Distinguished Fellow

Kyan Howe
Economic Policy Lead, Distinguished Fellow
Kyan Howe is a high school senior, researcher, and an YIP Policy Intern interested in Law, economics, philosophy, etymology, and ancient languages. He has written a number of research papers on renaissance occultism and economics. This article is an extended version and of a previous paper, and the culmination of 2 years of research. Originally from Boston, he currently resides in Texas.
Sarah Zhang
Former Director, Effective Discourse Alumni Relations
Sarah is a student at UNC-Chapel Hill studying computer science, political science, and data science. She is passionate about educational equity and progressive advocacy work; in her free time, they enjoy reading, playing piano, and cooking vegan food.
Pranav Gehlot
Distinguished Fellow
Hi, my name is Pranav & I am a high schooler from Texas. My interests primarily include politics and computer science. I love finding solutions that would seek to change the world. If you want to reach out to me, here are my links: Instagram: @_pranav_67"
Carter Umphress
Distinguished Fellow
Carter Umphress is a student at Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas, Nevada, and will graduate in 2024. He is involved in numerous extracurricular activities, such as Mock Trial, Speech & Debate, and Swim, and worked as a Democracy Summer fellow for Congressman Steven Horsford’s re-election campaign in 2022. Carter is highly interested in public policy, politics, and history.
Taylor Beljon-Regen
Distinguished Fellow, Fall 2023
Fall 2023 Fellows
Distinguished Fellow
Taylor Beljon-Regen is from Los Angeles California and is a passionate advocate for issues relating to civic engagement and education, the opioid crisis, antisemitism in America, and abortion access. She is involved in many organizations that promote youth involvement in our government, as she believes that the most important decisions of our time must have youth participation to be successful. In her spare time, Taylor loves collecting tote bags, debating on all issues, watching movies, and spending time with her friends and family. In the future, Taylor wants to continue with her passion for law to create meaningful change through lobbying and activism.
Sean Colaljo
Distinguished Fellow, Fall 2023
Fall 2023 Fellows
Distinguished Fellow
Sean Colaljo is a high school student from Northern California, although he is originally from Chicago. He is passionate about social justice, foreign policy, Southeast Asian geopolitics, and history, particularly Philippine history. Sean has volunteered at the legal office of his family’s home province in the Philippines, is the founder of his school district’s first High School Democrats of America (HSDA) chapter, and serves on three HSDA task forces. He is also active in Model UN and Academic Decathlon. Sean plans to major in political science and continue on to law school.
Ahad Khan
Senior Advisor, Policy Media & Distinguished Fellow; Former Senior Vice President, Policy Media
Executive Team
Impact
Policy Media Team
Ahad is a student at Stevenson University studying Criminal Justice and Legal Studies. He serves as the Senior Vice President of Policy at YIP. In school, Ahad competes on Stevenson’s mock trial team, where he was recognized as an All-Regional witness. Ahad plans on going to law school and practicing criminal law.
Alan Samineedi
Project Director, Civic Innovations Idealogical Assessment
A junior at the Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science, Alan hopes to pursue a degree in computer science and economics, business, and public policy in the future. He is a project leader and member of the YIP consulting team, founder of an education policy reform organization, and an undergraduate computer science researcher at the University of North Texas. He is passionate about infrastructure and education reform and is looking forward to doing more about these issues in the future.