Katherine Abbott
Folger Shakespeare Library

Kate Abbott manages the front of house operations for the Folger Shakespeare Library, home to the world's largest Shakespeare collection and its award-winning theatre. Before joining the Folger, she was a fraud and corruption investigator at The World Bank, and has lived, worked, and studied abroad in Latin America, Asia, and Africa. Kate is a Board Member of Waterfront Academy, a bilingual Montessori school in the Catholic tradition in Southwest DC, has served in nominated leadership roles with the Junior League of Washington, and along with her husband was awarded the Knights of Columbus District of Columbia Family of the Year. Originally from the Buffalo-Niagara region of New York, Kate earned a degree in Economics.

Mary Andrews
Uniformed Services University

Mary Andrews grew up in central Pennsylvania and attended the University of Notre Dame followed by Creighton University School of Medicine. Upon graduation from Creighton she was commissioned as an active duty Medical Corps officer in the US Navy. She completed residency in Internal Medicine at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. After serving as chief resident at Walter Reed, she completed a two year fellowship in General Internal Medicine which included earning a Masters in Public Health from Uniformed Services University as well as dedicated time for teaching and research. Following fellowship, she moved into her current role as Associate Clerkship Director at Uniformed Services University where she is active in teaching and research. Her scholarly interests include remediation of struggling learners, self-regulated learning theory, and meta-analysis research methods. Mary also serves as President of the Washington DC Guild of the Catholic Medical Association. She lives in Bethesda with her husband and five children and attends Our Lady of Lourdes parish.

Coby Ascunce
Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP

Coby is a lawyer at Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP, where he focuses his practice on government enforcement matters and complex commercial, securities, and white collar litigation. Coby served as a law clerk to Judge Robert J. Conrad, Jr. of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina. He graduated cum laude from Notre Dame Law School, where he served as Managing Senior Editor of the Notre Dame Law Review. Coby holds a B.A. in Philosophy and Economics from the University of Virginia. In his free time, Coby enjoys going on adventures with his wife and two vivacious children, being outdoors, and watching soccer.

Rashad Badr
Hard Yards, LLC

Rashad is a Principal and Director of Federal Programs at The Hard Yards, a consulting firm dedicated to bringing innovative management practices to federal and commercial clients. Rashad is also Co-Founder of ImpactBeta, a data analytics and consulting firm dedicated to helping nonprofits and philanthropies increase their social impact. Prior to co-founding ImpactBeta, Rashad has held positions at the McChrystal Group, Booz Allen Hamilton, the U.S. special operations community, the Joint Staff’s Deputy Directorate for Special Operations and Counterterrorism, and the State Department’s Bureau of Counterterrorism. Rashad received both his undergraduate and graduate degrees from Princeton, where he was the recipient of the Scholars in the Nation’s Service Initiative Prize.

Mary Bathon
The Busch School of Business, CUA

Mary A. Bathon is a Research Associate at the Busch School of Business at the Catholic University of America, where she provides strategic support for multiple ongoing faculty projects in the Social Research group. Previously, she worked in the United States Senate on the policy team for Senator Mike Lee (R-UT), where she developed legislative initiatives related to the federal budget, tax, and trade policy. She graduated magna cum laude from Ave Maria University with a Bachelor of Arts in Economics. She lives in Washington D.C. and is an avid hiker, enjoying the Shenandoahs and extensive portions of the Appalachian Trail whenever possible. She considers her completion of the 500-mile Camino de Santiago trail in Spain in 2013 as one of the most formative experiences in her life.

Ryan Bradel
Ward & Berry, PLLC

Ryan Bradel is a partner with the law firm of Ward & Berry, a litigation boutique focused on representing clients in the defense and national security space. Prior to joining Ward & Berry, Ryan practiced law with a large international law firm and served as counsel to the McCain 2008 and Romney 2012 presidential campaigns. Ryan is a proud graduate of Notre Dame Law School and spends much his free time watching or reading about Notre Dame football. Before law school, Ryan worked as a legislative aide to a Member of Congress following his graduation from UCLA. In his free time Ryan likes to cook, play all manner of sports, build custom furniture, and shoot and build stuff on the farm he just purchased.

Cecilia Cervantes
Institute for Humane Studies

Cecilia Cervantes is the Sr. Manager of Intensive Student Education at the Institute for Humane Studies. She is interested in curriculum design, pedagogy, consistent life ethics, and the advancement of peace and human dignity. A native of southern California, she is an alumna of the University of Portland (Oregon) and American University where she studied political science, Spanish literature and law. She is a parishioner at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church where she is a catechist and a small community of faith leader. She leads the DC Chapter of Ladies of Liberty Alliance (LOLA). In her free time she can be found searching for a London Fog, watching Criterion Collection films, and exchanging book recommendations.

Andrew Craig
Canyon Labs

Andy Craig is a lay Catholic missionary and entrepreneur. He is Co-Founder and CEO of Canyon Labs, a health care technology company focused on helping health care organizations achieve and maintain regulatory compliance. Andy is also a graduate student at Johns Hopkins University where he is studying Health Care Management and is actively involved in lay ministry. Previously, he was Programs Director for Family Missions Company, a lay Catholic missions organization, and Founding President of Young Catholic Professionals in Denver. He is passionate about virtuous leadership and evangelization through business.

Elise Crawford-Gallagher
RINGLET

Over the last four years, Elise Crawford Gallagher has worked with many businesses in the D.C. area to create stunning brands, digital marketing campaigns, websites and social media campaigns. In 2016, she founded RINGLET, a digital marketing agency in D.C. that serves women-owned businesses in the area. Ringlet is now a team of five women and their office is based in Georgetown, DC. Elise graduated with a Masters in Communication from Johns Hopkins University. Her concentrations were in Public + Media Relations and Digital Communications. She married her college sweetheart, Hunter, who is a full-time high-school theology teacher and part-time law-student, in August 2017.

Lara Crouch
U.S. Department of State

Lara D. Crouch is a Special Assistant on the Policy Planning Staff at the U.S. Department of State. Immediately prior, she was a Senior Associate at Beacon Global Strategies LLC. She previously served in research roles at the American Enterprise Institute, the Center for Strategic and International Studies, and the Carnegie-Tsinghua Center in Beijing, and also completed a summer fellowship at the Department of Defense. Lara earned a B.A. with distinction from the University of Virginia and an M.A. in Asian Studies from Georgetown University.

Kathleen Davern
U.S. Senate

Katie works as a speechwriter for Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT). Prior to working for Sen. Lee, she worked in the House of Representatives and interned for the Heritage Foundation. She received her bachelor's degree in History at the University of Dallas. A native of the DC area, Katie was also a founding student of Brookewood school, a classical Catholic girls school in Kensington, MD.

Kevin Dawson
American Principles Project

Kevin Dawson is the Director of Operations at American Principles Project. He is a graduate of the Catholic University of America, where he obtained a B.A. in Politics. Prior to joining APP, Kevin created and managed the External Helpdesk at the American Petroleum Institute, interned for the Americans for Prosperity Foundation, and interned in the Irish Parliament.

Peter Dixon
Hogan Lovells US LLP

Peter Dixon is a DC native, and an alumni of The Heights School in Potomac, Maryland. Peter attended the University of Notre Dame for college, majoring in the Program of Liberal Studies (Notre Dame's Great Books program) and philosophy, where Peter studied under Alasdair MacIntyre. After college, Peter spent one year as a paralegal in Chicago, before returning to The Heights to teach history and coach lacrosse. After two years at The Heights, Peter enrolled at the University of Virginia School of Law. Immediately following law school, Peter clerked for the Honorable Richard F. Suhrheinrich of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. Peter is now an corporate associate at Hogan Lovells US LLP in Washington, D.C., where his practice focuses on private and international mergers and acquisitions. Peter, his wife Claire, and their two sons (Leo and Gus) live in Herndon, Virginia.

Kellen Dwyer
U.S. Department of Justice

Kellen S. Dwyer is an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Eastern District of Virginia, where he serves in the cybercrime unit. Kellen focuses on international computer hacking cases, having successfully obtained indictments, extraditions, and convictions against hackers and cybercriminals based in Russia, the Ukraine, and Latvia, among others countries. Prior to joining the Department of Justice, Kellen was an attorney at Kirkland & Ellis LLP where he represented Facebook, Inc. in litigation and government inquires arising from its Initial Public Offering. Kellen served as a law clerk for the Honorable Diarmuid F. O’Scannlain on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and for the Honorable Kenneth M. Karas, on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. He is a graduate of Yale Law School, where he served as Notes Editor for the Yale Law Journal.

Michael Fischer
EAB

Michael is a Senior Analyst with EAB, a best practice research firm supporting higher education and K-12 institutions. His research focuses on Facilities issues such as space utilization, deferred maintenance, and talent development. In his spare time he serves with the Knights of Malta as a mentor at Archbishop Carroll High School. Michael graduated from Georgetown University, and he and his wife now live in Hyattsville, Maryland.

Christie Fleming
St. Joseph School

Christie is a kindergarten teacher in Northern Virginia. She is a graduate of Franciscan University and was a missionary in Kenya after graduation. From there she was a youth minister in Cleveland, Ohio and worked with high school students. She eventually did graduate studies at the John Paul II institute in Melbourne, Australia and taught theology of the body before landing in kindergarten. All her experiences have given her a desire to combine her ministry with youth/families and reaching out to the community in need.

Mary Forr
Archdiocese of Washington

Mary Forr is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame where she majored in political science and philosophy. After graduation, Mary received her Masters in Education from Notre Dame through the Alliance for Catholic Education. Mary has taught high school and middle school and has founded a non-profit called Teaching Together that works to provide jobs for adults with special needs in Catholic schools. In 2016, Mary became the Director of Life Issues for the Archdiocese of Washington where she currently works to provide educational, public policy, and catechetical materials surrounding the life issues.

Christopher Galiardo
White House, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative

Chris Galiardo is a Latin American legal analyst at the White House, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. He completed three years of seminary study with the Legionaries of Christ before starting college at Dartmouth, where he was a member of the Catholic Student Center’s pastoral council. He remained very active in Catholic student life and the prolife movement during graduate school at Harvard and law school at Yale, and he currently serves as a fourth-degree Knight of Columbus at his parish in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Despite hailing from the great city of Chicago, Chris’s work in Washington at the Pentagon, at the State Department, on Capitol Hill, and as a federal law clerk has made DC his adopted earthly home in all things except baseball. (Go, Cubs, Go!)

Martin Gaudinski
National Institutes of Health

Martin Gaudinski is a medical officer in the U.S. Public Health Service assigned to the Vaccine Research Center at the National Institutes of Health. He is the Medical Director of the Clinical Trials Program and Principal Investigator of studies evaluating novel vaccines and treatments for emerging and re-emerging pathogens such as HIV, Ebola, and Zika viruses. He initially studied the Great Books Program at St. John's College. The deep themes of Western thought propelled him to further study medicine which appeared to him as the "most direct alliance between intellectual conquest and the social good.1" He attended Georgetown University School of Medicine where he also completed a residency in internal medicine before fellowship training in Allergy and Immunology at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. He is ceaselessly supported by his wife Kimberly and their children.

Christine Goss
Pixton Public Relations, Inc.

Christine Goss is founder and president of Pixton Public Relations, Inc. She has years of experience building and executing public relations programs for multi-national corporations, non-profit organizations, charitable foundations, trade associations, academic centers and scholars. Additionally, Christine teaches classes on op-ed writing, branding and media interview best practices at the Leadership Institute. She has published Opinion pieces in the Federalist, Independent Journal Review, American Thinker, the Daily Caller, and other outlets. In her free time, Christine volunteers with Institute of Catholic Culture and with her parish, St. Agnes in Arlington. Christine attended Bowdoin College in Brunswick, ME.

Josh Holdenried
The Heritage Foundation

Josh Holdenried was born in Seoul, Korea, and grew up in Knoxville, Tennessee. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Public Policy Leadership from the University of Mississippi and a Certificate in Applied Religion in Public Policy from Pepperdine University's School of Public Policy. Before joining Heritage as its Associate Director of Coalition Relations, he was an inaugural member of the Public Interest Fellowship--a two-year program designed to equip and train young professionals for leadership in the conservative movement. He spent his fellowship as a policy analyst, a political analyst, and most recently as a program officer at a private grant-making foundation in New York City. Prior to the Public Interest Fellowship, he was a congressional staffer in the U.S. House of Representatives. Josh has also been affiliated with the Alexander Hamilton Society, the Claremont Institute, the Hertog Foundation, the Fund for American Studies, and the Antonin Scalia Fellowship. Beginning in January 2019, he will be joining the Napa Institute Legal Foundation as its Executive Director. He lives in Washington, D.C.

Mollie Kelly
International Republican Institute

Mollie Kelly is a Senior Program Associate at the International Republican Institute, a non-partisan international democracy-development organization. She currently works on the Nigeria programs in the Africa Division. Previously, she worked on programs in Kenya, Uganda, Somalia, and Sierra Leone. She attended George Mason University, where she received a B.A. in Global Affairs with a concentration on Africa and a minor in Business. A native of Washington, D.C. she enjoys time on her family's farm, running her cupcakes business, horseback riding, and reading.

Kyle Kinneberg
U.S. Department of Defense

Kyle Kinneberg works for the Department of Defense as a research mathematician. He grew up out west, in Washington state and Arizona, before moving to California for school. He earned a B.A. in mathematics from Claremont McKenna College and a Ph.D. in mathematics from UCLA. Not yet wanting to leave the academic world, he worked as a postdoctoral instructor in the math department at Rice University until 2017. There, most of his research dealt with the geometry of groups acting on negatively-curved spaces. He also helped start the Houston Institute, a forum for Rice students to think about and discuss topics related to human flourishing. Kyle now lives in Silver Spring with his wife, Celine, and their two young children, Thomas and Anastasia.

William Lane
U.S. Court of Appeals for DC

William Lane lives in Arlington, Virginia and is an attorney at the law firm Kirkland & Ellis in Washington, D.C., where he practices trial and appellate litigation. Previously, William served as a law clerk to both the Honorable Diarmuid F. O'Scannlain of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and the Honorable Gregory G. Katsas of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, as well as Special Counsel to the Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee for the nomination of Justice Neil M. Gorsuch to the Supreme Court of the United States. William earned his B.A., magna cum laude, and M.A. in American Government from Georgetown University in 2008 and his J.D., magna cum laude, from Harvard Law School in 2015. From 2008–2012, William served as a Cavalry officer with the 25th Infantry Division in Diyala Province, Iraq and Schofield Barracks, Hawaii. William is originally from Easton, Connecticut. He currently serves on the board of the Federalist Society's DC Young Lawyers Chapter and is a member of the Knights of Columbus and the National Rifle Association.

Emily Lane
United States Navy

Emily Lane is an active duty Naval Officer serving in the Washington DC area. She received her BA in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from Boston University in 2012. She served as a Surface Warfare Officer both at home and abroad for the last six years. She is now serving as a Medical Service Corps Officer and getting her MHA at USUHS in Bethesda, Maryland.

Shannon Last
Freelance Writer

Shannon Last served as a senior speechwriter for Attorney General John Ashcroft, FBI Director Robert Mueller, and various FBI executives. After more than 15 years of attempting to achieve work-life balance, she left the FBI to become a stay-at-home-mom to four lovely near occasions of sin—ages 10, 8, 5, and 2. When she is not referreeing fights, sweltering at Little League games, making meals nobody likes, or exiling small humans to their rooms, she also works as a freelance speechwriter, ghostwriter, and book editor for her business, Famous Last Words. A New Jersey native, she studied English Literature and Italian Literature at Smith College, where she made history as (possibly) the first student at the progressive all-women’s school to run to the nearest RCIA class within a week of her arrival on campus. She has continued to fail the Sisterhood ever since. She is a former cantor and member of the Schola Cantorum at St. Matthew’s Cathedral in Washington, DC, but currently lives in exurban Virginia, where guitar masses are a dismaying fact of life.

Brian Lichter
Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation

Brian grew up in suburban Chicago and was raised Presbyterian, going to church pretty much every Sunday. He went to college at Washington University in St. Louis, where he double majored in Political Science and French but went to church infrequently. After college, Brian spent one year working for the State of Illinois, and then attended law school at Northwestern, where he went to church even less frequently. After graduating, Brian spent a year as a law clerk for Judge Diane Sykes on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit in Milwaukee, and attended an evangelical church where the main feature was a very loud band. After finishing his clerkship, Brian moved to DC to start a job prosecuting fraud and corruption cases with the Public Integrity Section of the Justice Department. Shortly after moving, Brian met his wife (who was part of the inaugural class of Fellows), who convinced him that he should give the Catholic Church a try. Brian initially agreed because he liked her, but after a few months he realized that the Catholics were on to something and decided to convert. Brian was received into the Church at the 2012 Easter Vigil, right before he and his wife were married. Not too long after learning that he and his wife were expecting their first child, Brian left the government for the law firm of Latham & Watkins. After a few years at Latham, Brian is now an in-house attorney at Cognizant Technology Solutions, where he handles internal investigations, cybersecurity, and other compliance-related issues. He and his wife live in Chevy Chase, MD with their two children--Brendan, who is 4, and Bridget, who is 2.

Nathan Loyd
U.S. Air Force

Nathan Loyd is a Technical Specialist at Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner, LLP. He is also a Captain in the Air Force Reserve. Nathan is earning his J.D. at Georgetown Law. He has engineering degrees from the University of Notre Dame and the Air Force Institute of Technology, and a master's in theology and bioethics from Holy Apostles College & Seminary. While on Active Duty, Nathan performed nuclear treaty verification. Nathan's work has been published on The Federalist. He and his wife have five children.

Maggie Lyles
Kaiser Permanente

Maggie is a Board Certified Family Medicine Physician currently working for Kaiser Permanente. She completed her training through Michigan State University. Her faith has always been central to her life of serving and upholding the dignity of the human person. It has taken her on medical mission trips to places like Guatemala. It has lead her to help launch a middle school ministry in D.C. that engages students in the medical ethical dilemmas of our time. It has led her to prison ministry and StreetlightPHX ministry, which shelters victims of human trafficking. In her free time, she enjoys outdoor sports like skiing, mountain biking, beach volleyball and rowing crew. She also enjoys music: she was featured in gifted and talented showcases for piano, as well as taught piano, and has been in select choirs as a vocalist/soloist. She also values her time with family and friends.

Jennifer Mazzara
King's College London

Jennifer Mazzara is a military spouse and homeschooling mother of five children. She graduated from Christendom College in 2008, and has since undertaken graduate studies in military history (American Military University) and war studies (Kings College London). Her work in the field of professional education has taken her abroad as well as around the Mid-Atlantic, giving presentations and training facilitators on the use of history to teach decision making and critical thinking. While balancing family needs and multiple military relocations, she has served her parishes as a volunteer musician, catechist, and sacristan. On weekends, Jennifer coaches youth sports and reads old newspapers for fun.

Zoe O'Herin
U.S. Congress

Zoë O’Herin is the Director of Federal Affairs for the Texas Public Policy Foundation where she communicates the Foundation’s priorities and perspective to Congressional leaders, agency staff, and the administration. Prior to joining the Foundation, Zoë served as Legislative Director to Congress’ only economist, Congressman Dave Brat, where she assisted him with the reform of the tax code in 2016. Before her time in the U.S. House of Representatives, Zoë was a staffer on the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, under Chairman Chuck Grassley, where she managed a portfolio that included executive and judicial nominations, constitutional issues, drug policy, and criminal justice. Zoë holds a BA with honors in Philosophy and Political Science from The University of Arizona. She received her JD from Case Western Reserve University School of Law and spent her third year as a visiting student at George Mason University School of Law

Natalie Peters
uCampaign

Natalie Z. Peters is an independent art scholar and general freelancer. She has worked as the Exhibition Coordinator and Registrar at Gold Leaf Studios, as Exhibitions Assistant at the Folger Shakespeare Library, and as the Events and Office Manager for uCampaign. She also has management and sales experience in the corporate and small business sector. In 2015, she earned her master’s degree in the History of Decorative Arts from George Mason University-Smithsonian Institution with a specialty in glass studies and design history. Her thesis focused on Louis C. Tiffany’s ecclesiastical figural mosaics. While in graduate school, Ms. Peters was an editorial fellow for the Archives of American Art Journal and intern at the Luce Foundation Center for American Art at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. She contributed research to the exhibition catalog, Louis C. Tiffany and the Art of Devotion (2010) and was a contributing author to Tiffany’s Glass Mosaics (2017). She lives in Washington, D.C. with her husband.

Trena Pilegaard
Case Western Reserve University

Trena Pilegaard is a 2nd Year Medical Student with Case Western Reserve University, persuing a Masters of Science in Anesthesia. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from Christendom College in Front Royal, Virginia. While she is a California native, she had been living in the DC area since 2009. Before she began her medical studies she held positions in the Diocese of Arlington in the Office of Catholic Schools and, later, served as a Director of Government Affairs for Tuttle, Taylor and Heron. Miss Pilegaard has served on the planning committees of various charitable organizations, included The Pledge of Future Glory Golf Tournament and Gala Dinner, the Laetare Benefit, and the Scalon Golf Tournament. Currently she represents her classmates as Class Representative to the American Society of Anesthesiologists. She also the Alumni Representatiave for her undergratuate class at Christendom College. Miss Pilegaard enjoys reading and traveling in her spare time. Favorite authors include, but, are not limited to, Walker Percy, C.S. Lewis, John Paul I, St. Francis De Sales, and Tolstoy.

Victoria Pryor
U.S. House of Representatives

Victoria is currently working in the U.S. House of Representatives as a Legislative Aide for Congressman Gary Palmer (R, AL). Previously, she was a fellow at the Mercatus Center while she completed her Master's in Economics at George Mason University. Before attending George Mason, she received a B.S. in Economics from Louisiana State University. Victoria is a native of Birmingham, Alabama.

Christine Rousselle
Catholic News Agency

Christine Rousselle is a DC Correspondent for Catholic News Agency. Prior to this, she was the managing web editor at Townhall. She holds a B.A. in political science from Providence College, where she also minored in French. At Providence, she was the news editor of the school newspaper, The Cowl and hosted a weekly radio show on WDOM 91.3, the College's radio station. A native of Scarborough, Maine, she has lived in Northern Virginia for five years. Christine is a parishioner at St. Rita Catholic Church in Alexandria, a member of the DC Frassati Fellowship at the Dominican House of Studies, and an Irish dancer with the Culkin School of Traditional Irish Dance. In her spare time, Christine loves to bake, watch ice hockey, and travel.

Tom Shakely
Terri Schiavo Life & Hope Network

Tom Shakely serves as Executive Director of the Terri Schiavo Life & Hope Network, whose Crisis Lifeline serves patients and families facing denial of basic care and which strives to awaken conscience on human dignity and bioethical issues, particularly euthanasia and assisted suicide. Tom is a member of the American Society for Bioethics and Humanities, serves the Pro-Life Union of Greater Philadelphia as a board member, and is a past member of Archbishop Charles J. Chaput’s Archdiocesan Pastoral Council. Tom holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Penn State and a certificate from the National Catholic Bioethics Center in health care ethics. He has written for National Review Online, National Catholic Register, HuffPost, and others.

Robert Smith
Sidley Austin LLP

Robert Smith is an incoming associate at Sidley Austin LLP. He is a recent graduate of the University of Virginia School of Law, where he served as president of the Federalist Society. Prior to law school, Robert worked as a legislative aide for U.S. Representative Mike Kelly of Pennsylvania. He holds a B.A. in government from Dartmouth College with minors in music and anthropology.

Maria Smith
Department of State

Maria Smith has served as a Foreign Affairs Officer at the Department of State since 2014, focusing on U.S. relations with Europe and Eurasia. Prior to joining the Department, Ms. Smith served as a Nonproliferation Graduate Fellow at the National Nuclear Security Administration and as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Azerbaijan, taught English in Moscow, Russian Federation, and taught after-school reading, math and social studies classes for elementary school students in the District of Columbia. Ms. Smith graduated from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor in 2012 with an M.P.P. from the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy and an M.A. from the Center for Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies. She earned her B.A. in Liberal Studies from the University of Notre Dame in 2005.

Steven Stafford
U.S. Department of Justice

Steven Stafford is chief speechwriter to Attorney General Jeff Sessions. He previously served as a speechwriter for Senator Rob Portman of Ohio and communications director for then-Congressman Joe Pitts of Pennsylvania. He is a member of Holy Comforter-St. Cyprian parish near Lincoln Park. He and his wife Rachel live on Capitol Hill.

Michael Turchetti
Booz Allen Hamilton

Michael F. Turchetti is an Associate at Booz Allen Hamilton where he advises federal healthcare clients on payment reform and data analytics. Before Booz Allen, Michael evaluated Medicaid programs for state clients and measured quality improvement for psychiatric hospitals. Outside of work, Michael is Programming and Professional Development Director for the D.C. Society of Health Policy Young Professionals, an Officer with StreetWise Partners - an economic empowerment nonprofit, and a Precinct Chief for the Arlington County Electoral Board. A native of Newport, Rhode Island, Michael moved to D.C. to study psychology and political theory at American University. He received his M.P.P. from George Mason University’s Schar School of Policy and Government. Michael enjoys social events, eucharistic adoration, fine dining, running, the arts, Benedictine spiritual retreats, and the Boston Bruins.

Jose Urquilla
International Republican Institute

José Urquilla currently works as a Program Officer for the Latin America Division at the International Republican Institute where he works on promoting democratic practices, good governance and citizen participation, in Bolivia, Colombia, and Peru. With over 7 years of work experience, José has served as a Legislative Aide for U.S. Senator Sam Brownback (KS) working in Latin American trade and immigration portfolios. He’s also held positions at the UN Departments of Economic and Social Affairs and Peacekeeping Operations in New York and the European Union’s Development and Cooperation Directorate in Brussels. In the humanitarian and development field, José has worked for Glasswing International in El Salvador, Saferworld International in Kenya/Somalia, and right before moving back to Washington, at the United Nations Peacekeeping Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO). A 2-time malaria survivor, José holds a B.A. in Political Science and Economics from Ave Maria University, an M.A. in International Affairs from the Catholic University of America, and a Masters of Public Policy & International Development from Erasmus University Rotterdam (The Netherlands) and Central European University (Hungary). In his free time, Jose loves learning about languages and cultures. He currently speaks Spanish, French, English, German, and Italian fluently and some Serbo-Croatian, Slovak, and Swahili. He is hoping to add Arabic soon to the mix.

Eduardo Andino
First Things

Eduardo grew up in Jackson Heights, New York. He currently works as Director of Development for First Things, an influential journal of religion and public life. Eduardo received his BA from Yale and a Master's in Theology from Notre Dame, where he focused on the history of Christianity. Eduardo is a flamenco guitarist and has spent time in Seville studying at the Fundación Cristina Heeren de Arte Flamenco. He lives in Queens with his wife and daughter.

Kelly Andino
Better Angels

Kelly Schumann Andino is a wife, mother, and teacher with experience in non-profit administration. Currently she serves as the Project Director at Better Angels, a citizen's movement working to reduce political polarization in the United States. She also serves as the Chapter Administrator for Legatus of New York City. Previously she has worked for organizations such at The Global Good Fund, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Her academic interests include early Christian history and art, especially the monuments of the Holy Land. Since 2014 she has been involved in ongoing research on the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. Ms. Andino has presented her research at the North American Patristics Society, the University of Chicago, and Oxford University. She holds an M.A. in Religion from The University of Chicago Divinity School and a B.A. in Humanities from Yale University.

John Aroutiounian
Columbia Law School

John is a second year student at Columbia Law School. Previously, he was a Master's student in Classical History at the University of Oxford, and worked before this at the New York District Attorney's Office. He is a 2015 graduate of Yale with a B.A. in Ethics, Politics, & Economics and History. He was born and raised on the Upper West Side and Washington Heights in New York and come from an international background, with family across Europe and the U.S. John has lived in New York, Kentucky, Connecticut, Washington, DC, and the UK.

Collin Berger
Markets Group of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York

Collin Berger is an analyst with the Markets Group of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Before he joined the Fed, he spent over two years based in New York with the management consulting firm Oliver Wyman, where most of his projects supported regional and national financial institutions. Collin graduated from Princeton University magna cum laude in 2014 after studying public policy and finance. At Princeton, Collin served on the board of one student theater group and filled behind-the-scenes roles for other student performance groups.

William Borman
New York Life Insurance Company

Billy Borman, a native of Virginia, lives in Manhattan and works in the life insurance industry. He previously worked as a management consultant. He is a graduate of the University of Virginia, where he studied political philosophy, and serves as an altar server at the Church of St. Vincent Ferrer on the Upper East Side. He owns an unwieldy collection of about 4,000 books, none of which are acutely rare or valuable.

Matthew Brinzo
Columbia Law School

Matthew Brinzo is a student at Columbia Law School in the City of New York. At Columbia, Matthew leads the Saint Thomas More Society, an organization for Catholic law students, and is a managing editor for the Columbia Journal of Law and Social Problems. Already in his legal career, Matthew has served as a law clerk in the Office of the White House Counsel and worked as a summer associate for the law firm Jones Day. Matthew received his bachelor's degree in Russian language and political science from Baylor University,

Leah Bromberg
Macy's

Leah grew up in Howard Beach, Queens, New York. After she graduated from West Point, she was commissioned as a Cavalry Officer in the U.S. Army. Leah was stationed at Fort Dum, NY, with the 10th Mountain Division and deployed to the Afghan-Pakistan border in 2013 as a platoon leader. In 2016 she ended her time in service and moved to Washington D.C. where she worked as a consultant at Booz Allen Hamilton. In 2017 she moved to San Francisco where she worked as a project manager at Facebook. Leah moved back to New York City in 2018 to attend business school at Columbia University.

Gerard Connolly
Columbia Business School

Gerard grew up in Howard Beach Queens New York. He graduated from West Point in 2011 and commissioned as a Cavalry Officer in the U.S. Army. He was stationed at Fort Dum, NY with the 10th Mountain Division and deployed to the Afghan-Pakistan border in 2013 as a platoon leader. In 2016 he ended his time in service and moved to Washington D.C. where he worked as a consultant at Booz Allen Hamilton. In 2017 he moved to San Francisco where he worked as a project manager at Facebook. Gerard moved back to New York City in 2018 to attend business school at Columbia University.

Philip DeVoe
National Review

Philip DeVoe is a writer from Detroit, Michigan, and graduated from Hillsdale College in 2017. While at Hillsdale, Phil was a staff reporter and editor for the college paper, The Hillsdale Collegian, and played trumpet in the community orchestra. After graduation, he began working at National Review as an editorial fellow, where he wrote op-eds on issues ranging from missile-defense funding to the privatization of the International Space Station. He moved into a management role with the magazine, his current position, after a year on the editorial staff. His work has appeared in Forbes, Real Clear Politics, and CNBC, and he has worked for newsrooms in London and Washington D.C. He currently lives in Jersey City, New Jersey, and is a parishioner of St. Michael's Catholic Church, where he serves as a lector.

Walker Dornisch
Morgan Stanley

Walker was born and raised in Los Angeles, California but moved to the East Coast for college in 2012 to study Applied Psychology (B.S.) at New York University. After undergraduate, he studied Wealth Management (M.S.) at the Wharton School of Business and School of Arts and Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania. For the past two years Walker has worked as an Associate of Financial Planning and Analysis with Morgan Stanley. In addition to working, he also studies Enterprise Risk Management part-time at Columbia University. In his spare time, he enjoys visiting art museums, running, and seeing Broadway shows. Walker converted to Catholicism in 2014 after encountering the Catholic Church through FOCUS missionaries and the Dominican Order.

Sheila Enright
Carnegie Corporation

Sheila Enright is the Coordinator of Correspondence and Special Projects for the President of Carnegie Corporation of New York. Before joining Carnegie, Sheila worked for Henry Kissinger, the Hertog Foundation, and Covenant House Pennsylvania. She holds a B.A. in History from Villanova University and an M.A. in Humanities from the University of Chicago. A native Chicagoan, Sheila loves opera, poetry, and Jane Austen.

Dan Faas
St. Charles Borromeo High School

A proud Michigander, Dan Faas currently serves as the principal of St. Charles Borromeo School in Harlem, New York City. After graduating from Michigan State, Dan spent two years as an Alliance for Catholic Education (ACE) teaching fellow in Mobile, AL, teaching middle school English language arts and religion at Most Pure Heart of Mary School. He went on to teach high school English in Santiago, Chile; worked as the admissions director for the ACE Mary Ann Remick Leadership Program; and served as Curriculum and Staff Development Associate for the Archdiocese of New York.

Emily Horton
Tappan Zee Bridge

Emily is currently an engineer on the new Tappan Zee Bridge. A 2016 Notre Dame graduate, she has moved four times since summer of 2016. She is thrilled to now live in New York and looks forward to meeting fellow Catholics in the city!

Christian Iezzi
The Archdiocese of New York

Christian works in research for the Development department of the Archdiocese of New York, which supports various Church initiatives, including a $200MM capital campaign, the restoration of St. Patrick’s Cathedral, and the annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner. He established his love of fundraising while interning at the Council on Foreign Relations, a nonpartisan political think tank. Christian received his B.A. in Political Science from the Macaulay Honors College of CUNY, and spent the spring semester of his junior year studying in Florence, Italy. He then went to straight to graduate school at NYU where he earned his M.A. in International Affairs and wrote his thesis about the potential collapse of the Italian nation; feel free to ask him about it! A native New Yorker, Christian has been blessed with an amazing family, great friends, and consistent opportunities to improve himself. He takes his responsibilities seriously, but also loves to enjoy life and tries to find many things to laugh about every day; for an example of his sense of humor, just watch any episode of Seinfeld.

Julia Kenney
World Youth Alliance

Originally from Livonia, MI, Julia now lives and works in New York, NY, where she serves as the North American regional director for World Youth Alliance. Before becoming regional director, Julia served as the WYA NA regional director of operations.

Madeleine Kearns
National Review

Madeleine Kearns is a native Scot and a William F. Buckley Jr. Fellow in Political Journalism at National Review. She is a contributor to The Spectator and has been published in The Daily Telegraph, the Daily Mail, The Scotsman, and The Catholic Herald. Madeleine has appeared on the BBC World Service, as well as American media outlets. Madeleine graduated with a Master’s in Cultural Reporting and Criticism from New York University (2018). She was awarded scholarships by the St. Andrews Society of the State of New York and the Scottish International Education Trust. She holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Education from the University of Glasgow (2016). And in 2015 graduated First Class (summa cum laude) with an MA in English literature from the University of St Andrews, where she also maintained competitive vocal scholarships. She moonlights as a singer.

John Lane
Seton Education Partners

John Lane serves as the manager of the El Camino Faith Formation Program at Brilla College Prep Middle School as well as the manager of Seton Teaching Fellows Community and Formation. Prior to joining Seton’s team, John spent four years in Catholic education teaching high school theology and language arts. John received his master’s degree through the University of Portland’s P.A.C.E. program, completing two years of service at St. Joseph’s Catholic High School, an underserved Catholic school in Ogden, Utah, where he taught theology and language arts and served as the campus minister. He holds a bachelor of arts degree in philosophy and Catholic studies from the University of St. Thomas and a master’s degree in teaching from the University of Portland.

Tess Lane
Seton Education Partners

Tess Lane works at Seton Education Partners, a non-profit dedicated to expanding and reviving Catholic education opportunities for disadvantaged children in America. At Seton, Tess serves as the Director of Talent and Recruitment for the Brilla Public Charter Schools Network and the Seton Teaching Fellowship program. Prior to joining Seton's team, she was a middle & high school teacher. Tess graduated from Centre College with degrees in Psychology & History and received her Masters Degree from the University of Portland, where she completed the Pacific Alliance for Catholic Education (PACE) program. Originally from Kentucky, she enjoys exploring NYC with her husband John and their son, Thomas.

Francesca Leite
Fordham University

Francesca is a graduate student at Montclair State University in her final semester of the educational leadership master's program. She graduated from Fordham University in 2015 with her bachelor’s degree in communications and currently works at Fordham University in the Office for Student Involvement. Francesca is an active member of her parish community at St. Thomas the Apostle in Bloomfield, NJ where she assists with the parish youth group.

Tyler Lomnitzer
Knights of Columbus

Tyler Lomnitzer is the Program Manager of Life-Based Initiatives for the Knights of Columbus in New Haven, CT. He oversees the implementation and growth of the following programs: March for Life, Special Olympics, Ultrasound Initiative, Novena for Life, Christian Refugee Relief, Silver Rose, Pregnancy Center Support, and Mass for People with Special Needs. Prior to the Knights, Tyler worked at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops planning and executing the Convocation of Catholic Leaders 2017, as well as serving the Committee for Religious Liberty. Tyler graduated from The Catholic University of America earning a B.A. in English literature with a minor in philosophy. As a writing center tutor, he presented an original piece “Religious Mission in/and Writing Centers” at the National Conference on Peer Tutoring in Writing and the International Writing Center Association Conference. In his spare time, Tyler enjoys playing golf, wandering around art museums, and reading poetry.

Luisa Majnoni d'Intignano
Sandton Capital Partners

Luisa Majnoni d’Intignano works as an Investment Analyst at Sandton Capital Partners in New York City where she investigates investment opportunities in Italy and Spain. She graduated from Columbia University with a Masters in Economics and holds a bachelor's degree in Mathematics and Economics from New York University. She volunteers with the Order of Malta, and is especially dedicated to their international summer camp for young adults with mental and physical disabilities. She hopes to soon bring this program to the United States. Luisa was born in Rome and feels most at home in the countryside near Siena.

Alessandro Marchetti
Kolenberg Group

In June of 2016, Alessandro joined the Kolenberg Group as a financial advisor in the Stamford, CT, Merrill Lynch office. From 2012 until 2016 Alessandro worked for the Catholic Studies department at the University of St. Thomas as their director of marketing and recruitment. Prior to that, Alex grew up working in the Marchetti-Tarantino family of Restaurants, including Columbus Park Trattoria in Stamford, CT. He currently lives with his wife (Monica) and his children (Antonio and Marianna) in Stamford, CT. He earned his Master’s in Business Administration from the University of Saint Thomas as well as an undergraduate degree in Philosophy and Catholic Studies.

Ashley Marchetta
UBS

Ashley Marchetta grew up on a tree farm in Akron, Ohio where she attended Walsh Jesuit High School. She figured out how to get her BSBA while traveling the globe and graduated from Georgetown University. Since moving to NYC 10 years ago, she has worked in financial services as a banker, recruiter, and diversity and inclusion director. She could listen for hours to the stories of the lifetime residents of Little Italy. Her happiest memories are usually made on a sailboat somewhere in the Mediterranean Sea.

Jennifer Monsalve
St. Peter’s University

Jennifer K Monsalve hails from Bogota, NJ, not to be confused with the capital of the country her parents are from, Bogotá, Colombia. She is currently a Campus Minister for Retreats and Spiritual Life at St. Peter's University in Jersey City, and a Youth Minister to high school students at St. Paul in Clifton, NJ. Previously, she received an MA in Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution at the Pontifica Universidad Javeriana, while working at the Colombian Bishops Conference on issues tied to the peace negotiations. As an undergraduate student, she studied at Fordham University and graduated with two degrees in International Political Economy and Theology, and a concentration in American Catholic Studies. Thereafter, she moved to El Salvador to work for Casa de la Solidaridad. Even though we currently live in a culture not conducive to living a life of discipleship, she firmly believes the hearts of our youth long to know God.

Robert Nguyen
Silvercrest Asset Management

Robert Nguyen is an Analyst at Silvercrest Asset Management. He graduated magna cum laude from Fordham University with a B.S. in Finance and Economics and is also a graduate of Regis High School. Born and raised in Jersey City, NJ to a Vietnamese immigrant family, he enjoys tutoring and mentoring children and high school students, attending concerts, visiting art galleries, and exploring new restaurants.

Diana Palacios
CUNY School of Law

Diana is currently a third-year law student at the CUNY School of Law in Long Island City, New York. After graduating from Boston University with a bachelor’s degree in Psychology, Diana worked in the non-profit sector for nearly 10 years, the last two of which were at Legal Services of Southern Piedmont (LSSP) in Charlotte, North Carolina. Her decision to attend law school stems from her desire to work with the immigrant community upon graduation as an immigration attorney.

Rachel Pinto
Bellerophon Therapeutics

Rachel Pinto, is a Dentist by training from Mumbai, India. During Dental School, she was elected as the Chair of the Cultural Committee. She has also served on the Executive Committee of The Catholic Medical Guild of St.Luke, Bombay for 2 years. She is a recent graduate from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, where she obtained her Masters in Public Health, in May 2018. She is an amateur guitar player, ballroom dancer and has sung for Mumbai's best Choirs. She currently works as a Drug Safety Scientist at Bellerophon Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical that develops drugs for people that suffer from rare pulmonary diseases.

Lord Leomer Pomperada
World Youth Alliance

Lord Leomer Pomperada currently serves as the President of the World Youth Alliance (WYA), a global coalition of over 1 million young people in over 160 countries that aims to promote the dignity of the person through policy and culture and build solidarity among the youth from developed and developing countries. He joined WYA as a member in 2011 and became a staff member in January 2014 as Director for Asia Pacific. Prior to working with WYA, Lord worked with the Center for Excellence in Governance-Institute for Solidarity in Asia, a non-partisan, not-for-profit public governance reform institute in East Asia. As a Filipino Sign Language interpreter, Lord has previously led community projects to bring the deaf and hearing youth communities in the Philippines together. Lord enjoys working with young people, cooking Filipino food, and traveling to new places.

Gaston Rodriguez
Citigroup

Gaston Rodriguez is a director at Citigroup. In his more than 10 years in the company, he has served in different roles including Head of Corporate Strategy for North America, focusing on setting the strategic direction of the firm. Gaston has worked in more than 10 countries across America, Europe and Asia. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Industrial Engineering from University of Buenos Aires, and an MBA in Finance from Columbia University. In his free time, Gaston enjoys running and swimming.

Alexi Sargeant
Magnificat

Alexi Sargeant is a writer, editor, and theatre-maker living in New York. He currently serves as assistant editor at Magnificat. His work has appeared in First Things, The New Atlantis, The American Interest, and many other places. He enjoys designing and playing role-playing games, often with his wife, Leah Libresco Sargeant.

Grace Shay
Goldman Sachs

A Connecticut native, Grace currently works at Goldman Sachs in New York City. She graduated summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from New York University, where she studied medieval French history.

Serena Sigillito
The Witherspoon Institute

Serena Sigillito is Editor of Public Discourse, the online journal of the Witherspoon Institute. Serena received her B.A. in English at the University of Dallas, graduating Phi Beta Kappa and magna cum laude with a minor in Music. She earned her M.A. in English from the Catholic University of America. Before coming to the Witherspoon Institute in 2013, she conducted research on higher education for the American Council of Trustees and Alumni, focusing on the decline of rigorous core curricula and general education programs. In addition to Public Discourse, Serena has written for National Review, America magazine, The Federalist, Aleteia, Verily Magazine, and I Believe in Love. Her media appearances include interviews on Relevant Radio’s A Closer Look with Sheila Liaugimas, The Jennifer Fulwiler Show on SiriusXM, and EWTN News Nightly. In 2015, she was named Publius Fellow by the Claremont Institute. Serena lives in New Jersey with her husband and two daughters.

Mene Ukueberuwa
Wall Street Journal

Mene Ukueberuwa is an opinion writer and editor in New York, currently working as an assistant op-ed editor at the Wall Street Journal. Mene is originally from Princeton Junction, New Jersey, and he graduated in 2016 from Dartmouth College with a degree in Government.

Nadja Wolfe
World Youth Alliance

Nadja serves as the representative to the United Nations and head of advocacy for a global youth organization. She is a graduate of Washington and Lee University, where she majored in Russian Area Studies and Theatre Arts, and William and Mary Law School. She is a native of Massachusetts, where she grew up in a large Catholic family. She has a longstanding interest in human rights, as well as history and culture, and spends her free time crafting.

Tara Wright
Sesame Workshop

Tara Wright is an Oklahoma native (Boomer!), and moved to NYC in 2016 to follow her sweetheart, Mark, and to take a job at Sesame Workshop. She enjoys singing, making art, drinking fancy coffee, and taking walks through Central Park. Tara is a talented artist, and the owner of Frameworthy Designs, where she specializes in commissioned illustration and hand-lettering. She is a cantor at St. Jean Baptiste Church on the Upper East Side, and is a volunteer at Avail NYC. Tara and Mark are expecting a baby in November 2018.