The Graduate Experiential Professional Development (xPD) Internship Program provides doctoral students the opportunity to explore a diverse range of careers beyond traditional academic faculty roles in departments across the UGA campus. The 2025 summer program has placed 20 interns from a wide variety of academic departments within 17 different host units across UGA, which is an increase from ten positions in 2023.
By participating in this program, graduate students practice transferrable skills, gain exposure to campus units, and expand their understanding of the inner workings of UGA. Through the summer program experiences, the interns establish relationships with administrators, staff, and peers, garnering advice and mentorship useful to their professional and career development while supporting the important work of campus partners across the university. In addition, the interns meet several times as a cohort to participate in professional development workshops.
“It is always rewarding to see students making connections with others that in turn get them energized about their futures,” said Karen Fambrough, Director of Professional Development at the Graduate School. “This program allows them to see and experience opportunities where they can use their doctoral degrees that maybe they hadn’t previously considered for their future careers. In some ways, I feel this program opens doors for them into what could be possible.”
Each summer, the Office of Professional Development in the Graduate School offers this opportunity to students and campus partners. These paid internships are funded by the Graduate School and are a part of the Graduate School’s professional development programming.
2025 Summer Graduate Internship Program Participants
Gehad Abdelal
Department of Philosophy, Franklin College of Arts and Sciences
Gehad Abdelal is a philosopher, educator, and interdisciplinary researcher whose work bridges feminist theory, environmental ethics, and artificial intelligence. She is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Philosophy and holds dual PhDs in Environmental Ethics and Feminist Philosophy and Religion. She is currently Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Wofford College. Abdelal’s research critically engages with the limitations of Western and Islamic feminist frameworks, advocating for land-based, historically grounded approaches to gender justice in North Africa. Her dissertation, Islamic Feminism and the Politics of Gender: Between Liberation and Non-Western Neocolonial Domination, offers a searing critique of religious reformism as a substitute for genuine decolonial liberation.
Alongside her academic teaching, she is pursuing a master’s degree in Artificial Intelligence with a focus on cognitive science and ethical applications. Her current research projects include the psychological and environmental risks of AI systems, the coloniality of epistemology in global philosophy, and the moral implications of agrarian gender systems disrupted by Arabization and capitalist urbanism.
Born in Egypt and now a naturalized U.S. citizen, Abdelal brings a transnational and critical perspective to philosophical inquiry. She is passionate about educational justice, institutional transformation, and supporting minority and international students in navigating systems not built for them. Whether in the classroom, courtroom, or scholarly writing, she is committed to truth-telling, rigorous critique, and building epistemologies rooted in land, history, and survival.
She is also a devoted cat guardian, a survivor of chronic illness, and a believer in healing as both a personal and political act.
Mary Akinde
Consumer Economics, College of Family and Consumer Sciences
Mary Akinde is a Ph.D. student in Consumer Economics at the University of Georgia, where she is also pursuing a Master’s degree in Statistics. With a strong academic foundation and a deep passion for applying data-driven insights to real-world challenges, Akinde’s research bridges the fields of financial well-being, health literacy, and evidence-based policy for underserved populations. She currently serves as a Volunteer Consultant Assistant at UGA’s Statistical Consulting Center, contributing to interdisciplinary research projects across campus.
Before beginning her doctoral studies, Akinde earned a Master’s degree in Management and Business Analytics from the Higher School of Economics in Russia. She also worked as a Business Intelligence and Insights Analyst at Union Bank of Nigeria, where she specialized in data visualization, reporting, and performance monitoring. Her professional and academic experiences have equipped her with a strong blend of analytical rigor and strategic thinking.
This summer, Akinde interned with the Georgia Center for Continuing Education & Hotel. In collaboration with Associate Director Kiel Norris, Deputy Director Patrick Fulbright, and Dr. Daniel Remur (Department of Hospitality and Food Industry Management), she led a project focused on operational efficiency and sustainability. Her work included analyzing historical conference meal attendance data, building predictive models for future forecasting, and evaluating food waste metrics. These insights are contributing to both strategic planning and academic research.
Akinde is honored to be recognized by the Graduate School and remains committed to using data-driven approaches to drive innovation, equity, and meaningful social impact.
Bryant Barnes
Department of History, Franklin College of Arts and Sciences
Bryant K. Barnes is a Ph.D. student in the Department of History and a historian of interracial political movements in the post-Reconstruction US South. His research focuses particularly on third-party movements in Georgia and Virginia and reveals the connections between the rise of corporate capitalism and Jim Crow segregation and disfranchisement. He has published three scholarly articles, one of which (“Fresh Fruit and Rotten Railroads: Fruit Growers, Populism, and the Future of the New South”) was awarded the Fishel-Calhoun Article Prize by the Society for Historians of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era.
In addition to his primary scholarship, Barnes has worked with Athens-Clarke County teachers and the Athens Historical Society to research and write scripts for several short documentaries about Athens history. Two of these films – “Emancipation in Athens” and “Industrial Athens Part One” – have been released, and a third – “Industrial Athens Part 2: The Struggle to End Child Labor” – is in post-production and features Bryant as the narrator. The purpose of these films is to place the lessons students learn in their classes in a local context, revealing that seemingly distant history happened right in students’ own backyards.
Barnes is also a proud member of the United Campus Workers of Georgia. In his free time, he roughhouses with his two dogs, Eleanor and Ruth.
Maxime Berclaz
Department of English, Franklin College of Arts and Sciences
Maxime Jonas Berclaz is a Ph.D. student in creative writing at UGA, where he writes poetry and thinks about horror, particularly its utopian aspects. He has published poems in Burning House, Prelude, and Deluge and has reviews in Pank and Tarpaulin Sky.
Elika Bozorgi
Department of Computer Science, School of Computing
Elika Bozorgi is a Machine Learning Engineer and AI Researcher with a Ph.D. in Computer Science from the University of Georgia. She defended my thesis on June 12, 2025, and officially graduated at the end of July. Her research focuses on machine learning, natural language processing, graph-
based modeling, and large language models (LLMs), with a strong interest in building practical, data-driven AI systems. During her Ph.D., she developed graph embedding algorithms and built a question-answering system over NoSQL databases using fine-tuned GPT models. Bozorgi worked extensively with
frameworks like LangChain, Hugging Face, and LlamaIndex on NIH-funded research. Alongside her academic work, she held roles at Elevance Health, the National Park Service, and the Terry College of Business, where she developed scalable data pipelines, real-time analytics tools, and deployed machine learning models in production. Her projects include churn prediction from EHR data, customer engagement modeling, and cryptocurrency transaction analysis.
Bozorgi is skilled in Python, SQL, Spark, Kafka, and cloud platforms like AWS and Azure, with hands-on experience in MLOps tools such as MLflow, Docker, and Kubernetes. She enjoy bridging research and real-world impact, especially in domains like healthcare, finance, and public policy. She is passionate about building scalable, explainable, and ethical AI systems that drive real-world value.
Qian Cao
Department of Geography, Franklin College of Arts and Sciences
Qian Cao is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Geography with a strong interdisciplinary background bridging urban planning and geospatial data science. Before joining UGA, Qian worked for several years as an urban planner in China, where she specialized in regional planning and spatial analysis. This professional experience continues to shape her research questions and methodological approach. Her current research focuses on the intersection of urban geography and geographic information science (GIScience), with particular emphasis on GeoAI and heterogeneous network representation learning. She is especially interested in how machine learning can be applied to model spatial-social interactions and how to ensure algorithmic fairness across diverse geographies. Her recent work explores geographic bias in AI models and aims to improve the interpretability and equity of geo-aware models.
As an xPD intern, Cao is gaining valuable experience by working with the Carl Vinson Institute of Government, where she is applying her technical expertise to real-world housing problems that benefit the Georgia communities. This opportunity aligns with her broader goal of bridging academic research with practical impact, and of developing geospatial technologies that are both innovative and socially responsible.
Cao is enthusiastic about contributing to collaborative, interdisciplinary projects and hopes to continue engaging with public-sector and academic partners to tackle pressing urban and environmental challenges through geospatial analysis and AI.
Trevor Cole
Department of History, Franklin College of Arts and Sciences
Trevor Cole is a Ph.D. student in history here at the University of Georgia, and is entering his fourth year in the program this fall. Originally from Mississippi, Cole and his spouse both earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Mississippi State University before relocating to Athens in 2022 to continue their post-graduate studies. Cole has always been fascinated with severe weather, having grown up in a region prone to experiencing some of the most volatile and dangerous storms in the country, including thunderstorms, tornadoes, and hurricanes. Naturally, his research examines the growth and professionalization of scientific meteorology in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, with a particular focus on the establishment of a national weather service in 1870.
Sayantika Mandal
Department of English, Franklin College of Arts and Sciences
Sayantika Mandal is a Ph.D. candidate in English (Creative Writing). She completed her MFA in Writing from the University of San Francisco and was the inaugural Arts Lab Fellow from UGA’s Willson Center of Humanities & Arts. Her writing has appeared or is forthcoming in Ecobloomspaces Anthology, Glassworks Magazine, December Magazine, Southern Review of Books, Indian Literature, The Citron Review, Cerebration, Feminism in India, Times of India, and others. She is currently working on her first novel. This summer, she was an editorial intern at the UGA Press.
Daniela McLean
Educational Leadership, Mary Frances Early College of Education
Daniela McLean serves as an assistant principal at Legacy Knoll Middle School in Jackson County and is in the Doctoral program for Educational Leadership at UGA with an anticipated graduation in Fall 2026. McLean worked at the Office of Student Success and Achievement this summer, learning more about the important work of this department for students. As a first-generation and rural student herself, McLean enjoyed giving back to a support system that she recognizes as extremely important for students’ long-term success.
Jessica Moore
Counseling Psychology, Mary Frances Early College of Education
Jessica Moore is a Ph.D. candidate in the Counseling Psychology program. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Health and Physical Education from UGA and a master’s degree in Higher Education and Student Affairs from the Ohio State University. Prior to beginning her doctorate, she was a high school teacher and coach for two years. Outside of her studies and work, Moore enjoys spending time in nature, engaging in fitness activities, and watching sports.
Moses Okocha
Journalism, Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication
Moses Okocha is a Ph.D. student in the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, with a concentration in journalism. He earned his master’s degree in journalism from the University of Kansas.
With valuable industry experience as a broadcast journalist, Okocha has worked as a news anchor and reporter, covering news beats in health, technology and education. He has also completed certifications in fact-checking from the BBC and digital strategy from Reuters, further enhancing his expertise in the field.
Okocha’s research examines how emerging technologies, such as AI and virtual reality, are reshaping journalism practices while also investigating the dynamics of health and political communication, particularly their effects on public health messaging, the spread of inaccurate and synthetic information, and the implications for civic engagement and trust in media.
Currently, he is actively engaged with the Center for Advanced Computer-Human Ecosystems (CACHE) and the Digital Media Attention and Cognition Labs, where he engages in several innovative research initiatives alongside other scholars.
When he is not researching or studying, Okocha enjoys voice acting, content creation, music as well as going on road trips.
BriAnn Price
College Student Affairs Administration, Mary Frances Early College of Education
BriAnn Price is a Ph.D. candidate in the College Student Affairs Administration program at the University of Georgia. This summer, she is serving as a graduate intern with UGA’s Career Center, where she supports graduate student career development through assessment, research, and curricular innovation. Her responsibilities include conducting meta-analyses of program assessments, developing executive summaries for leadership, and proposing innovative, data-informed programming. She also participates in staff training across key career development areas and contributes to office-wide events that serve students and alumni.
Originally from Sacramento, California, Price has lived and worked throughout the Southeastern region since 2011. She earned her degrees from the University of West Georgia (B.S. in Sociology) and the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (M.S. in College Student Personnel). With over 14 years of experience in higher education, she brings a strong commitment to holistic development, community building, and equity for historically marginalized student and staff populations.
Price’s dissertation focuses on the psychological and physical health and well-being experiences of Black doctoral women in non-STEM PhD programs at predominantly white institutions. Rooted in Black feminist thought and the psychological radical healing framework, her research utilizes Sista Circle methodology to create healing-centered spaces that center Black women’s knowledge, rest, and resistance.
She aspires to a future as a faculty member and scholar-practitioner committed to human-centered approaches, rooted in care, community, and collective learning. In her free time, she enjoys traveling the world, exploring creative outlets, practicing self-care, and spending quality time with her family, friends, and pets.
Farzaneh Saadati
Department of Computer Science, School of Computing
Farzaneh Saadati is a third-year Ph.D. student in Computer Science at the University of Georgia. As an excellent student with a GPA of 3.85 and three publications, she is deeply committed to advancing knowledge in computer vision, machine learning, image processing, and multimodal data analysis.
During the summer, she completed an internship at the Office of Faculty Affairs (OFA) at the University of Georgia, where she contributed to faculty success and academic leadership enrichment initiatives. My role involved developing a comprehensive speaker database and designing virtual professional development resources and instructional materials focused on key topics such as project management, mentoring, and leadership.
Throughout the internship, Saadati employed a range of technical skills, utilizing software including Teams, SharePoint, MS Power Platform, WordPress, eLC, Excel, Canva, Kaltura, and PowerPoint. These tools enabled her to create integrated and effective training materials, enhancing online communication and resource accessibility for faculty members.
A significant aspect of her work was database development and integration, where she combined diverse data sources into cohesive platforms within SharePoint and MS Power Platform. Additionally, she updated existing professional development materials and conducted detailed research to produce an instructional module complemented by an annotated bibliography of curated, relevant materials.
The internship experience sharpened Saadati’s ability to communicate effectively with higher education audiences through both emails and web-based platforms, ensuring clarity and engagement. Her attention to detail, strategic thinking, and creativity were integral in aligning individual project components with broader organizational goals, significantly enhancing my professional growth.
Saifa Tazrin
Department of Sociology, Franklin College of Arts and Sciences
Saifa Tazrin is a fourth-year Ph.D. student in Sociology at the University of Georgia, with an interdisciplinary academic foundation in women’s studies and law. She holds an M.A. in Sociology from UGA and an LL.M. from the University of Dhaka. Her research is rooted in feminist theory, political sociology, and qualitative methodologies. Her work critically engages with intersectionality and postcolonial critique to explore gender-based violence (graduate research in law), clothing agency of women and violence in Bangladeshi societies (graduate research in sociology), and digital harassment in South Asian politics (doctoral research).
Tazrin has presented her scholarship at leading academic forums, including the American Sociological Association (ASA), the Society for the Study of Social Problems (SSSP), Women’s and Gender Studies South (WGS South), and the Implicit Religion Conference (UK). She has published in peer-reviewed journals and currently has work under review. She has also received multiple honors including the P.E.O. International Peace Scholarship and the BSF Mellon Research Grant. Certified in qualitative data analysis and nonprofit leadership, she has contributed to academic service as a panel moderator, scholarship reviewer, and volunteer at regional conferences.
Tazrin is deeply committed to youth development. In Summer 2025, she is serving as a Research Assistant with the UGA Extension, evaluating the 4-H “Beyond Ready” framework and its role in preparing youth for post-secondary life and career readiness. She previously had co-founded the International Youth Development Society (IYDS) in Bangladesh and held leadership roles in youth-led initiatives including Shabash Fakibaj™ LLC, bridging advocacy, education, and empowerment across borders.
Ngoc My Tran
Department of Language and Literacy Education, Mary Frances Early College of Education
Ngoc My Tran is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Language and Literacy Education with an emphasis on TESOL and World Language Education at the University of Georgia. Her research interests include Vietnamese interdisciplinary studies (folklore, religion, and language education), LGBTQ+ affirming education, and educational equity.
This summer, Tran interned with UGA’s International Student Life, where she collaborated with staff within the department as well as outside to help revive Language Labs, a program designed to support international students in practicing conversational English and adjusting to life in the U.S. Through interviews with current international students, analysis of past program data, and review of previous lesson plans, she helped develop a reimagined curriculum catered to the interests and curiosities of international students. In addition to her curriculum work, she created application materials for prospective interns and designed promotional flyers to support recruitment and increase program visibility among current and incoming international students.
Taylor Vanderveen
Department of Communication Studies, Franklin College of Arts and Sciences
Taylor Vanderveen is a third-year doctoral student in the Communication Studies Department studying rhetoric. Her research intersects rhetorical studies with women, gender, and sexuality studies. Vanderveen’s current research project focuses on voice and victim impact statements in cases of sexual assault.
Vanderveen is also an instructor in the Communication Studies Department. She has taught Introduction to Public Speaking and Introduction to Interviewing. She will be teaching Introduction to Public Speaking and Introduction to Rhetorical Criticism in the Fall 2025 semester. Vanderveen hopes to continue expanding her pedagogy practice while completing her doctorate at UGA.
Additionally, Vanderveen is dedicated to service in her department. She served as the Communication Studies Graduate Forum’s Interim Vice President and Social Chair in the 2024-2025 academic year, and she has been nominated President for the 2025-2026 academic year.
This summer, Vanderveen is working with UGA’s Center for Teaching and Learning where she is engaging in research on alternative grading and conducting focus groups to gather research for the Center for Teaching and Learning.
Madeline Williams
Department of Sociology, Franklin College of Arts and Sciences
Madeline Raine Williams is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Sociology at the University of Georgia under the advisement of Dr. Dawn T. Robinson. She holds dual Bachelor of Arts degrees in Sociology and Political Science from the University of Kentucky. Williams recently received her Master of Arts in Sociology and is now working on her dissertation. Her master’s thesis, Playing the Part: An Experiment of Masculinity Under Threat in Public and Private Settings, examined how individuals respond to threats to masculinity and how these responses are shaped by the presence of an audience and baseline adherence to traditional masculine role norms.
Williams’ research interests center on social psychology, gender with a focus on masculinity, mental health, emotions, and culture. In addition to her academic work, Williams serves as an instructor of record in the Department of Sociology, where she teaches SOCI 4740: “Gender and Interaction” and SOCI 4000: “The Sociology of Mental Health.”
This summer, Williams is interning with the University of Georgia’s Office of Service-Learning. Her work focuses on researching similar programs at peer institutions across the country to provide benchmarking data and develop proposals for enhancing UGA’s own service-learning initiatives. Outside of her academic and internship roles, she enjoys hiking with her dog, tending to her many houseplants, and baking.
Christina Wood
English and Creative Writing, Franklin College of Arts and Sciences
Jessica Moore is a Ph.D. candidate in English and Creative Writing at the University of Georgia. Her writing has appeared in publications such as The Paris Review, Granta, Sewanee Review, Virginia Quarterly Review, and McSweeney’s, and she won the 2019 Shirley Jackson Award for short fiction.
She has 9 years of experience teaching English and Creative Writing classes at UGA and other universities. Before beginning her Ph.D. program, she served as a Visiting Assistant Professor at Southern Illinois University Carbondale and the Assistant Editor of the literary press Dorothy. She earned her MFA from Washington University in St. Louis.
Through the xPD program, she is continuing her academic-year role working as a graduate editor for The Georgia Review, UGA’s literary journal. She hopes to leverage the role into a career in publishing post-graduation.
