Al Aguero received his BA, with honors, in Sociology, at Binghamton University. He is a Clark fellow since 2011 and continuing for his PhD in Comparative Literature, in the Philosophy, Literature, and Criticism (PLC) at Binghamton University. His current research interests include a multifaceted study of religious/occult influences on Western Philosophical and Scientific Traditions, their etiologies and modern practices. He is also engaged in a study of the multifactied relationship of nonsense, madness, and unreason as conditions for the possibility of theory and praxis aimed at inspiring a critical individual and collective dreaming/discussion of different ways of being in the world with each other, as a starting point for a better world, by releasing the radical potential of literature and our imaginations. He has taught Literature and Sociology, as well as Literature and Psychology. He is actively forging interdisciplinary relationships with the sciences. To that end, he has invited biologist, computer programmers, social workers, and cognitive psychologists to his classroom to speak on such topics as artificial intelligence, autonomy, and language, attention, and perception. In turn he has been invited to join the Collective Dynamics of Complex Systems (CoCo) Research Group, as a participant in the CoCo seminars, and also to speak on the subject of art and literature to future cognitive-behavioral psychologists.
Maria Paula Chaves-Daza received her BA in Women and Gender Studies from Northeastern Illinois University as a McNair scholar and Her M.A. from Binghamton University's Philosophy, Interpretation, and Culture (PIC) department .She is a Clark fellow since 2009 and continuing her PhD at Binghamton University in PIC. Her interests include: Feminisms of Color, Decolonial Philosophy, Perfomance studies,-- theater in particular-- Popular Education, Caribbean and Latin American Philosophy. Currently, she is beginning a project that seeks to explore the coalitional potential between "women" and "men" of color against issues of violence. An integral part of this endeavour is to create popular education workshops using Augusto Boal's theater of the oppressed techniques to create active responses to interpersonal violence. maria is one of the researchers of The Center for Interdisciplinary Research in Philosophy, Interpretation and Culture (CPIC) and a committed member of the Chicago based Sankofa Project--a non-for-profit Theater company dedicated to developing Diasporic Theater that aims to address issues found in communities of color in the area in order to help develop solutions.
Josh T Franco received his BA in Art History, Southwestern University,Georgetown, TX. He is a Clark fellow since 2010 in the PhD Program in Art History. His MA is from the Philosophy, Interpretation, and Culture (PIC) Program at Binghamton. He is currently completing coursework and working on multiple studio projects. His ares of interest are art by Chican@s, US Modernism, and Modernity/Coloniality. He has been an associate researcher in the Center For Interdisciplinary Studies in Philosophy, Interpretation, and Culture (CPIC) since 2008.
Karina Jimenez, received her BA in political science and geography from Binghamton University as a McNair scholar. As of 2010, I am a Clark Fellow, continuing for a MA in Geography, concentrating in Urban and Regional Planning, in Binghamton University. My thesis will be focused on alternative food locations in minority concentrated neighborhoods in New York City. I will be conducting a site location analysis on these areas and whether they are in need of alternative, healthier food markets. Besides classes on geography, I have TA PLSC 486, with Professor David Cingranneli, and volunteered to help out in Geog 333, with Professor Eugene Tettey-Fio
Alexander R. Knights received both his BS and MBA, with honors, from St. John's University, Queens, New York. He has been a Clark fellow since 2011, while pursing a PhD in Management with a concentration in Organizational Behavior and Leadership through the School of Management's Center for Leadership Studies. Alexander's current research interest includes leadership succession, group formation and dynamics, specifically within the context of top management teams, and creativity, decision-making and politics within the upper echelon of organizations. Alexander is currently involved on a project exploring when and how external
partnerships can enhance a firm's overall innovation strategy. He is also currently working on a project exploring the role of strategy as a moderator between the relationship of top management team diversity and performance.
Latoya Lee received her BA/MA degrees in an advanced dual-degree program in Sociology at St. John's University, Queens. She is a Clark fellow since 2008 and continuing her PhD in Sociology at Binghamton University. Latoya has previous adjunct teaching experience at St. John's University, Nassau Community College, Garden City and Adelphi University, Garden City. She specializes in race, class and gender, sociology of the family, women's health movements, new reproductive technologies (NRTs), HIV/AIDS, and masculinity.
Xhercis Méndez is a Clark Fellow and PhD Student in Philosophy, Interpretation and Culture (PIC) at SUNY Binghamton. She received her M.A. in PIC and her BA from California State Dominguez Hills in the Interdisciplinary Studies Program in Comparative Cultures with a minor in Women’s Studies. Her current research interest focuses on theorizing the body from within African-based spiritual practices. Her work brings together Women of Color and Decolonial Feminisms, Modernity/Coloniality Studies, and Non-Western cosmologies, philosophies, and ways of knowing in an effort to explore alternative grounds for social relations, intimacies, and resistant possibility.
Amanda Ruiz received her BA in Interdisciplinary studies, with a focus on "Social Change and Social Control" from the University of California at Berkeley in 2000. After some experience in the public education system, she began to view mathematics education as a social justice issue and decided to pursue mathematics. She received her MA in mathematics at San Francisco State University in 2009, and chose to continue her studies and pursue a PhD in mathematics at Binghamton University. She has been a Clark Fellow since 2009, and is researching Complex matroids with her advisor Professor Laura Anderson. She is currently co-teaching Calculus 1 with another Clark fellow. After completing her PhD, Amanda plans to remain in academia, and encourage more women and people of color to pursue a degree in mathematics and the sciences.
Paulette Steeves received her BA in Anthropology, Honors Cum Laude, at the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville. She was awarded a Clark Fellowship to attend Binghamton University, 2008-2013 and received her MA Archaeology with a minor in EVOS Evolutionary Studies 2010 and a Teaching Certificate in 2011. She is working on her PhD dissertation, The Ancient Indigenous Past of the Western Hemisphere pre 13.000 rcybp: Foregrounding Truth as the Daughter of Time. Her research challenges historical colonialist knowledge production and epistemology and foregrounds the inclusion of indigenous voices and other ways of knowing. Ms Steeves has been awarded two consecutive summer internships to carry out field excavations with the Denver Museum of Nature and Science and was recently appointed to a two year term on the Society for American Archaeology, Committee for Curriculum. Ms Steeves is an Indigenous archaeologist and also works in molecular anthropology (Genetics) to support indigenous communities and people. She is also the founder and president of ISA, the Indigenous Graduate Student Association. Ms Steeves designed and is currently teaching her own class; Indigenous History and Contemporary Populations of the Western Hemisphere (The “Americas”) LCAS 380A: cross list ANTH 380E /GEOG 380A /COLI 380Y/ SOC380H. She has also enjoyed being a TA for sections of Anthropology 111, Introduction to Anthropology and Anthropology 125, Introduction to Archaeology. She recently designed a web site WHIPPDB.COM, which challenges previous historical time frames of Indigenous first nations through highlighting over 800 pre 11,050 recorded and dated human habitation sites in the Americas. The data base of ancient Western Hemisphere Indigenous people’s sites and the new web site are a result of her ongoing PhD dissertation research.
Amanda Taylor started the mathematics Ph.D. program at Binghamton in 2007.She obtained her master's degree in 2009 and is currently doing research in infinite group theory. In particular, she is studying Thompson's groups and generalizations of Thompson's groups. Since starting the program at Binghamton, Amanda has been instructor for 3 courses--Algebra and Trigonometry, Calculus I, and Calculus II. In 2006, she obtained a bachelor of arts in mathematics from the University of Maine at Farmington. She is originally from Greenville, NC.
Edward Zegarra studied International Business at the University of Florida, University of New South Wales and Suffolk University, Madrid, receiving a BA from the University of Florida in 2004. He has been a Clark Fellow since 2010 and is working towards a PhD in Anthropology/Archaeology. His research focuses on early state organization, imperial growth and the development of power relations in late Andean prehistory. He will be conducting field work in Peru during Summer 2011 at the site of a Wari (ca. AD 600-1100) provincial palace in line with his master's thesis examining Wari imperial strategies of expansion and political administration. As a long term goal, Edward plans to work with local communities to uncover and preserve their rich past.
