Dean's Fellows for Racial Equity and Leadership Development

Beyonce Martinez was born and raised here in Boston. She finds so much bliss in being close to home while going to such an amazing school. She is passionate about social justice and theater, and wants to combine her two passions to help spread awareness about the many injustices Black and Latin-x people face, and also to celebrate their diversity through her art. She is extremely excited for her next semester to gain much more experience and learn more about herself and what she wants for her future.

Brianna Jackman is a second year Graduate student completing her degree in the Publishing 4+1 program. Involved at Emerson, she works as a Resident Assistant, a Peer Tutor at the Writing and Academic Research Center, and leads the Women and Non-Binary People of color artist collective Flawless Brown as President. Additionally, Brianna serves as Head Editor and is a founder of the independent video game publication Player One. In her free time, she enjoys playing video games, reading and writing creative works.

Daphne is originally from metro-Atlanta, all the way in the south, but she loves it in Boston and couldn’t imagine being in a better place. Around campus she writes and edits for music magazine Five Cent Sound among other publications, gives tours through the Admissions Center, choreographs for Emerson Urban Dance Theatre and eats a lot of sushi from Pick n’ Roll. She also LOVES thrifting and discovering new music. Her dream job would be to write bestselling YA books but has minors in both Publishing and Music History and Culture, determined not to box herself in at all.

Diego Mejia is from Lynn, MA. He is a first generation college student and is an RA at the Castle for Spring 2023.

Gabriella Pérez is a senior Writing, Literature, and Publishing major with a minor in Women, Gender, and Sexuality studies. She is a first-generation Cuban-American and was born/raised in Connecticut. Gabriella enjoys writing poetry, prose, and non-fiction stories. She hopes to pursue a career in Los Angeles within literary management and agency.

Jake Tolentino is a junior Theatre major and Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies minor. On campus, they are the proud Artistic Director of emShakes, as well as heavily involved with Emerson Stage. They are passionate about the telling of stories, especially adaptations of classics. In the realm of theatre, they are a director and playwright; otherwise, they are a lover of sweet treats and a good sappy romcom.

Justina (Jeanie) Thompson is a creative, writer, and social justice activist based in Boston, MA, and Philadelphia, PA. She is a third-year student at Emerson College with a major in Media Studies and a minor in Marketing Communications. Jeanie currently works with Madison Park Development Corporation, a Boston-based non-profit organization dedicated to providing affordable housing and accessible community opportunities to residents in Lower Roxbury. She sees immense value in amplifying the voices and experiences of marginalized communities everywhere in all of the projects she works on, whether that be personally, creatively, academically, or somewhere in-between.

Kyoko Itoh is excited to work with everyone and strive for a diverse community not for the appearance but for people to actually feel comfortable in this community that requires self-expression. Kyoko Itoh is from Tokyo, Japan but has also lived in Rye, New York when she was little. She loves to dance and as much as she loves talking to people she also likes to cherish her time alone.

Lyna Zidane is an Algerian immigrant and an artist. She uses several mediums in her work, namely painting and poetry, but primarily remains a filmmaker. As an African filmmaker her work is deeply driven and motivated by liberation movements, their politics and the celebration of the people that pursue these undertakings. She views art as an opportunity to witness human struggle and as a means to provide company and solace to people during that struggle; a company that hopefully aids in one’s healing process.

Minseo Kwon is from Korea. She is a senior at Emerson College with a Media Arts Production major and two minors. She enjoys watching movies or reading books when resting, but she also enjoys taking pictures while walking around and communicating with various people. She worked as an Orientation Leader in Fall 2022 and doing internship in the film company at the ELA program. She is very excited to contribute to racial equity at Emerson College as an international student and hopes her experiences in various Emerson College organizations are helpful in the Dean's Fellowship Program.

Sean Myers is a Theatre Education and Performance major with minors in writing and psychology, originally from Columbus, GA. He is interested in the intersection of the arts, community engagement, and social justice. In addition to being involved with EBONI, Mercutio Troupe, and he is also The Performing Arts Senator for SGA and President of long form improv troupe This is Pathetic.

Shehrbano Hasan is a junior completing their Bachelor’s in Fine Arts in Creative Writing. She’s from Rawalpindi, Pakistan, and currently volunteers as a Fiction Reader at Guernica Magazine. She is passionate about languages, always looking to get better at her Punjabi and Urdu, while trying to pick up Russian on the side.