Congratulations to our MA Graduates!
Sonbol Bahramikamangar defended her thesis titled “Violence Against Kurdish Women in Iran,” which uses interviews, autoethnography, and ancestral narratives to explore how Kurdish women experience violence, particularly in the context of a strict theocratic Islamic state. She received a Travel Grant Award from UF’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences to present her research at the Association for Women in Psychology conference. Sonbol was honored with a Certificate of Outstanding Merit from UF’s International Center and has been accepted to the Ph.D. program in Gender Studies at Stony Brook University. She is particularly grateful for the mentorship of Dr. Maddy Coy, whose support made her research possible and played a significant role in her success.
Mary Kate DiFresco successfully defended her M.A. thesis “Rooted Wisdoms: Gardens as Ancestral Feminine Knowledge” under the guidance of Dr. Alyssa Zucker and was excited to graduate and re-focus her activist and grassroots work with the local Climate Cafe. She plans to take a break from academia to ground herself in climate work close to her heart before applying to PhD programs.
Amya Ellison successfully defended their non-thesis project titled “Navigating Misogynoir: Black Women Negotiating Gender in Predominantly White Institutions” under the guidance of committee co- chairs Dr. Cinnamon Williams and Dr. Maddy Coy. Post-graduation, Amya plans on moving out of state for career options outside of academia, as they seek to create meaningful change.
Alexandria Gibson earned her M.A. in Women’s Studies in the spring of 2025. With the mentorship and support of Dr. Olivia Adams, she successfully defended her thesis, “Sitting at the Feet of Elders,” and developed an accompanying archive housed at UF’s Samuel Proctor Oral History Program. Alexandria presented at a conference and participated in the Reproductive Justice Futurisms Think Tank at Smith College. She also received a grant from AAUW to host “The Period is Political,” an art workshop centering menstrual narratives. Alexandria is excited to continue growing The Goddess Project, a grassroots women’s wellness initiative she founded in Gainesville to address gaps in reproductive health literacy.
Whitney Rodriguez Minda successfully defended her non-thesis project titled “Venus, and the third act in the dystopia of Vecinos” under the guidance of her committee, Dr. Jillian Hernandez and Dr. Hina Shaikh.
Zuzu Tadeushuk offers thanks to her committee, Dr. Jillian Hernandez and Dr. Hina Shaikh, for their guidance as she wrote and successfully defended her thesis, “Embodiment, Being, and Appearing: A Cultural Analysis and Phenomenology of Fashion Modeling.” During her time in the program, she presented her work at two conferences, and is proposing a panel on modeling for the next National Women’s Studies Association conference.
Updates on our continuing MA students
Isabella Adams is a rising second-year MA candidate. She is currently working on her thesis, interrogating (counter) hegemonic constructions of masculinities in 21st-century popular superhero media. Her project is supervised by Dr. Barbara Mennel, Dr. Trysh Travis, and Dr. Margaret Galvan. Isabella presented her scholarship at a graduate student conference in the Spring.
Rae Landingin spent the summer conducting fieldwork in New York City, focusing on the intersections of queer and trans of color nightlife and grassroots mutual aid organizing. Their research explores how these spaces cultivate belonging, care, and futurity beyond normative frameworks, serving as tools of resistance and survival. Supported by a CLAS Travel Award, a Field Research Grant from the Center for Latin American Studies, an AAUW Gainesville Branch Grant, and a Charles T. Woods Grant, their work is guided by Dr. Jillian Hernandez.
Sharlyen Lopez is a rising second-year MA candidate. She is currently working on her thesis examining the rhetoric surrounding fetal personhood and futurity, while comparing anti-immigration rhetoric that directly dehumanizes Latin American migrant children arriving in the United States. Sharlyen looks forward to conducting research under the supervision of her chair, Dr. Shaikh.
Alexander Ozoani is a rising second-year MA student. His thesis will focus on the lived experiences of LGBTQ+ Nigerians through the lens of minority stress theory. This summer, he conducted research under the mentorship of his co-chairs, Dr. Olivia Adams and Dr. Hina Shaikh.
Marie Vazquez is a rising second-year M.A. candidate. She is currently working on her thesis project, which explores the role of queer joy in fostering resilience and promoting mental well-being among LGBTQ+ college students in the U.S. South. In March, she presented collaborative research with Dr. Maddy Coy on Florida’s rape and domestic violence crisis centers at the 2025 Association for Women in Psychology conference. She is currently an RA in the VIPER Lab, under the guidance of Dr. Olivia Adams. Marie was recently awarded a Charles T. Woods Student Grant, which supports student research projects that benefit LGBTQ+ communities.
Kay Yehezkely is a rising second-year MA student. She was excited to collect data for her thesis project this summer, conducting interviews with young women to understand how their gendered childhood experiences impacted their political consciousness and views. Her thesis project, tentatively titled “No Politics at Dinner,” will be developed under the guidance of Dr. Zucker. She was also very excited to be a part of a summer program this June in Bologna, Italy, on the topic of gender, politics, and society.