Staff

CLiME’s staffing model utilizes a combination of affiliated faculty and staff, project-based researchers and consultants, student research assistants, competitively selected CLiME Fellows and part- and full-time professional Research Fellows. Once affiliated with CLiME, always affiliated with CLiME.

Staff

Featured

DAVID D. TROUTT

Director | David Dante Troutt is Distinguished Professor of Law and Justice John J. Francis Scholar. David Troutt is the founding director of the Rutgers Center on Law in Metropolitan Equity (CLiME). He teaches and writes in four areas of primary interest: the metropolitan dimensions of race, class and legal structure; intellectual property; Torts; and critical legal theory. His major publications (noted below) include books of fiction and non-fiction, scholarly articles and a variety of legal and political commentary on race, law and equality.

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KATIE SFERRA

Program Coordinator | Katie Sferra is Program Coordinator for four of Rutgers Law School's Academic Research Centers, including CLiME. Previously, Katie worked in international education and served as an advisor to students on immigration-related matters at Princeton University. Katie received her Bachelor's degree in Anthropology from Montclair State University.

Kathryn Peterson, Communications Coordinator (former)

Tara Marlowe, Communications Coordinator (former)

Shante Palmer, Communications Coordinator (former)

Fellows

Featured

JOSHUA MILLER

Senior Research Fellow

Read Joshua’s bio here.

DANIEL FROEHLICH

CLiME Fellow | JD candidate, Rutgers Law School

Read Daniel's bio here.

ANNA GRIFFITH

Senior Research Fellow | JD candidate, Rutgers Law School

Read Anna’s bio here.

ANDRÉA MADDAN

Special Projects Senior Research Fellow

Read Andrea’s bio here.

JAKE NEWCOMB

CLiME Fellow | JD candidate, Rutgers Law School

Read Jake's bio here.

HABEEB SCOTT

CLiME Fellow | JD candidate, Rutgers Law School

Read Habeeb’s bio here.

RESEARCHERS - CURRENT AND RECENT PAST

Aladekemi Omoregie

Immanuel Adeola, School of Law

Cristina Garmendia (Sr. Research Fellow)

Alicia Lukachko, PhD., Violence Institute

Alexandra Margevich, PhD., Psychology

Kaitlyn Maltese, School of Law

Joanna Maulbeck, PhD., School of Education

Samantha Smolin, PhD., Psychology

Emily Stein, School of Law

Erica Tom, PhD., American Studies

Michael Tomasino, School of Law

Frederic Volkovinski, School of Law

Past fellows

Featured

KATHARINE NELSON

CLiME Senior Research Fellow | As CLiME’s Senior Research Fellow, Katharine (Katie) helps to oversee the Center’s various research projects.

Katie is currently completing her doctoral studies at the Bloustein School of Planning & Public Policy at Rutgers University. Her dissertation focuses on race and mortgage markets in Philadelphia, and explores the ongoing dependence of Black and Latinx families on the Federal Housing Administration’s (FHA) mortgage insurance program for homeownership. Katie is currently a Lecturer at the University of Pennsylvania’s Weitzman School of Design, and teaches courses in housing, geographic information systems (GIS) and quantitative research methods.

Katie has published in a range of urban and policy journals, including Housing Policy Debate, Journal of Education Policy, and Journal of Urban Affairs. Her work on gentrification and schools, and on charter funding, has been featured in the Philadelphia Inquirer, on Shelterforce and in local public media. Katie’s research uses place-based inquiry and spatial analysis to try and understand and intervene in structurally unequal processes. Katie has strong technical expertise in GIS and statistical analysis including web-based technologies, spatial statistics, and raster processing.

Prior to starting her PhD, she helped to build and develop PolicyMap, a web-based data and mapping application that specializes in data for community development and policy. PolicyMap is now used widely by universities, governments and organizations throughout the country.

Katie loves to travel, play cards, and bake pies.

JONATHAN FRANCISCO BONILLA

CLiME Fellow | Jonathan Francisco Bonilla is a graduate student in the Master of City and Regional Planning program at the Bloustein School where he is pursuing a concentration in Community, Housing, Land, and Finance track. He is interested in equitable planning practices, community and economic development, and addressing the intersection of city planning and socio-economic + racial justice. Previously, he completed an internship at the Metropolitan Council as a Local Planning Assistant working on projects related to climate change, affordable housing, and environmental justice for the twin cities region in Minnesota. He has also completed research and related work on critical urban issues in Guatemala, South Africa, and Denmark. He received a Bachelor of Arts in Urban Studies from DePauw University.

AMADI SLAUGHTER

CLiME Fellow | Amadi Slaughter is a graduate of the University of Richmond and majored in Sociology with a Concentration in Power, Diversity, and Inequality and a minor in Rhetoric & Communication. Thus far, Amadi's career has been dedicated to ensuring equity and access in education for historically underrepresented students. Currently, she serves at the College Advisor at The Wight Foundation, Inc. in Newark - a college access community based organization that supports high performing students from the Greater Newark area in their quest for admission to selective colleges and universities by providing grants that make boarding school experiences possible. As a 2LE at Rutgers Law, Amadi is now looking to pivot into Real Estate law with a public interest and restorative justice lens.

CALEB SACKLER

CLiME Fellow | Caleb Sackler was born and raised in New York. He attended the University of Alabama for his undergraduate education where he majored in Political Science and minored in Public Policy studies. He is currently a 2L at Rutgers Law School, and wants to focus on public interest and civil rights law. In his spare time, Caleb enjoys weight training, hiking, and spending time with his family and friends.

GATIEN LAUROL

CLiME Fellow | Gatien Laurol hails from Fort Lauderdale in the Sunshine State of Florida. He graduated from Florida Atlantic University in 2016 with a BA in Philosophy and Journalism. He is currently a 3L. In his spare time, Gatien likes weightraining, meditation, and reading philosophy

AMIR BOTROS

CLiME Fellow | Amir Botros was born in Cairo, Egypt. As an undergraduate student, he studied jurisprudence and political science. He is a current 2L at Rutgers Law School. He enjoys reading 18th-20th century literature, plays the violin, and is currently learning Coptic.

ILMA HUSAIN

CLiME Fellow | Ilma Husain is a first year graduate student at Rutgers University pursuing her MA in Economics. Her research interest lies in analyzing the inequalities that exist in urban systems and working towards removing the barriers to success that prevent underserved populations from thriving. With a background in economics, Ilma hopes to study methods of equitable economic growth.

RUBY KISH

CLiME Fellow | Ruby Kish is a third-year law student at Rutgers Law School. Prior to law school, Ruby was a volunteer education advocate in her community and she also founded the Secaucus Special Education Parent Advisory Committee, a volunteer organization for parents of students with disabilities. Ruby also established a Department of Disabilities in Secaucus to address the recreation needs of individuals with disabilities in the community. As a law student, Ruby has interned with the NJ Attorney General’s Office in the Civil Rights Division and Office of the Public Defender’s Juvenile Division. She has worked extensively in the Rutgers Education and Health Law Clinic and is the Research and Technology Editor for the Women’s Rights Law Reporter. Ruby was awarded a Skadden Fellowship to enable her to work at Advocates for Children of New Jersey after graduation where she will provide representation to justice-involved youth in education related matters. Ruby received a B.S. in Biology from the University of Virginia and a master’s degree in Microbiology from the University of Maryland.

WENDY NICHOLSON

CLiME Fellow | Wendy Nicholson received her BS in Psychology from Tufts University, her MPA from John Jay College of Criminal Justice, and is currently pursuing her doctorate in Public Administration at the Rutgers School of Public Affairs and Administration. Her research interests include the role of race and racism at the nexus of educational, criminal justice, and governmental budgeting policies, diversity and inclusion, Critical Race Theory and Racial Battle Fatigue. She is currently employed by the City University of New York.

ALADEKEMI OMOREGIE

CLiME Fellow | Aladekemi Omoregie was born in Newark, NJ and completed most of her education in the same city. She is a current third year student at Rutgers Law School. Before coming to law school, she graduated from Rutgers University in Newark, NJ in 2016 with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology. After graduating from Rutgers, she moved to Southern New Jersey to complete a year of service in Philadelphia, PA with AmeriCorps City Year.

After graduating from law school, Aladekemi will clerk for the Honorable Thomas W. Suumners, Jr. in the New Jersey Appellate Division and then will work as an associate at Chiesa, Shahinian & Giantomasi PC.

DAMILOLA ONIFADE

CLiME Fellow | Damilola Onifade is a 2L at Rutgers Law School. She attended Rutgers University and graduated with a major in Political Science. She has spent some time working in affordable housing and thus interested in researching gentrification and equitable housing options.

MUSSAB ALI

Senior Research Fellow

Read Mussab’s bio here.

AKUA DAWES

CLiME Fellow | Akua Dawes is a second-year law student at Rutgers Law School- Newark. She is interested in civil liberties and constitutional law and has spent time working with the American Civil Liberties Union and Volunteer Lawyers for Justice. She is the Vice President of Academic Affairs of the Association of Black Law Students, a member of the Executive Board of the National Lawyers Guild, as well as part of the Minority Student Program at Rutgers. She worked last summer as a summer associate at Proskauer Rose LLP in Newark working on various areas of employment law and publishing the New Jersey L&E Practice Guide. Next summer she plans joining the team at Debevoise & Plimpton LLP as a summer associate in their New York City office. She received her BA in Political Science and Psychology at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

JAYNOR DIAZ

CLiME Fellow | Jaynor Diaz is a native of the City of Newark where he was born and raised. Before coming to Rutgers Law School-Newark, he attended Seton Hall University where he studied History and Political Science. During his undergraduate years, Jaynor fostered an interest in housing issues which led him to apply to law school. Jaynor has a passion for Landlord-Tenant law and hopes to dedicate his career to it.

CYNTHIA GOLEMBESKI

CLiME Fellow | Cynthia Golembeski is pursuing a joint JD/PhD degree and teaching for the New Jersey Scholarship and Transformative Education in Prisons Consortium (NJ-STEP) at Rutgers University–Newark. Her research interests relate to health equity with specific attention toward violence prevention, access to justice, and criminal justice reform. She has worked as part of diverse initiatives in meeting advocacy, policy, research, and service objectives for governmental agencies, academic institutions, and NGOs. She is a former USAID Research and Innovation fellowship recipient and a Fulbright grantee to South Africa. She is currently a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Health Policy Research Scholar. She received a BA/BS from UC Berkeley in English Literature and Gender Studies and a Master of Public Health (MPH) degree from Columbia University. She currently resides in Newark, which is where she was born.

MERIL ANTONY

Senior Research Fellow | Meril Antony is pursuing her doctoral degree in Public Administration from the School of Public Affairs and Administration (SPAA) at Rutgers University-Newark. Her idea of conducting research is to be at the nexus of civil society and academia that allows for an understanding of how strengthening partnerships for enhancing social impact. Her current research interests include understanding the effects of social class inequality and race on parental perception regarding family involvement and student outcomes and how schools as institutions can have a positive social impact.

She has worked with Cornwall Center of Metropolitan Studies in conducting a needs analysis on two neighborhoods of Newark city to better understand the socioeconomic indicators affecting the student learning outcomes. Previously, she has worked as an Education Pioneer Fellow, working to enhance New York-based non-profit’s experiential civic education project across Latin America and Africa, and researching to bridge the gap between policy and advocacy within the civic education realm…

At CLiME, she is currently working as an Equitable Growth Research Associate on updating the Displacement Risk Indicators Matrix (DRIM) using census-based research. She is also assisting Professor David Troutt, as part of the Equitable Growth Advisory Commission, in conducting literature reviews in analyzing the returns on public investment of redevelopment subsidies and incentives and measuring displacement.

Born in India, she has received her Bachelor’s in economics from University of Delhi and Masters from Jawaharlal Nehru University, India.

DAWAN ALFORD

CLiME Fellow | Dawan Alford pulls in best practices from across the globe, combining a special blend of local knowledge with global research experience that equips him with a unique perspective on diverse, urban landscapes. As head of community engagement with HANDS Inc., a notable community development corporation in New Jersey, he designs engagement strategies that connect anchor institutions to grassroots initiatives by communicating common narratives through an authentic lens.

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