The Lohez Foundation is proud to announce its scholarship recipients for 2014-2015 – five outstanding young people who represent the current international “class” of Lohez Scholars. This stellar group includes our third set of scholars who will complete their joint studies between institutions located in both France and China.
Camille Andrieu, 2014
(France / Dual Master’s Degree, Sciences Po / Fudan University, Europe and Asia in Global Affairs)
Successful in athletic competition both in high school and as an undergraduate (training with Aix-en-Provence professional team and selection to the France women’s national group), Camille also pursued a dual degree in Political Science at the Institute of Political Studies (IEP) in Aix-en-Provence and Law at the University of Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne.
In her first two years she achieved the status of valedictorian of her class of approximately 200 students. This ranking allowed her to choose to spend her third year of the IEP at the University of Michigan in the United States.
Now in her second year of the dual master’s degree program, “Europe and Asia in Global Affairs” between Sciences Po and Fudan University, Camille seizes the opportunity to investigate Asian issues and relationships between China and the European Union. She plans to use the Lohez Scholarship and the Chinese Government Scholarship to make the most of her academic year in Shanghai, as well as to attend the London School of Economics-Peking University 2015 Summer School, held in Beijing.
After a first experience of the diplomatic sphere with the National Model United Nations 2014 Project, Camille perceives the opening of a door to a career in the French Foreign Affairs sector in direct relation to China.
Barbara Crépeau, 2014
(France / Dual Master’s Degree, EPITA / Stevens Institute of Technology)
Barbara Crépeau is completing her final year of a French Master’s in Computer Science, specialized in RealTime and Embedded Systems, at EPITA. In 2015, she will be coming to Stevens Institute of Technology to pursue a dual-degree in Computer Science.
Barbara has dreamed since childhood of visiting the United States. She has long admired the American values of individual liberty, cultural tolerance, and egalitarianism.
While studying at Stevens, she looks forward to experiencing nearby New York City, with its real diversity of people and dynamic cultural and business environments.
“There are many startups [in New York],” says Barbara, “which means that people have the means to achieve their ideas and create businesses. Among many examples, New York saw the birth of Tumblr, Etsy, Kayak, Shutterstock – that almost everyone has now heard of. NYC startups show that the Silicon Valley does not have a monopoly when it comes to creating big companies.”
Barbara approaches her American experience as a new adventure, “a new start in a great country that will help me in the future by opening my mind further and giving me a chance to learn more and to be better prepared for what is going to come next.”
Soliman Elcheikh, 2014
(France / Dual Bachelor’s Degree, Columbia University / Sciences Po)
Soliman Elcheikh is a sophomore in the Dual Bachelor of Arts Program between Columbia University and Sciences Po. Throughout his education he has been exposed to diverse cultural traditions that have become integral facets of his personality.
Growing up in Egypt, Soliman went to a French school. At home, his mother initiated him to aspects of German culture – and today, he is immersed in the American experience while studying in the Dual Program with Columbia University.
Through his personal yet global experience, Soliman has learned important values, such as tolerance, listening to others and accepting diversity.
“I believe that all these principles and values are at the heart of the Jérôme Lohez 9/11 Scholarship Foundation,” says Soliman. “Promoting cultural and educational exchange is a powerful tool to change the face of the world. Personally, I would like to contribute to this change.”
Juliette Faure, 2014
(France / Dual Master’s Degree, Sciences Po / Columbia University)
As a student specialized in “Economic and Political Development,” Juliette Faure felt the need to be not merely a thinker but also an actor in international development, which led her to leave Paris to study in India.
Following her encounter with Jean Drèze, a prominent development economist, Juliette went to work with a governmental team in Jharkhand, one of India’s poorest states, on the evaluation of the implementation of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act. Thanks to the Hindi she had learned, she successfully collaborated with her team partners, who were all local people.
Feeling the need to combine her knowledge with new practical experience before heading to Columbia University, Juliette decided to take a gap year off to Myanmar where she has been working for the NGO “Green Lotus,” promoting sustainable development.
Ideally, Juliette would like to work on public policy advising to help countries design efficient development strategies. She looks forward to applying to a Ph.D. program in Political Science, in which her research would focus on the distinction between constitutional liberalism and democracy.
Paloma Moritz, 2014
(France / Dual Master’s Degree, Sciences Po / Fudan University)
Paloma Moritz considers herself a citizen of the world. During her life and academic path, she has always sought new challenges, the discovery of new cultures and different ways of learning, in order to reach a global understanding of our contemporary world. These ideals of international grasp and cooperation have always played a major role in her academic choices.
Having completed her undergraduate studies at Sciences Po and University of California-Santa Barbara, and then her first year of the Sciences Po Communication Master’s Program and her first months at the Fudan University School of Journalism, she is now convinced that she made the right choices. “My French-American-Chinese educational experience will undoubtedly be a great asset in the future,” says Paloma.
She describes her discovery of Chinese culture and society as an “everyday wonder,” and she hopes that her grasp of this “intriguing country” will give her a broader scope of understanding throughout her professional activities.
Her professional project is reflective of her desire to combine her creativity with her interest in media-related communication. Before moving to Shanghai, she spent a gap year working in French production companies investigating diverse stories, including international issues, and writing documentary synopses.
Notably, Paloma worked as a host, news editor and interviewer for a political program for Yahoo! News and Sciences Po TV, in which she interviewed numerous prominent French politicians, such as Jean-Louis Borloo, Jean Luc Mélenchon, Bruno Le Maire, Henri Guaino, Valérie Pécresse and Najat Vallaud Belkacem.
As an aspiring journalist, Paloma’s fervent desire is to gather and report the news; to explain the world to the widest audience in order to raise awareness about major contemporary issues; and, in the process, to strive to make a difference.
2015 Jérôme Lohez Scholarship Award Selection Committee
The Lohez Foundation wishes to thank the members of its 2014-2015 Scholarship Selection Committee for lending their time, talents and expertise to the process of identifying our new gifted scholarship recipients. Below is a list of the committee members and their brief bios.
Dean Michael zur Muehlen (Selection Committee Chairperson, Associate Dean & Professor, The Howe School, Stevens Institute of Technology)
Michael zur Muehlen is Associate Dean of Graduate Studies and Associate Professor of Information Systems at Stevens Institute of Technology. Dean zur Muehlen is responsible for academic oversight, development and growth of seven graduate programs in Stevens’ business school, totaling 900+ students. He directs the research Center for Business Process Innovation and founded the award-winning graduate program in Business Process Management & Service Innovation. Dean zur Muehlen’s focus is on helping organizations become more efficient, improve service quality, and manage risk and compliance in an effective manner. An accomplished expert in Business Process Management, Workflow, and Business Decision Management, he has consulted for many businesses and government agencies. Dean zur Muehlen holds a Ph.D. in Information Systems from Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster.
Dean Anne Waters (Senior Associate Dean at the School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University)
Anne Waters serves as Senior Associate Dean at the School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), Columbia University in the City of New York. She is the chief administrative officer for SIPA, which is the most global school of public policy, enrolling approximately 1,400 students across seven degree programs. Dean Waters’ portfolio includes responsibility for recruitment and admissions, graduate student affairs, finance and administration, information technology, career services, external relations, and alumni affairs. Dr. Waters works closely with the Dean of SIPA and senior university leadership on development, strategic planning, financial management, and global initiatives. She holds Ph.D. in History and Anthropology from the University of Michigan.
Professor Eleonora Russo (Centre d’études européennes, Sciences Po, Paris)
Eleonora Russo is academic adviser of the Master European Affairs program at Sciences Po, Paris, and she is in charge of the Dual Degree program “Europe and Asia in Global Affairs” between SIRPA-Fudan and the Master in European Affairs, Sciences Po. She is concluding her Ph.D., with a focus on the fight against climate change in European Union law. For several years she has been a legal adviser for Italian and French law firms, assisting in particular Chinese clients investing in Italy. During the past three years, she has taught “Constitutional Foundations of the EU” and “Law of the Internal Market” for the Master in European Affairs program.
Professor Hong Bing (Associate Professor, Assistant to Dean School of Journalism, Fudan University, Shanghai)
Dr. Hong Bing, associate professor, received his Ph.D. in communication studies from School of Journalism, Fudan University. His research interests focuses on media sociology, international communication and China’s media reform. In 2007 he was the first Media Fellow sponsored by US. China Education Trust to be the visiting scholar in University of Maryland. He is now the director of Fudan-LSE Global Media and Communication and Fudan-Sciences Po Communication and Media double master’s degree program.
Professor Yitian Huang (Assistant Professor at the School of International Relations and Public Affairs, Fudan University)
Yitian Huang is Assistant Professor, School of International Relations & Public Affairs, at Fudan University. Professor Huang holds a Ph.D. in International Environmental Policy, from the Center for Environmental Law and Policy, School of Forestry & Environmental Studies, Yale University, in addition to a Master of Law (International Law), University of Cambridge. Dr. Huang’s research interests include environmental politics, global climate negotiation and international relations, and transnational private governance.
Mr. Stephane Bouniol (VP at Credit Suisse)
A founding board member and former Vice President of the Lohez Foundation, Stephane Bouniol is currently Vice President Managing the Java Application Platform for Credit Suisse Americas. His areas of specialty include web services architecture, production support experience (including trading floor support), team management, and project management, including large scale projects spread across the globe. His previous positions include Senior Unix System Administrator at DLJ and Unix Administrator at Stevens Institute of Technology.
Mr. Côme J. Dechery (Consultant Analyst at the Center for Conflict, Security and Development, The World Bank)
Mr. Côme Dechery is a young global leader in the making. A 2012-2013 Lohez Scholar, during the 2011 academic year at Sciences Po, Côme served as President of the Paris Globalist, Sciences Po’s magazine of international affairs. This was a distinct honor for a young man pursuing a dual Master of International Affairs degree, awarded in May 2013 by Sciences Po and the Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA). During his undergraduate years at Sciences Po, Côme had the opportunity to spend a year abroad at the University of California-San Diego, where he pursued a graduate-level course of study. He graduated Summa Cum Laude with his bachelor’s degree in May 2010. In September 2013, Côme was appointed a Consultant Analyst at the Center for Conflict, Security and Development at The World Bank.
Ms. Sharen Glennon (Associate Director, Wesley J. Howe School of Technology Management, Stevens)
Sharen Glennon has more than 25 years of experience in marketing communications for nonprofit organizations, specializing in higher education programs at the graduate level. For the past dozen years she served as Assistant Director and then Associate Director of Marketing for the Wesley J. Howe School of Technology Management at Stevens Institute of Technology. Glennon has also acted as the Executive Coordinator of the Howe School Alliance for Technology Management. She holds a master’s degree in Management from Stevens Institute of Technology.
Mr. Patrick A. Berzinski (Committee Witness, Communications Consultant, Tranquility49 PR)
Patrick A. Berzinski serves the Lohez Foundation as communications consultant and media relations manager. From 2000 to 2010 his work was primarily in institutional communications for Stevens Institute of Technology, where he most recently served as Executive Director of University Communications. In 2010, he was appointed VP, Business Development, at Dash Media PR in New York City, where he later held the title of Senior Consultant. He is the founder and CEO of Tranquility49 LLC, a media promotion, media production and business-development consulting group.