Friday Fellow Feature: Michelle Ruiz
Our Featured Fellow for April 2026 is Michelle Ruiz, a fourth-year PhD candidate in the Geography Department at the University of Florida.
Fellows
2025-2026 BAF Student Council Chairperson Vision Statement
I step into this year with a deep sense of responsibility. To the Fellows who trusted me with their vote, to the legacy of Bill Anderson, and to the communities whose lives and futures shape why this work matters.
Friday Fellow Feature: Afeez Badmus
Our Featured Fellow for December 2025 is Afeez Badmus. Afeez is a Ph.D. candidate in civil engineering at the University of Kansas, where he also earned his master’s degree in civil engineering, following a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from the Federal University of Technology, Akure, Nigeria.
Lost in Translation: Reflections on Risk Communication and Resilience in Eastern North Carolina
This summer, I spent six weeks in Greenville, North Carolina, as a Coastal Hazards, Economic Prosperity, and Resilience (CHEER) Summer Scholar.
“Are You Trustworthy?” What I Learned Asking This Uncomfortable Question in Eastern North Carolina
I spent this summer in Eastern North Carolina asking emergency managers, non-profit directors, and community leaders a question that made some of them squirm: “Are you trustworthy?”
Friday Fellow Feature: América Gaviria Pabón
Our Featured Fellow for November 2025 is América Gaviria Pabón, a Ph.D. candidate in Geography and Environmental Sustainability at the University of Oklahoma (OU), where she also earned her master’s degree.
Friday Fellow Feature: Ruby Hernandez
Our Featured Fellow for September 2025 is Ruby Hernandez, a third-year environmental health doctoral student in the School of Public Health at Texas A&M University (TAMU).
Friday Fellow Feature: Zaira Pagán-Cajigas
Our Featured Fellow for June 2025 is Zaira Pagán-Cajigas. Zaira recently obtained her Ph.D. in Industrial and Operations Engineering (IOE) from the University of Michigan, where she also completed her master’s degree.
Friday Fellow Feature: Mason Alexander-Hawk
Our Featured Fellow for May 2025 is Mason Alexander-Hawk, a research assistant for the Hazard Reduction and Recovery Center and doctoral student in the Urban Regional Sciences Program at Texas A&M University.
Friday Fellow Feature: Jacquita N. Johnson
Our Featured Fellow for April 2025 is Jacquita N. Johnson, a third-year graduate student pursuing a DrPH in Environmental Health and Certificate in Women’s and Gender Studies at Texas A&M University (TAMU).