People

On this page: Director | Faculty | Graduate Programs Staff | Students | Alumni

You can learn more about our faculty, our program staff, our current student cohorts, and alumni of the Policy Studies program. If you have questions about this program, please feel free to contact us for further information at iasgrad@uw.edu.

Director

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Faculty

Explore profiles of our core and affiliate faculty members, including information on areas of expertise, pedagogy, courses taught, research/scholarship, and selected publications.

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Learn about IAS Graduate Programs staff members. Feel free to contact us with any questions or to get more information about our graduate programs!

Crystal Galván

Graduate Programs Manager and Advisor

Crystal Galván brings five years of experience in supporting students from minoritized, low socio-economic, and first-generation backgrounds in higher education. She earned a dual degree from Washington State University; B.A. in Comparative Ethnic Studies with a minor in Spanish and a B.A. in Sociology. Crystal earned her master’s from the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) in Latin American and Latinx Studies (LALS). For the community research internship, she created a public programming event in collaboration with the Latinx Cultural Center at UIC and the National Museum of Mexican Art in Chicago. This programming event explored the marginalization of the Afro-Mexican population in Mexico and the ways in which the game La Loteria has problematically constructed Mexican nationhood.

In her most recent role as a Coordinator for the Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program at Purdue University Northwest, she led the preparation of McNair Scholars for graduate education (i.e. summer research internship, graduate portfolio seminars, and scholarly workshops) and managed day-to-day operations.

She was born and raised in Omak, Washington, and is proud of her migrant/farmworker background. After living in Chicago for almost 4 years, she is eagerly awaiting to return back home to Washington. At the University of Washington Bothell, she looks forward to working with IAS graduate students, the IAS team, and the UW Bothell community. As a graduate advisor/manager her main priorities are graduate student success and access for future graduate students. In her free time, Crystal likes to go out dancing, listen to Bad Bunny & El Alfa, play with her cat Tomás, and spend time with her family!

Email Crystal

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Eva Navarijo

Director, Academic Services & Advising

Eva Navarijo comes to IAS with 12 years direct experience advising first-generation, low-income, and underrepresented university students in academic, study abroad, and residence hall settings. She also brings significant experience with grant-funded program management and assessment. As the former director of the First Scholars program at Washington State University she has overseen programming, counseling, and advising for first-generation college students; led a living learning community for first-generation college students; and co-founded First-Generation Abroad, to increase access to study abroad and global leadership learning opportunities. She also trains faculty and staff on best practices for engaging and serving first-generation students.

As an undergraduate at Washington State University, Eva participated in TRIO Student Support Services and was selected to join the McNair Achievement Program. She graduated with an Honors BA in English, focused on Multicultural Literature and Pedagogy. She completed graduate studies at Saint Louis University in the American Studies program. Email Eva (Graduate Programs)

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Chelsea Nesvig, Research Librarian 

Contact Chelsea Nesvig

As Policy Studies Librarian, Chelsea assists students in conducting research and literature reviews for course assignments and capstone projects. She works with students both in the classroom and on a one-to-one basis.

Chelsea graduated with her MLIS from the University of Washington iSchool in June 2014. She joined the Campus Library in January 2015 and has taught online and face-to-face in the lower division information literacy curriculum at both UW Bothell and Cascadia, along with providing instruction and support to faculty and students in UW Bothell's School of Nursing and Health Studies. Chelsea became the Global & Policy Studies librarian in April 2016.

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Graduate Student Representatives (GSR)

GSRs facilitate mechanisms and spaces by which students in the program can contribute to discussions about the program and degree.  In this capacity they serve as a resource to other students and the program director.

• GSRs for the 2022-2023 cohort: Christy Darley, Dawn Weimer, and Shaunice Wilson.

Current Students

Read about some of our dynamic Policy Studies students and their interests.

2022 Cohort

Sofia Anderson

Degrees

BA in Ethics and Human Behaviors, University of Washington Bothell; AAS in Liberal Arts and Sciences, Bellevue College

Research Interests

Digital Education Policy, Youth Suicide, Digital Media & Youth Growth, Women Invisibility

Snapshot

Sofia Anderson is a Washington State resident. Raised at the foot of the Cascades, she began her teaching career at seventeen through a non-profit. As an undergraduate at the University of Washington, she grew her connections and landed a role working as an educator and operational support staff at an academic institution in Seattle during and after the Covid 19 pandemic. In her last year of her bachelor's, Sofi worked as a policy intern at a New York-based research institution. She was focused on analyzing and meeting with members of the senate and congress, alongside doctors, specialists, and scholars. Helping to focus policy research on digital education and child development. She is now taking the time to focus on her policy research through the University of Washington.

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Noah Carper

Degrees

BA in Law, Economics, and Public Policy and a minor in Human Rights, University of Washington Bothell

Research Interests

Foreign Policy, Sustainable & Responsible Economic Growth and Development, Criminal Justice Reform, Affordable Housing, and Immigration Law

Snapshot

Noah Carper was born in Washington State and has spent his entire life living here. Prior to UWB, he attended and graduated from Ilwaco High School where he first learned to value the smaller community experience that UWB provides. Noah spent all four years of undergrad at UWB and has loved every second of it. In his free time, he enjoys hiking, camping, and spending time outside. His interest in the MAPS program stems from wanting to understand how policy is created and used in our everyday lives. One day, he hopes to work within policy development to help change the world one small step at a time.

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Nate Samuelson

Degrees

BA in Environmental Studies, University of Washington Bothell

Research Interests

Urban Wildlife Conservation, Sustainable Development, Environmental Justice

Snapshot

I am a Pacific Northwest native and lived in the Seattle area until was 10. I moved to Europe for two years with my family while my parents worked abroad, after which we moved to Utah where I attended middle school and high school. I have been living in the Seattle area since I graduated high school in 2011. My interests in wildlife and the outdoors led me to pursue my degree in environmental studies, and my travels abroad have given me an appreciation for foreign cultures and the ways in which others interact with the natural world. 

I have been working with Dr. David Stokes as a research assistant and project coordinator on wildlife studies in the Northshore area of Bothell, Kenmore, and Kirkland since 2018. In 2020 we began a camera trap study called the Northshore Wildlife Science Network (NWSN) which uses citizen scientists to monitor and record camera data. We currently have over 30 wildlife cameras deployed across our study area and have recorded over 6,000 occurrences of wildlife.

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Shaunice Wilson

Degrees

BA in Public Affairs with a concentration in International Development, Seattle University

Research Interests

Equitable Development Policy with an emphasis on community-based solutions to displacement and economic development

Snapshot

Since graduating from Seattle University in 2017, Shaunice has been working in public service to support the diverse communities of King County. As a native of Renton, WA, she understood the need and felt a calling to support her community in gaining access to vital resources and support – helping them to live healthier and happier lives. During the start of the pandemic, she decided to make the switch from the non-profit sector back to the government sector; gaining insights and expanding her knowledge of the role local government plays in both providing regional services and supporting the well-being of our community – especially during a global pandemic. She hopes to take the knowledge she will obtain from her MAPS coursework and capstone project to craft policy and co-create solutions to problems related to economic development and the displacement of our black and brown communities.

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Dawn Weimer

Degrees

BA in Environmental Policy with a minor in Environmental Science, Western Washington University; AA at Everret Community College

Research Interests

Environmental and Social Justice; Water Resources: Conflict, Conservation, and Quality

Snapshot

I am a native of Washington State and a first-generation college student. Having left home prior to legal adulthood, it took me some time to return to the academic world, but I knew it would play a big part in my life. In 2013 I received my GED so I could attend college. Dabbling, I took a Global Studies course while earning my AA at Everett Community College. After reading the required text: Global Problems and the Culture of Capitalism by Richard Robbins, I became passionate about environmental impacts and went on to Western for my undergraduate in Environmental Policy. Post MAPS, I hope to further my academics or begin a career in public service in Environmental Planning, Conservation, Natural Resource Management, or similar.

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2021 Cohort

Travis Garvin

Degrees

BA in Law and Justice, Central Washington University

Research Interests

Veterans Affairs, Green Economic and Sustainable Growth Policies

Snapshot

Travis Garvin was born and raised in Washington State. After graduating from Lake Stevens High School he attended Central Washington University completing a degree in Law and Justice. He then joined the United States Army serving in various places around the country and the middle east. After exiting the Army he worked as a security contractor where he increasingly became aware of not only Veterans issues but the issues facing the public at large. This motivated him to attend the 2021-22 MAPS program as well as continue his work with the Roy Williams foundation for veterans and first responders.

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Alumni

Our alumni work in a variety of policy-related settings across professional sectors. Learn about their experiences in the program and how they are applying their degrees.

Alumni Ambassadors are alumni representatives who embody the values and aims of the M.A. in Policy Studies program. As alumni working across diverse roles and sectors, they support prospective students, current students, and fellow alumni by sharing how they’ve translated their degrees and navigated their careers.

Learn about our Alumni Ambassadors and email iasgrad@uw.edu to be connected.

Asiya (Asiya Budden) Abdul-Alim, '18

Asiya (Asiya Budden) Abdul-Alim (She/Her) is Scheduling Case Manager and President of ASPIRE (African Americans, Successfully, Promoting, Inclusivity, Respect & Equity) at Dendreon. Asiya is an innovative problem solver, who believes that every problem has a solution. Her strengths are training and development, effective leadership, policy procedure, development and implementation. She thrives in a workplace environment that fosters an open door policy and celebrates creative problem solving, innovation and diversity.

At Dendreon, Asiya oversees the scheduling and monitoring patients’ treatments in a diverse environment, with an emphasis on patient experience.  She manages the creation and execution of production plans supporting treatment, including but not limited to production and demand planning, logistics analysis, scheduling, and real-time product monitoring.

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Joren Clowers, '18

Joren Clowers is a Government Relations Liaison and lobbyist working at the Washington State Legislature where he represents association and business interests. He previously worked as a Legislative Assistant in the State House of Representatives and as a Campaign Manager for a successful State House race. During his M.A, Joren worked as the Student Assistant in the UW Bothell Office of Government & Community Relations. 
 
Joren received his M.A. in Policy Studies (‘18) from UW Bothell where he researched voting trends of young adults. He also attended UW Bothell for undergraduate coursework where he double majored in Law, Economics & Public Policy and American Ethnic Studies with a minor in Human Rights (’17).

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Marjan Didra,'19

Marjan Didra moved to the United States in 2009. She holds an M.A. in Policy Studies and B.A. in Gender Women and Sexuality Studies from the University of Washington Bothell. Marjan believes in public service and started her mission of serving her community in 2012 through canvassing, fundraising, and advocating for marginalized communities. 

Marjan also has a lived experience as a spouse of a Veteran and is currently working as a Director of Veterans Affairs for Senator Murray's office. She continues her mission of service by assisting our Washington State Veterans and their families to make sure their voice is heard and that they have access to existing resources.

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Kaylee Galloway, '18

Kaylee Galloway graduated from UW Bothell with her M.A. in Policy Studies in 2018. She currently works for the Washington State House of Representatives as a Legislative Assistant to Representative Debra Lekanoff (40th LD). Galloway previously served as Community Liaison for Congresswoman Suzan DelBene (WA-01) in Whatcom and Skagit Counties and as a Staff Assistant for Senator Maria Cantwell in Washington, D.C.

Kaylee has extensive outreach experience where she has engaged government officials and stakeholders on a diverse range of topics. Her passions include climate change, renewable energy, green buildings, agriculture, green transportation and infrastructure, which she was able to explore through her capstone on sustainable community development and relevant local, state and federal policy. Her undergraduate work at Western Washington University included a Bachelors in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics in addition to minors in Energy Policy and Law, Diversity & Justice. 

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David Gordon, '16

David Gordon holds an M.A. in Policy Studies from UW Bothell where he researched the negative effects of the United States sports betting prohibition (which may or may not have led to the Supreme Court overturning the prohibition in 2018!).  David received his B.A. in Law, Economics and Public Policy ('14) from UW Bothell.

David has worked for the Seattle consulting firm Nickerson & Associates as a Policy Analyst focusing on progressive transportation policies and as Legislative Coordinator for Jefferson County, Colorado.  He's currently with Esource.com, a research and consulting resource for the Utility Industry, where he uses his policy background as a writer, editor, researcher, and subject matter expert. 

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