2021-22 Glasscock Undergraduate Summer Scholars

June 2, 2021

Meet our 2021-22 Glasscock Undergraduate Summer Scholars!

Seminar Topic: "The Cultural Politics of International Development”

FACULTY DIRECTOR
Dinah Hannaford
International Studies

Myranda Campanella
International Studies

Jose Solis
University Studies

Dr. Dinah Hannaford | International Studies

Dr. Dinah Hannaford is a cultural anthropologist, specializing in international development, transnational migration and the economics of intimate life. She conducts ethnographic research in Senegal, Italy and France. Dr. Hannaford is the author of Marriage Without Borders: Transnational Spouses in Neoliberal Senegal (University of Pennsylvania press, 2017) and co-editor of Opting Out: Women Messing with Marriage around the World (Rutgers University Press, forthcoming). She is currently completing another book manuscript on the intersection of international development and domestic labor.

Myranda Campanella | International Studies

Myranda Campanella is in her final year of completing her Bachelor of Arts in International Studies with minors in Journalism and French at Texas A&M University. Myranda is working toward her Senior Capstone Thesis through the University Honors and International Studies Departmental Honors programs. Her research focus is on the echoes of colonialism within 21^st Century African governance and policymaking. Myranda is also the Editor-in-Chief of The Battalion, Texas A&M’s student-led newspaper.

José Solis | University Studies

José Solis is rising sophomore society, ethics, and law major from Grangerland, Texas. As a part of his undergraduate degree, José took the opportunity to focus on research around his two minors: Philosophy and International Agricultural development. He began his research path during his freshman fall semester as an Aggie Research Scholar. As he moved into his spring semester, he took a research assistant position, where he conducted survey analysis based on perceived opinions. As a part of this scholar program, he hopes to develop an undergraduate thesis with an emphasis on international agricultural development and women’s empowerment.

Seminar Topic: "Transnational and Intersectional Approaches to #MeToo Movement”

FACULTY DIRECTOR
Chaitanya Lakkimsetti
Sociology

Tanvi Deshpande
Psychology

Marla Guerra
History

Abigail Jablon
Political Science

Dr. Chaitanya Lakkimsetti | Sociology

Dr. Chaitanya Lakkimsetti is an Associate Professor of Sociology and a faculty affiliate at the Women’s and Gender Studies Program. Her research and teaching expertise include Sexualities, Gender, Law & Society, Social Movements, and South Asia. She is the author of Legalizing Sex: Sexual Minorities, AIDS and Citizenship in India (NYU Press, 2020). Her work at the intersections of sexuality, law and social movements also appeared in Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society, Sexualities, positions: asia critique, and Qualitative Sociology. She also co-directs a three-year seminar “MeToo and the Transnational Politics of Social Media Feminism,” which is supported and funded by the Glasscock Center for the Humanities.

Tanvi Deshpande | Psychology

Tanvi Deshpande is a junior undergraduate student. She is majoring in Psychology and minoring in Philosophy, as she is on the pre-law track and plan to pursue a career in the legal field. Tanvi is a very creatively inclined person and enjoys reading and writing, which is why she decided to pursue a career in law. As someone who is right-brained, some of her hobbies include journaling, pen-palling, writing poetry, dancing, watching coming-of-age movies, and drinking tea. She, also, enjoys spending time journaling about her goals and future aspirations with a cup of hot tea near. One of her life goals is to make a positive impact on society by helping those who are in need. Tanvi wants to be a source of hope for those who believe that they have lost it all and help them find their light again.

Marla Guerra | History

Marla Guerra is a senior History major, with a special interest in women’s history and comparative studies. With the Undergraduate Summer Scholars Program, she’s had the fortunate opportunity to extend her research surrounding the topics of sexual violence and the unprecedented #MeToo Movement. Through the seminar headed by Dr. Lakkimsetti, Marla is now able to expand the framework of her research to subjectively examine new configurations of gender justice and equity through a transnational approach. Aside from completing her undergraduate thesis, Marla hopes to further her education in women’s history and gender justice by pursuing a Master’s degree upon graduating in 2022.

Abigail Jablon | Political Science

Abigail Jablon is studying political science and sociology and plans to graduate in 2022. When she’s not at school, she resides in Liberty Hill, Texas, a suburb of Austin, with her family. Throughout her time at Texas A&M University, Abigail has served on the Legislative Relations Commission within Student Government, where she discovered her interest in public policy. Additionally, Abigail is on the Texas A&M Mock Trial team and is exploring the avenues law has to offer. To balance out her time, Abigail enjoys serving as Co-Chair for a student organization called RISE. RISE partners with a global social enterprise, The Women’s Bakery, to support women in East Africa through educational and entrepreneurial opportunities. Abigail is passionate about human rights and social justice issues and hopes to incorporate these into her career after college.

Seminar Topic: "Decolonial Feminism as a Critical Methodology"

FACULTY DIRECTOR
Omar Rivera
Philosophy

María Benavides
History

Valeri Cangelosi
University Studies

Kate Girvin
Philosophy

Sarah Kelly
Economics

Dr. Omar Rivera | Philosophy

Omar Rivera, PhD, is Associate Professor of Philosophy. He specializes in Latin American and Latinx philosophy, Decolonial Theory and Aesthetics, and 19^th and 20^th Century European philosophy. His work focuses on identity-based theories of social change and on the relation between aesthetics and anticolonial resistance. In 2018-2019 he was an ACLS Burkhardt Fellow at LLILAS-Benson, UT Austin. He is the author of two monographs: Delimitations of Latin American Philosophy: Beyond Redemption (Indiana University Press, 2019) and Andean Aesthetics and Anticolonial Resistance (forthcoming with Bloomsbury Academic, 2021).

María Benavides | History

María Benavides is a history and anthropology major going into her junior year. She is most interested in Latinx and borderland history along with ancient civilization and First American anthropology. Maria was born in Laredo, Texas, but she has moved around a lot over the years from Corpus Christie to Dallas to Eagle Pass and graduated high school in Midland, Texas. She is very excited and thankful to be a part of the Undergraduate Summer Scholar Program with the Glasscock Center for Humanities and can’t wait to see what the future holds with the LAUNCH program during the year.

Valeri Cangelosi | University Studies

Valeri Cangelosi is a senior Society, Ethics, and Law major with a double minor in Philosophy and Architectural Fabrication & Product Design. She is excited to work with Dr. Rivera and the UGSS program, primarily because of her interest in Decolonial Theory, and she plans on conducting research on sexuality and gender and how they challenge heteronormative values. During Valeri’s time at Texas A&M, she has worked with the Academic Success Center for four semesters as a Supplementary Instructor for Introduction to Logic. Outside of school, she enjoys baking and playing sand volleyball with friends. A fun fact about her is that she owns her own kolache business and has been baking and selling throughout the summer! After graduating from Texas A&M, Valeri plans on fulfilling a career in law and public policy.

Kate Girvin | Philosophy

Kate Girvin is a junior philosophy major from El Paso, Texas. She is a University Honors and Philosophy Honors student. Kate is recognized as an Aggie Southerland Leader for her student involvement on campus. Currently, Kate is an editor for Aletheia, Texas A&M’s undergraduate philosophy journal. She is a member of the Liberal Arts Student Council and also serves as a director for SLIDE, a sophomore leadership organization which advocates for mental health and sexual assault awareness. After graduation, Kate plans to attend law school and pursue a PhD in philosophy to become a professor and criminal attorney.

Sarah Kelly | Economics

Sarah Kelly is going into her junior year at Texas A&M. She lives in Cary, North Carolina, a little town just outside Raleigh and Durham. In her free time, she works as the Membership VP in the Aggie Eco-Reps and volunteers to help clean up campus, teach sustainable seminars, table in festivals, etc. Sarah enjoys getting outside and has made a personal goal to visit every national park that she can. She is currently studying Philosophy and Economics and is researching how feminism has impacted these fields, as well as the different systems of solutions that feminist/queer scholars have contributed to these studies.