Three Women Named Postdoctoral Fellows for Faculty Diversity at UMBC

Three women make up the third cohort of the Postdoctoral Fellows for Faculty Diversity at the University of Maryland Baltimore County. The program is a two-year in-residence fellowship that supports promising scholars who are committed to diversity in the academy and to prepare those scholars for possible tenure track appointments. During the two-year appointment, the university provides fellows with teaching and research mentors, and professional development opportunities across campus. Fellowship recipients are provided with a stipend, health benefits, and additional funding for conference travel and the preparation of scholarly work.

All three of this year’s fellows are women.

Dr. Allen, Dr. Nnawulezi, and Dr. Shomali

Keisha McIntosh Allen is a graduate of Hampton University in Virginia and holds an educational doctorate in curriculum and teaching from Teachers College at Columbia University in New York City. Her research focuses on how issues of race, culture, and intersectionality influence teaching and learning for historically marginalized youth.

Nkiru Nnawulezi earned a Ph.D. in ecological-community psychology at Michigan State University. Her research is focused on African American women survivors of sexual violence. She is particularly interested in how social identity and culture influence Black women’s disclosure of sexual violence and their decision on whether to seek help after they have become victims.

Mejdulene Shomali will be a fellow in the gender and women’s studies program at the University of Maryland Baltimore County. Her research examines femininity and sexuality in Arab and Arab American literature, art, and film. Dr. Shomali is a graduate of the University of Michigan-Flint, where she double majored in English and philosophy. She holds a master’s degree in women’s studies from Ohio State University and a Ph.D. in American culture from the University of Michigan.