Early Career Alumni Award

Ajanaé Dawkins is a poet, conceptual artist and theologian. She works through poetry, visual art, performance, and audio to explore the politics of faith, grief, and intimate relationships between Black women. As a theologian, she blends cultural criticism, memoir, and theology as autotheory to consider the relationship between Black church history, spirituality, and creation. Her work has appeared in Academy of American Poets’ Poem-a-Day, The Rumpus, Prairie Schooner, and more. Her exhibition, No One Teaches Us How To Be Daughters, debuted at Urban Arts Space in 2024. Her chapbook, BLOOD-FLEX, won the New Delta Review prize. Ajanaé is an Elizabeth George Grant Recipient and Writing Freedom Fellow. She was the Taft Museum’s 2022 Duncanson Artist in Residence and Ohio State University’s 2024 UAS Community Artist in Residence. She is a fellow of Torch Literary, The Watering Hole, and Pink Door. She co-hosts the VS Podcast  with Brittany Rogers at the Poetry Foundation.

Ajanaé Dawkins is a poet, conceptual artist and theologian. Her work has appeared in Academy of American Poets’ Poem-a-Day, The Rumpus, Prairie Schooner and more. Her chapbook, BLOOD-FLEX won the New Delta Review’s chapbook prize and is forthcoming in Spring 2025. Ajanaé co-hosts the VS Podcast at the Poetry Foundation.

Niru Sivanushanthan is a family medicine resident physician in Sacramento, California. Her areas of focus include chronic disease management, LGBTQ+ medicine, and sports medicine.

Niru grew up in Racine, WI, and received her B.S. in English Literature at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2015. She received her M.D. at Ross University School of Medicine in 2021. She took her first honors English class as a junior at J.I. Case High School, and has been in love with literature ever since.

During her undergraduate years, she was also a Writing Fellow, and worked with faculty and students on rhetoric and teaching, and presented her research at the International Writing Center Association Conference in 2013. She enjoyed presenting her honors’ English thesis on Harry Potter and Animality; exploring the series’ portrayal of medical stigmata through fictional creatures.

She is privileged to work with all ages, ethnicities, and backgrounds in family medicine. Her English degree nurtured her passion for communication and advocacy and allowed her to do the same for her patients. In 2022, she was an Emerging Leader Award Recipient through the American Academy of Family Physicians for her work in social needs screening in primary care.

Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her partner Kelly and their dog, hiking, pottery, and listening to 90s R&B.

Sammy Gibbons is a journalist and fiction writer living in Brooklyn, New York. She originated the role of National Network Print Planner at the USA TODAY Network. In that capacity, Sammy expands the reach of fascinating journalism from USA TODAY Network newspapers across the US by selecting local stories for print publication throughout the Network.

Previously, Sammy served as a culture reporter for the USA TODAY Network Atlantic Region and as the sole news reporter for the Door County Advocate. While at the latter, Sammy was named Rookie of the Year by the Wisconsin Newspaper Association. She led Gannett/USA TODAY Network’s LGBTQ+ employee resource group and spoke about the importance of such groups as a panelist at the NLGJA: Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists’ annual conference.

Sammy received her Bachelor of Arts in English and Journalism in May 2019. At UW, Sammy spent most of her time in The Daily Cardinal office which she led as Editor-in-Chief her senior year. She was also a DJ at WSUM. Her short story “Muse” was published in Illumination Journal’s Spring 2019 edition.

Sammy’s short story “Directions” was published in Sinister Wisdom: A Multicultural Lesbian Literary & Art Journal’s Summer 2020 edition. Her journalism is primarily featured in USA TODAY and its local affiliates. Recently, her reporting about the reality of transgender athletes was recognized by the Associated Press Sports Editors.

Outside of work and writing, Sammy is a dancer and proud cat parent.

Phoebe Kiekhofer

Phoebe is a bilingual literacy researcher at the University of Virginia. Phoebe supports projects that emphasize science-based literacy instruction and assessment for multilingual learners. This work includes the revision of the Virginia Literacy Screeners in English and Spanish to include holistic information on students’ decoding abilities and language proficiencies. Through the inclusion of the Spanish screener, the project also aims to equitably assess Spanish-speaking bilingual students and provide valuable information on their language development to best inform literacy instruction. Phoebe also supports elementary literacy curriculum review in conjunction with the Virginia Literacy Act, which focuses on improving literacy outcomes for students in Virginia by ensuring that instruction is aligned to science-based reading research.

Phoebe received her Master of Science in Education from Johns Hopkins University in 2022, and her Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2017. During graduate school, Phoebe worked as an elementary school teacher in a bilingual English-Spanish community in Washington, D.C. Phoebe’s work emphasized evidence-based reading instruction and recovery from pandemic school closures. Phoebe’s graduate education also emphasized qualitative and quantitative work with student literacy data to design and monitor data-based literacy intervention. Prior to attending graduate school, Phoebe served with Reading Partners of DC to provide in-school literacy intervention. While obtaining her undergraduate degree at UW-Madison, Phoebe interned with the Literacy Network, where she facilitated the English adult literacy tutoring program. Phoebe also interned with the Wisconsin Humanities Council, where she assisted with publicizing statewide humanities projects and grant programs.

Phoebe is most passionate about literacy and using her career to establish reading as a Civil Right for people of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities. She is most inspired by all learners with whom she has had the privilege of working.

Outside of her career, Phoebe is a marathon runner, an avid biker, leader of a book club, a mixed-mobility and public transit advocate, and a cat mom.

Cory Sprinkel

Cory Sprinkel grew up in central Wisconsin and graduated from UW-Madison in 2017 with a degree in English. He currently works as the Community Engaged Scholarship Specialist with the Morgridge Center for Public Service at UW-Madison. His role focuses on elevating support for and understanding of community-engaged scholarship by consulting with researchers and instructors who engage community in their teaching and research. He understands his work as deeply connected to the Wisconsin Idea and is passionate about the public purposes and potential of higher education.

Cory received his master’s in Higher Education and Student Affairs from the University of Connecticut, focusing on how community-engaged pedagogies influence student development. He is the co-author of a recently published book, Preparing students to engage in equitable community partnerships (2023) – a guide for college instructors designing community-engaged courses. Cory is also a lead organizer with the Madison-based nonprofit organization, LGBT Books to Prisoners.

Gerald Porter Jr.

Gerald Porter Jr. is an Account Supervisor at The Bliss Group, where he focuses on executive positioning, narrative development, thought leadership content, and media relations for clients such as Korn Ferry and Stanley Black & Decker across the firm’s professional and financial services practices.

His previous PR experience includes supporting crisis communications, media relations, and executive positioning for leading financial services and consumer goods brands.

Prior to his PR career, Gerald spent five years reporting at global news outlets. He previously spent three years at Bloomberg News, where he covered consumer packaged goods companies, retailers, the U.S. economy, the Food and Drug Administration, and the White House. In 2020 and 2021, respectively, he was recognized by the Society of American Business Editors and Writers (SABEW) and the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) for his coverage of Black businesses and corporate accountability. He began his professional career working at the Chicago Tribune and The Wall Street Journal after a year of studying at the University of Westminster in London.

A Chicago native and Powers-Knapp scholar, Gerald earned a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and English from the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Journalism and Mass Communication. He also was a reporter and associate campus news editor for the Badger Herald during his time at UW-Madison.

Devin Lowe

Devin Lowe is a storyteller from Apple Valley, Minnesota, where she first combined her two passions, writing and sport, in a mentorship program with a local sports TV station. She attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison and worked for an engineering professor, the Wisconsin School of Business, the Wisconsin Union and University Communications while pursuing degrees in journalism, strategic communication and English. During her senior year, she “studied abroad” in Philadelphia, working for the Philadelphia Flyers as a public relations intern. Upon her graduation in 2016, she took a yearlong position in digital and social media for her hometown NHL team, the Minnesota Wild. In 2017, she started at the Colorado-based U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee as the Development Writer, crafting impact stories that show how philanthropic support changes the lives of Team USA athletes. She now produces communications touchpoints for donors at every giving level as the Manager, Development Communications. She is most passionate about inspiring those around her and sharing stories about how sport unifies, uplifts and transforms people and communities.

Hannah Nelson

Hannah Nelson (pen name H.J. Nelson) is an Idaho native who graduated from the University of Wisconsin with degrees in creative writing and wildlife biology. She began writing on Wattpad in 2015, where her story The Last She garnered over 12 million reads. It became one of the most read Science Fiction stories on Wattpad in 2016 and 2017 and was acquired by Wattpad Books for publication as a three-book series. Since then, Nelson has had her work optioned for television by Sony and translated for publication into French (Hachette) and Italian (Mondadori). The Last She and The Last City are available now, and the third book in the series, The Last Creation, will be published in 2024.

Nelson has also written for brands like General Electric, National Geographic and Writers Digest. When not writing, Nelson has lived on a boat in the British Virgin Isles, worked in two zoos and ridden an elephant through the jungles of Laos— though she considers raising two daughters her most dangerous adventure yet.

Erika Lee

Erika is an attorney and the Assistant Director of New Media Rights, a nonprofit legal clinic that provides free and low-cost legal services to creators, entrepreneurs, and internet users whose projects require specialized internet, intellectual property, privacy, media and entertainment law expertise. In addition to providing preventative, transactional legal services, Erika also develops educational resources for New Media Rights and engages in public policy advocacy in regulatory proceedings at the Copyright Office. She is also an adjunct professor for California Western School of Law, teaching the Internet and Media Law Clinic.

Erika received her Juris Doctorate from California Western School of Law, and her Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of Wisconsin – Madison. During law school, Erika worked for New Media Rights as an intern and student fellow before spending a semester in Los Angeles working in the business and legal affairs department of Shout! Factory, a multi-platform media company. While obtaining her undergraduate degree, Erika worked for four years in the marketing department of Overture Center for the Arts in Madison, Wisconsin, where she assisted in programming projects and events that engaged local communities with the arts, and promoted national Broadway and non-Broadway touring productions.

Erika has been published in the Texas Intellectual Property Law Journal and she has co-authored several articles with her colleagues at New Media Rights for Forbes. She also guest lectures at university classes across California and the country, including Otis College of Art & Design, California State University Northridge, San Diego State University, the University of Nebraska – Lincoln, and Champlain College in Vermont.

Most recently, Erika was a guest on the podcast Pop Culture Detective: Audio Files, hosted by Jonathan McIntosh (“Demystifying Fair Use, Copyright, and Content ID,” January 31, 2023). She is inspired daily by her clients and their passion for their craft.

Deshawn McKinney

Deshawn McKinney is a writer who proudly reps his home of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. A First Wave and PEOPLE scholar, he earned a BA in Creative Writing at the University of WisconsinMadison in 2017. He is a recipient of both the Truman Scholarship, which he earned for his grassroots work in Madison, as well as the Marshall Scholarship for graduate study in the United Kingdom. While overseas he earned a Master in Social Policy from the London School of Economics and Political Science and a Master in Creative Writing – Poetry from the University of East Anglia. Deshawn has performed for and built with audiences around the world, from Jamaica to England, with his work appearing in journals such as Lolwe and Glass Poetry. His debut chapbook, father forgive me, was published by Black Sunflowers Poetry Press in 2021. Deshawn McKinney serves on the Board of Visitors for Student Affairs at UW and has recently returned to Wisconsin to serve as a Director of Development at the Wisconsin Foundation and Alumni Association.

Kristin Prewitt

Kristin Prewitt grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in English. It was as an undergrad that she developed a passion for the nexus between the humanities, health system transformation, and activism. She graduated from the University of South Florida with dual M.D. and M.P.H. in Epidemiology degrees. She is currently an OB/GYN resident physician at Oregon Health & Science University. Her research interests include high-risk obstetrics, substance use, abortion, and adolescent medicine. Her career has led her to serve on the board of directors for Medical Students for Choice; work at the Florida Department of Health in Infectious Disease Epidemiology; and engage in activism through organizational partnerships and talks. She’s most interested in how destigmatized patient care can be a fulcrum for personal healing and social change

Danez Smith

Danez Smith is a poet and performer from St. Paul, MN, and a former member of UW Madison’s celebrated First Wave program. They are the author of three award winning poetry books Homie (Graywolf Press, 2020), a finalist for the 2020 National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry, Don’t Call Us Dead (Graywolf Press, 2017), a finalist for the National Book Award, and [insert] boy (YesYes Books, 2014), winner of the Kate Tufts Discovery Award and the Lambda Literary Award for Gay Poetry. Danez has won many prestigious fellowships from organizations like the Poetry Foundation, the McKnight Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Their work has been featured widely including in the New York Times, PBS NewsHour, Best American Poetry, Poetry Magazine, and on the Late Show with Stephen Colbert. They are a member of the Dark Noise Collective and are the co-host of VS, a podcast sponsored by the Poetry Foundation and Postloudness.