We are pleased to announce the cohort of students who will be participating in the Initiative on Faith & Public Life’s 2021 Summer Associates Program. During the upcoming summer, these nine undergraduates will intern in DC, participate in a week-long Summer Honors Program course, live in holistic Christian community with fellow participants, receive mentorship from mid-career professionals, and discuss bi-weekly readings related to Christian work, calling, and engagement in the public square. You can read more about each of these exemplary students below:
Ms. Abijah Crawford is a junior at Biola University, pursuing a degree in political science with minors in Middle East studies and Islamic studies. She is a member of the Torrey Honors College and is currently working as an online tutor for elementary school children. Her past experience has included an internship with the Religious Freedom Institute, time spent as co-President of Biola’s ISI Club, and independently running her own small business. She spent 13 years living in India but is now based in the Bay Area where she continues to work and pursue her degree full time. She has been included on Biola’s Dean’s List each year and plans to study abroad this fall.
Mr. Jacob Lange is a senior history and political thought major at Concordia University in Irvine. He has minors in English, classical languages, and law and politics. He is also an active participant in the music program on campus, playing trumpet in the Wind Orchestra, Symphony Orchestra, and Jazz Band. He works on campus as the student honors coordinator and was awarded a Presidential Honors Scholarship upon entering the university. During his sophomore year, he studied abroad at the University of Cambridge, conducting research at the Churchill College Archives Center concerning British naval operations during the Second World War. This research earned him a place as a finalist in Concordia’s Presidential Academic Showcase of Research.
Mr. Jason Meyer is a rising senior at Wheaton College (IL) where he is majoring in political science and mathematics, with a concentration in statistics. He is originally from Phoenix, Arizona. Mr. Meyer served on Wheaton’s Student Government as class president during the 2019-2020 school year. He has also gained experience as a research assistant with Wheaton faculty on various projects concerning unintended policy effects on the prevalence of domestic violence. Mr. Meyer is passionate about policy efficacy and the role that research can play in good governance, providing necessary information for policy to truly promote human flourishing.
Ms. Natalie Nichols is a junior at Wheaton College (IL) studying international relations and English. She is the editorial intern for the Ernest Hemingway Foundation and previously interned for the National Immigration Forum, working on bipartisan immigration advocacy initiatives and managing social media for the Evangelical Immigration Table. Ms. Nichols is a writing consultant at Wheaton’s Writing Center. She also manages social media for Wheaton’s chapter of the John Quincy Adams Society, seeking to better engage and educate the student body on foreign policy issues. She hopes to pursue a career in foreign policy, utilizing the field of sociolinguistics to analyze cross-cultural interactions.
Ms. Anna Claire Noblitt is a junior public administration and economics student at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama. She is a Gulf Coast native of Fairhope, Alabama. She serves as a Samford Ambassador, participates as a member of the AEI Executive Council, hosts a podcast titled “The Dual Citizen,” writes for Radical.net, and has previously completed an internship with Student Leadership University.
Ms. Sydney Rennich is a junior economics and political science major from Knoxville, TN. She attends Samford University where she is a university fellow and Brock Scholar, has been involved in SGA, coordinated the freshmen orientation, and been active in several clubs in the business school. She is interested in economic and research-driven public policy aimed at expanding opportunity, promoting freedom, and reducing racial and income inequality. Ms. Rennich spent the beginning of 2020 interning at the UK’s TaxPayer’s alliance in London where she researched public spending and the effects of tax policies on economic opportunity. After graduating from Samford with an economics degree, she hopes to obtain a master’s degree in public policy.
Mr. Samuel Rule is a junior at Patrick Henry College in Northern Virginia where he is majoring in economics and business analytics with a minor in Biblical studies. Besides his job as a resident assistant, he teaches part-time at a local classical school, works at the college’s tutoring center, and serves weekly at his local church. Mr. Rule misses Margo, Jace, and Maple—his cat, his six-year-old brother, and his chocolate lab, respectively. He enjoys reading classical literature, learning more about God, and being among his friends.
Ms. Meredith Teel is a senior at George Fox University where she studies theology with a concentration in philosophy. She is a student intern for the George Fox Honors Program and an ambassador for the University’s Study Abroad Programs. As a visiting student at the University of Oxford, Ms. Teel researched the theology of St. Augustine, which prompted her interest in applied theology as it relates to education. In 2020, she was awarded a Richter Scholars research grant for her project on an Augustinian interpretation of present day therapeutic culture. While a student-athlete on the women’s lacrosse team, Ms. Teel earned a position on the NCAA Northwest Conference First-Team, as well as received the 2021 John and Daria Barry Scholarship nominee for George Fox University. Her passion for Socratic seminar style education led her to both participate and co-lead multiple reading groups throughout her time as an undergraduate.
Mr. Samuel Vandeputte is a senior undergraduate honors student in international relations and philosophy at Redeemer University in Canada. Mr. Vandeputte hails from the Netherlands and served as president for his university’s student senate. He is seeking to transfer his excellent academic track-record to advance a career in international politics. Next year, Mr. Vandeputte will be pursuing graduate education to further develop and nourish his passion for politics and public policy.
