University of Oklahoma Students

Abdullah Sembawah (2009-2010)

 

 

 

 

Allana Taylor (2009-2010)
Allana Taylor is a senior with a double major in Religious Studies and Anthropology, and a minor in History. She hopes to pursue her Ph.D. after graduation at either the University of Chicago or Princeton University. Her graduate studies will likely focus on the construction of religious identity in Muslim and Christian communities, as well as on the ways in which political ideology is shaped by these religious identities. After graduate school she intends to conduct research and teach, but is also very interested in working with the United Nations or the U.S. State Department on fostering dialogue between Muslims and Christians around the world and encouraging cultural and political understanding between and within these groups.

 

 

 

Brienna Tipler (2009-2010)
From Wisconsin, Brienna Tipler is a senior at the University of Oklahoma majoring in modern dance performance.  She enjoys being an active member of Alpha Phi Omega National Service Fraternity, Lutheran Student Fellowship, and Contemporary Dance Oklahoma.  After receiving her Bachelor of Fine Arts, she hopes to continue on to physical therapy school.  She finds interest in serving and sharing experiences with her community.

 

 

 

 

Dana Mohammad-Zadeh (2009-2010)
A California native and National Merit Scholar, Dana Mohammad-Zadeh is an International and Area Studies sophomore at OU. Her hobbies include learning foreign languages and going to the beach as often as possible. She is involved with the Women’s Outreach Center and UOSA. In her spare time, she enjoys attending guest lectures on campus and planning future trips abroad.

 

 

 

 

Emily Pain (2009-2010)
Emily Pain is a graduate student in the Department of Sociology. After she receives her Master’s Degree in May 2010, she plans to continue her studies in the doctoral program. Her current research interests include Sociology of Family (particularly marriage, relationships and cohabitation) and Religion. Emily received her Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Oklahoma in Ethics and Religion along with a minor in Psychology and a second minor in Sociology. She is thankful for the opportunity to be involved in dialogue and leadership to promote awareness of social problems in her hometown community.

 

 

 

 

Jess Eddy (2009-2010)

 

 

 

 

 

Kristin Reed (2009-2010)
Kristin Reed is a religious studies and ballet pedagogy major graduating in spring of 2010. She is a member of the Oklahoma Festival Ballet Company and enjoys performing in shows in Norman and across the state. She has a great passion for dance and art in general, but also shares a passion for religious studies and interfaith dialogue. She is especially interested in how art and religion affect society and peoples, and how art can be expressed as a global language. After graduation, she plans to continue dancing and teaching dance while possibly doing graduate studies to become a chaplain and/or working in Nonprofit arts administration.

 

 

 

 

Lieneke Mous (2009-2010)
Lieneke Mous (the Netherlands) practices Nichiren Buddhism with the Soka Gakkai International (SGI-USA). Under SGI President Ikeda Ms Mous learned about sincere dialogue to create peace and strives for global understandings of culture and education. Ms Mous is a Modern Dance MFA (2010) candidate at The University of Oklahoma. From 2000-2006 Ms Mous performed with musical dance company Dance Explosion in the Netherlands. She was dance captain for Dance Explosion II. Across her home country Ms Mous worked in high schools and refugee centers as a dance and drama teacher. In 2001 she participated in a dance talent show case where she won as a young performer/choreographer, and later became adjudicator. For her Bachelor of Theatre in Education, with a specialization in Dance Pedagogy and Choreography, she created her own show with college dance students and graduated in 2007. In 2006 Ms Mous founded a dance and theatre project in Brazil for less-fortunate adolescent females. For her thesis, she researches the effects of practicing dance on urban adolescent females.  Her motto: Dance As a Means of Dialogue Changes Lives.

 

 

 

 

Mars Chapman (2009-2010)
Mars Chapman was born and raised in Austin, Texas.  Planning to graduate in 2012, he is an undecided major interested in history, geography, German, and economics.  After attending a boarding school with students from many countries and economic levels, he has been passionate about connecting with people from all cultures and perspectives.  His interest in sharing cultures is founded on the harmony he experienced while living with peers from regions that were at war with one another.  Finding dialogue an essential aspect of reconciling the differences between humans, and rejoicing in the commonality found amongst humans, Mars spends his time learning more about the world’s people and societies through any venue available.  When not doing this, he may be found swing dancing, enjoying the outdoors, or listening to loud music.

 

 

 

 

Peter Everest (2009-2010)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Shamim Bina (2009-2010)
Shamim Bina was born in Iran and moved to the USA in 1997. He has always had a love for history, anthropology, and religion. He is a member of the Bahai Faith and an active member of the University of Oklahoma Bahai Association. He is a history major and religious studies minor. He plans to get his bachelors degree and then get a teacher’s degree. He wants to be a history teacher and a writer of historical and religious based books when he gets out of college.

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Kenneth Agee (2008-2009)
Kenneth Agee was born and raised in Norman and is currently a senior at the University of Oklahoma.  He plans to graduate in May 2010 with a degrees in  Letters and Economics as well as a minor in Spanish.  While he currently plans to attend law school after graduation, a semester in Spain has inspired him to attempt to live abroad again after graduating.  He enjoys experiencing other cultures as well as reading up on current affairs.

 

 

 

 

Madison Blocker (2008-2009)
Madison Blocker is majoring in Letters and Spanish at the University of Oklahoma. After graduation, she plans to attend law school and pursue a career in the Foreign Service or in diplomacy. Her interests include studying literature and other cultures. She also participates in the Speakers Bureau, which allocates funds for various student groups to bring speakers to campus and organizes two of its own speaking events each year.

 

 

 

 

Whitney Coleman (2008-2009)
Whitney Coleman is a journalism senior graduating in December 2008. She writes an opinion column for The Oklahoma Daily that appears every other Friday. As a journalist, she has always been interested in understanding all sides of the discussion. As a Christian, she loves listening to what others believe and trying to better understand and appreciate worldviews that are different from hers. She hopes her interactions with others through the Xenia Institute will promote innovative thinking and new relationships.

 

 

 

 

Elliot Kimball (2008-2009)
Elliot Kimball was born in Nyack, N.Y., in 1986.  He lived in North and South Carolina before moving to Oklahoma to attend college. Kimball, who is currently a junior majoring in Social Work, plans to pursue a Master of Social Work degree after he graduates from the University of Oklahoma. He is interested in studying in the field of mental health and addictions. Although born into a Christian family, Kimball has developed an appreciation for Buddhist thinking.

 

 

 

 

Jacob Peterson (2008-2009)
Jacob Peterson is a senior at the University of Oklahoma, majoring in the Philosophy of Ethics and Religion program with minors in Religious Studies and History. He plans to attend graduate school to work toward a doctorate in Philosophical Theology, with the goal of becoming a professor of philosophy. Peterson comes from a Christian background and works out of this tradition to form his ideas. His interests lie in the relationships between science and religion, and –– more broadly — reason and faith. Peterson currently is president of the Philosophical Society, involved the Religious Studies Club, and is also a member of the student advisory councils for the OU Philosophy Department and the College of Arts and Sciences. He also is active in the Sooner Triathlon Club.

 

 

 

 

Chelsea Scudder (2008-2009)
Chelsea Scudder is a senior at the University of Oklahoma, majoring in Political Science and Religious Studies and minoring in French. Scudder is planning to study abroad in Limoges, France, during the  Spring 2009 semester, studying French and “hopefully doing a lot of traveling.”  After graduation, Scudder hopes to teach English in Turkey before she attends graduate school. Her career goals include working in a diplomatic position at a humanitarian nogovernmental organization.

 

 

 

 

Phillip Studebaker (2008-2009)
Phillip Studebaker is a senior at the University of Oklahoma, where he will receive a bachelor’s degree in Health & Exercise Science in May 2009.  He is currently applying to OU’s doctoral program in physical therapy at the Health Sciences Center in Oklahoma City, which he hopes to begin in fall 2009. Studebaker works in Norman at a physical therapy clinic and at a gym as a personal trainer. He has a Christian background and a fairly new, yet fond interest in Buddhism. He enjoys studying religion, particularly the history and interactions of the world’s religions.  Studebaker enjoys the outdoors, traveling, food, music and “anything that makes life more enjoyable or laid-back.”

 

Jalal Vargha (2008-2009)
Jalal Vargha is a Biochemistry senior at the University of Oklahoma. He also is working on an Economics minor and an Honors minor through the Honors College.  Vargha plans to attend medical school with the goal of going into pediatrics or internal medicine. Largely active in the Baha’i faith, Vargha also is  president of the Baha’i Association at OU. He also has participated in the University of Oklahoma Student Association Executive Board, as well as with the Alpha Phi Omega Service Fraternity. In his spare time, Vargha enjoys playing and watching sports, especially Sooner athletics, as well as spending time with his friends and family. Believing in the importance of both dialogue and consultation within the local community and society, Vargha has joined Xenia in order to strengthen these ideals.