom presentations and discussions, extensive readings, and independent research. There is an emphasis both on individual progress and on the collaborative effort -- in essence, an intellectual team. Students produce tangible outcomes to their studies through their individual research papers or projects, the international symposium, and the Inquiry simulation.

Andres Borjas

Andres Borjas is a sophomore from Vienna, Virginia. He is studying International Relations, Sociology, and Political Science. On campus, he is a member of the Tufts Historical Review, a writer for the Tufts Daily, and the Recognition Chair for the TCU Judiciary. He is interested in international security, political violence, and Latin American affairs. This summer he worked at the Organization of American States in Washington, D.C. as a research intern. In EPIIC, Andres is interested to learn more about the use of mass violence by governments as a political tool.

Haitong Du

Haitong Du is a sophomore from Guangdong, China. He is majoring in international relations with a concentration in international security and a minor in French. On campus, he is the associate director of Sino-US Relations Group Engagement (SURGE) and the program director of Tufts Peace Action (TPA). Having lived in multiple countries, he is deeply interested in diplomacy and cross-cultural communication. He is currently a Guide-in-Training in the Tufts Tour Guide program and a barista at Tower Café located in the Tisch Library. In EPIIC 2019, Haitong looks forward to furthering his learning in the field of global justice.

Connor Elliott

Connor Elliott is a sophomore studying International Relations at Tufts University. Originally from San Francisco, California, his areas of academic interest include history, music theory, Spanish, and IR. Within IR, he is primarily focused on state theory and comparative politics. Outside of academics, he is involved with the Chaplaincy, Ethics Bowl, and Tufts Model UN, where he holds several positions. In taking EPIIC, he hopes to learn how and why genocide comes about, and what can be done to structure states and the international sphere itself to prevent it.

Adam Foster

Adam Foster is a sophomore and plans to double major in IR, with a security and Chinese concentration, and Economics. He is originally from Albuquerque New Mexico, where he is the youngest ever, volunteer registered lobbyist and he has helped pass seven bills into law across a span of eight years. He is on the Tufts Ballroom Dance Team, the Tufts Men's Club Volleyball team, the Tufts Peace Action Executive Board, and the Tufts ALLIES Field Ex Board and is a member of the Tufts Financial Group.

Jennifer Frye

Jennifer Frye is a sophomore double majoring in International Relations and Spanish. Her academic interests include comparative climate change policy, environmental ethics and economics, rising global populism, and domestic political sociology. Jennifer enjoys learning foreign languages and has a passion for travel. She’s fluent in Spanish and conversational in French. Before beginning her undergraduate studies, she spent a year interning at the Municipal Department of Culture in Cuenca, Ecuador as a Tufts 1+4 Fellow, and she hopes to study abroad in both Spain and Chile. This past summer, she worked as the Programs Intern for the Tufts Office of Sustainability, planning its annual awards ceremony and reception as well as organizing orientation outreach. During the academic year, Jennifer serves as the Logistics Coordinator for CIVIC, a nonpartisan political discussion group on campus. She also sings with Tufts Public Harmony, a community service music group, and volunteers with the Crafts Center.

Janya Gambhir

Janya Gambhir is a first year student from New Delhi, India. She is considering majoring in International Relations, and her other academic interests include South Asian history and Spanish. She is deeply passionate about human rights advocacy; for the past three years, she has served as the National Youth Ambassador for the 100 Million Campaign, a global movement organized by Nobel Laureate Kailash Satyarthi to create a world where all children are free, safe, and educated. During her time at Tufts, she plans to write for the Daily, perform with a music group, and participate in community service activities in the Boston area. She is excited to learn about solutions for preventing mass atrocities and engage in discourse with inspiring guest lecturers in the EPIIC class.

Yanqing Huang

Yanqing Huang is a first year student at Tufts University, intending on double majoring in Community Health and Biology with a minor in German. Born in China, Yanqing’s family moved to the United States in 2010 to pursue better educational opportunities for the younger generation. She lives in Boston, Massachusetts, where she attended Boston Latin School. During high school, Yanqing participated in the EPIIC Inquiry from eighth to eleventh grade, in which she was sparked by all the current global issues and the approaches that different countries take and that the international community made in response. She believes that it is important to look back on history, connect the dots to the present, and move forward with a coherent understanding of the past. In this year’s EPIIC, she hopes to apply these perspectives on genocide and further enhance her knowledge of both international and local policies. Outside of class, Yanqing’s passions lie in working with kids, social work relating to health inequity in underrepresented neighborhoods, creative writing, and violin. At Tufts, she plans to write for the Tufts Daily, join one of the orchestral ensembles, and take part in community service.

Chidiebele (Chi-Chi) Ikpeazu

Chi-Chi is a second-year from South Florida. She is interested in majoring in either International Relations or Political Science with a double major in Spanish. On campus, she is a member of CIVIC, Tufts International Development, and the varsity track and field team. Chi-Chi is excited to take part in EPIIC and acquire a greater understanding of what can be done to prevent genocide and mass atrocities by examining a broader range of case studies.

Ingyin Khine

Ingyin Khine is a first year student from Yangon, Myanmar. She is currently undecided, but she is interested in academic areas such as community health, sociology, and anthropology. She is interested in joining student organizations like Amnesty and the International Club. In EPIIC, she is looking forward to understanding more about all the complex aspects of genocide and being able to open conversations about the Rohingya crisis with people back home.

Jacob Kirsch

Jacob is a sophomore from Chevy Chase, Maryland. He is studying International Relations, Arabic, and Economics. On campus, he is a member of the club ski team, sings in Concert Choir, and participates in events for Spanish and Arabic speakers. His academic interests include both US and international politics as well as Arabic and Spanish. Over the summer, he continued to develop his Arabic skills through study abroad in Amman, Jordan. In EPIIC, Jacob is interested in learning about the intersection between US domestic politics and US foreign policy relating to issues of genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing, and crimes against humanity.

Jiamin Li

Jiamin Li is a sophomore intending to study International Relations and hopefully, an Interdisciplinary Studies Major focusing on interfaith community engagement, alongside Arabic and Studio Arts. She was born in Fuzhou, China, and has lived in Florida, California, and Hong Kong SAR. She has always been interested in the fascinating stories that each person carries with their intersections of identities. Through EPIIC, she wishes to understand the causes and aftermath of mass atrocities, including the role religion plays in the unfortunate killings of innocents. She is also excited to meet new people and learn from them. Outside of class, Jiamin is involved with the Tufts Buddhist Mindfulness Sangha and the Interfaith Student Council, while working as a First-Year Assistant and a student worker at the University Chaplaincy. She loves eating with friends, going to concerts, listening to stories, journaling, and spending time in nature.

Alejandra (“Ale”) Macaya

Alejandra Macaya is a sophomore at Tufts from New York City with US, Venezuelan and Spanish citizenship, pursuing a double major in International Relations and Environmental Studies. Ale is also a keen photographer, hiker and traveler. Coming from a family deeply involved in Venezuela, Ale grew up learning about the exploding refugee crisis. Her longstanding interest in the environment has also made her sensitive to how climate change is impacting livelihoods and, in many cases, displacing large swaths of people. As part of her environmental studies major, Ale has looked into how the policies of governments and corporations are exacerbating climate change and its various effects on world order. This year’s colloquium topic therefore touches on both important areas of Ale’s concern and interest: her passion for the environment and the importance of international relations.

Jessie Newman

Jessie Newman is a senior from Atlanta, Georgia, majoring in international relations with a concentration in security and a minor in Spanish. Throughout her time at Tufts, she has developed interests in international law, human rights, conflicts of nations, identity, sovereignty, and migration but enjoys taking in classes in many areas in order to find a more comprehensive view of international relations. She hopes to pursue a law degree post-graduation and find a career at the intersection of her interests. On campus, Jessie is a writer and editor for the features section of the Tufts Daily and is involved in other areas of campus. Jessie was a member of the EPIIC colloquium during the 2017-2018 school year, when the focus was "Is the Liberal World Order Ending?" and she looks forward to another engaging and provocative year of EPIIC.

Meera Rohera

Meera Rohera is a sophomore at Tufts from Mumbai, India. She is double majoring in International Relations and Philosophy with a minor in Economics. Her interests include international law (which she hopes to pursue in the future), Indian external affairs, and ethics and morality, and she is passionate about Judo. Over the summer, she interned with a youth think tank, writing research articles on these topics, and will continue to do so over the year. At Tufts, she is involved in Model United Nations and the Tufts Association for South Asians. Meera believes that the EPIIC program will help her better understand the complexities of global politics from the nuances in theories to problems in the practice of diplomacy and peacekeeping in the real world.

Julia Shufro

Julia Shufro is a sophomore at Tufts University from Avon, Connecticut. She is a double major in French and History, with a concentration in Modern European History and Holocaust Studies. On campus, Julia is the Co-President of the Tufts Chapter of La Société Française, is on the board of the Tufts Tap Ensemble, and is an active member of the Tufts History Society. Julia has always loved the study of history and human rights; from her involvement in Amnesty International, Model UN, and cultural immersions, she recognizes the importance of tolerance and acceptance. Julia’s interests in Genocide Studies began in 2015, when she was given the opportunity to interview Marc Masurovsky, co-founder of the Holocaust Art Restitution Project. Her sophomore year at Avon High School, she was fortunate to enroll in a course entitled, Genocide and Human Behavior, in which she studied social psychology and its relation to the Armenian Genocide, the Holocaust, Cambodia, Rwanda and Darfur. Julia’s genocide teacher chose her to represent their school at a community Yom Hashoah event, in which she interviewed and documented the testimony of Bea, a local Holocaust survivor. Her time with Bea indelibly changed her perspectives, inspiring Julia to delve further into genocide studies and to gain deeper insight into human nature. Julia interned at Voices of Hope, a Connecticut nonprofit that promotes genocide education and preserves the stories of Holocaust survivors. Additionally, she was a research assistant to Professor Avinoam Patt at the University of Hartford’s Museum of Jewish Civilization, where she worked on a permanent collection highlighting local survivors and developed an exhibit on the discovered escape tunnel in Vilna. Her internships reinforced the potency of personal anecdotes in teaching tolerance, respect and the courage to care. Through EPIIC, Julia hopes to immerse herself into the theory and practice of genocide studies, and she is eager to comprehend the complexities of preventing mass atrocities.

Alex B Smith

Alex is a junior from Ambler, Pennsylvania. At Tufts, he is majoring in Economics and focusing on political theory and urban studies. Alex is curious about the intersection between power, law and morality, and strives to better understand our common humanity. While on campus, Alex also participates as a Lead Analyst in the Tufts Trading Fund, as the Director of Operations of TAMID at Tufts, as a First Year Advisor (FYA), and as a co-chair of Tufts Hillel’s Merrin Moral Voices Initiative. Alex will also begin working part-time for the Applied Economics Clinic this semester, a nonprofit consulting group providing technical expertise on topics related to energy, environment and equity.

Jed Starr

Jed is a junior from New York City studying Computer Science and International Relations. As a descendant of Jewish immigrants from Nazi-era Germany, the topic of genocide strikes a personal note for him and he is very excited to immerse himself in the EPIIC curriculum. Jed likes to spend his free time rock climbing, scuba diving, skiing, and serving as the captain of the Tufts Climbing Team.

Katherine Stiplosek

Katherine Stiplosek is a sophomore at Tufts University, majoring in International Relations with a concentration in International Security, complemented by a minor in Peace and Justice Studies. She is from Sacramento, California, and has spent time studying French in France and Arabic in Morocco. Katherine began working with World Relief Services’ Sacramento Chapter in high school, where she witnessed firsthand the struggles of displaced minority populations. Her participation in the Digital Youth Leadership Exchange Program allowed her and her American cohort to speak weekly with a similar Iraqi student cohort. At Tufts, she presently works with another branch of IGL, the New Initiative for Middle East Peace, and writes for the Tufts Daily. She was drawn to this year's EPIIC colloquium following a recent trip to South Africa, working in the Township of Phillipe. There, she witnessed the full impact of Apartheid’s social injustice. She looks forward to learning more from experts about the lasting social and economic implications genocide leaves on minority communities, understanding the root causes and factors of genocide, and effectively preventing future mass atrocities.

Sebastian Tringale

Sebastian Tringale is a sophomore from Medford, Massachusetts. He studies Political Science and International Relations, concentrating in economic development. He is interested in a broad array of political science, such as foundational texts in Western political thought, political stability and turmoil in Latin America, and sustainable economic policy. Outside of class, he enjoys playing classical and jazz violin and spending precious time in the outdoors. Continuing his studies in the same city in which he grew up, Sebastian seeks to gain a perspective on political and social systems, and how these systems can change suddenly and become violent. In the future, he hopes to use this experience in policymaking and diplomacy abroad.