SFP Internal Fellowship Fellow Biographies

Michelle Sz

Michelle was born in Hong Kong and grew up in Vancouver, Canada, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Science from the University of British Columbia, double majoring in Astrophysics and English Literature. During her undergraduate degree she also studied as an exchange student in Birmingham, England, where she developed an interest in travelling and international development. Before coming to the Deshpande Foundation, she had worked and volunteered extensively as an educator, sports coach, writer, and communications specialist in various professional settings and non-profit organizations. She enjoys writing a lot, and some of her creative works had been published and featured in anthologies.

Kesang Chugyalpa

Kesang Chungyalpa was brought up in the small state of Sikkim (India). Her interest in exploring new places led her to attend Woodstock School and later the College of Wooster (Ohio), where she received Bachelors of Arts in International Relations with honors. With a passion for international development and strong belief in being a change-agent, Kesang’s professional experience includes working with various non-profit organizations, including the United Nations, Pact and the Bhutan Foundation in Washington DC. At these organizations, she took on a range of responsibilities, from conducting research and writing reports to creating communications and fundraising materials. Her experiences influenced her interest in applying business skills to the non-profit sector, which eventually led her to the Deshpande Foundation. At DF, her work is focused on engaging with local Partners and creating case studies for their programs. 

Diana Fernholz 

Diana graduated from American University in 2012 with a B.A. in both economics and international studies with a focus in development. While working towards her undergraduate degrees, she studied at both the London School of Economics, United Kingdom and Manipal University, India. Diana worked for the Results for Development Institute in Washington DC as both an intern and program associate on the Center for Health Market Innovations team before coming to the Deshpande Foundation. As a Global Exchange Fellow, she will be focusing on communications work.

Misty Start

Misty comes from Thomaston, Maine where she worked as a program manager for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Midcoast Maine for one year after graduating college. Trekkers, Habitat for Humanity, and the Thomaston Recreation Department are just a few of the many organizations she volunteered with before her time with the Deshpande Foundation. In May 2011, Misty graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science and Philosophy from Franklin Pierce University where she participated in Division II Women’s Tennis, Student Government, and Study Abroad in Athens, Greece. In her leisure, Misty enjoys participating in recreational activities such as snowboarding, kayaking, and hiking. She came to Hubli, India to work with the Deshpande Foundation as she explored her interest in international development and nonprofit work.

Amber Shields

Amber received her Bachelor in Arts degree from Carleton College, Minnesota in 2008, upon which   shebegan teaching and leading cultural programs in Madrid, Spain. She returned to school in 2009 and received her Master of Philosophy in Screen Media and Cultures from the University of Cambridge in 2010. Prior to joining DCSE, she worked with various educational, cultural, and development programs in New York City, including the Museum of the Moving Image and the American India Foundation.

Paul McNamme

Paul graduated from the National University of Ireland Galway with a combined BA in Psychology and English and a 1 year higher diploma in Psychology. During university he concentrated on social and educational psychology, specifically how social problems such as discrimination arise and how effective educational programs can be created. Subsequently Paul worked for two years on a European Union Socrates project researching the use of educational theory in an e-learning environment.  After this, he gained practical classroom experience by teaching in South Korea for 2 years. During the first year he worked in a private English academy and later with UNESCO Global Peace Village.  During this time he developed a global exchange program between schools in Icheon Korea and other English speaking countries. He also helped to design and deliver English activities and workshops aimed at the promotion of peace, cultural understanding and environmental concern. He has also worked on the development of youth mental health services and has a strong interest in the development of all types of youth social services. 

Kathryn Cooper

Kathryn Cooper is a freelance writer, photographer, and creative brainstormer from New York, USA. She has taught English, sports, mental health, and cooking for NGOs in Thailand, Vietnam, and the USA before coming to India to work with DFP students. 

Ruth Nkemontoh

Ruth Nkemontoh Born in Los Angeles, California but raised in a suburb of Oregon, Ruth Nkemontoh received her BS in Communication Studies and Black Studies from Portland State University. Internationally focused, she credits her love of cultures and travel to her own mixed cultural background. With stints in Ghana and most recently Ukraine, where she worked with an NGO focused on youth outreach and community development, Ruth’s desire is to equip individuals with the skills necessary to build up their own communities. Empowering others to make local change is what inspires her most and being able to address stereotypes and prejudice while doing so is even more thirst quenching. Having joined the Deshpande Foundation, Ruth will contribute her talents to the Deshpande Fellowship Program by teaching its current cohort of 25 post graduate students English and communication skills as well as assisting program staff on various office communications. 

Upon returning to the U.S. Ruth expects to continue working in the non- profit arena, focusing on issues of social justice. With plans to pursue a Masters in International Relations, Ruth does not see this trip as her last time abroad or to India for that matter.

Jennifer Ciochon 

Jennifer is a recent graduate from American University in Washington DC. She received her B.A. in International Relations with a double concentration in International Development and Islamic Studies as well as a minor in Arab Studies. As part of her studies, she spent a year living in Cairo, Egypt and travelled throughout the Middle East. It was in Egypt that she became interested in development work as she was exposed to the problems that faced Egypt's development progress during her work with a school in one of Cairo's poorest neighborhoods. 

She hopes to puxsue her masters in a year, to either continue Middle Eastem Studies or to focus on Development Studies. As a new junior fellow, She will be teaching English and Presentation classes during pre-training for the next cohort. She is looking forward to helping to make a positive impact on the new fellows. 

Charlotte Payne

Charlotte graduated from the University of Cambridge in 2009 with a degree in Biological Anthropology. During her degree she worked for a clinic at a local homeless shelter where she developed an interest in the twin issues of homelessness and healthcare. As a result, she visited Odessa, Ukraine, in 2oo? 011 bel1alf of the'NGO SSSK (Students Supporting Street Kids] to report on organizations tackling child homelessness in the city. Based on this experience, she co-founded a volunteering link between a local children’s home and Russian-speaking Cambridge students, enabling students to live and work in Ukraine during their summer vacation.For the past 19 rnonths, she has been in Japan as a Daiwa Scholar. During this time, she worked as a volunteer with HandsOn Tokyo, St. Luke’s Intemational Hospital and the Kobokan Community Centre. She was also a panel speaker at the 5th Uswldpall Youth forum in Tokyo on “Youth Challenge to Social Innovation.” After working for several well-established non-profit ventures, Charlotte is looking forward to being a Junior Fellow at the Deshpande Foundation and being one small part of the process by which such orgnizations start and develop.

Sacha Kumar
Sacha was born and raised in Toronto, Canada, is currently working towards a degree in Political Science, with a specialization in International Relations, at the University of Western Ontario. Last year he worked as an elected official at a non-profit in London, Ontario as the Director of the finance department. Sacha will be working at the Deshpande Foundation for the next 6 months as a Junior Fellow, where he will teach a class of 25+ graduate students how to speak English for the first month and a half. 

He developed his interest in the NGO sector through his studies and by travelling abroad during the summer breaks away from school. In the future, Sacha hopes to attend law school in Canada and eventually create his own NGO in the development sector. 

Caitlin Ferguson  

Caitlin joins the Deshpande Fellowship Program as a Junior Fellow through the Northeastern University International co-op program. At Northeastern, she is studying Communications with a concentration in Public Advocacy and Rhetoric. Additionally,after a field study in South Africa consulting with local entrepreneurs, she has completed a minor in Global Social Entrepreneurship. Through this experience, a past internship at an innovative Boston nonprofit, Root Cause, and various community service activities, Caitlin has grown her passion for social enterprise and development. After graduation, she hopes to work in the international development sector. She enjoys traveling, eating, and anything outdoors.

Azim Pradhan

Azim graduated from Tufts University in 2009 with a degree in International Relations and a minor in English. In addition to focusing heavily on the region of South Asia, his undergraduate education provided him with the opportunity to explore on his artistic side through courses in creative-writing and music. As a Junior Fellow of the Global Exchange Program, he is responsible for conducting a two-and-a-half month English course through which he hopes to help fellows of the Deshpande Fellowship Program develop effective communication skills and confidence in their use of the English language. In addition to his duties as an English instructor, Azim’s other responsibilities include maintaining the fellowship blog, the DFP Facebook fan-page, and finalizing the monthly DFP newsletter. In his free time, Azim enjoys reading, running, and North-Indian cuisine.

David Kando

David was a Junior Fellow working with the Deshpande Fellowship Program. He is currently enrolled at Northeastern University in Boston, MA, where he is working towards his Bachelor of Science degree in International Business and Spanish Language, with a concentration in Social Entrepreneurship. He is currently in the Global Experiential Learning Co-Op Program, through which he’ll be with the Deshpande Fellowship Program for six months. Last semester, David studied abroad in Spain.

Over the course of the last year, David worked with Distributing Resources to Youth through Volunteer Efforts (DRYVE), a student initiative that partnered with Esperanza, a Dominican Microfinance Institution. Through this partnership, they were able to fundraise a substantial amount of money and school supplies to help construct and outfit an elementary school and community center for an underserved community in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Experiences like this have inspired David to seek new experiences that will help him understand how the innovation and efficiency of entrepreneurs can lead to significantly improved impact on the world.