The Elections Committee of Georgetown Alliance of Graduate Employees, GAGE-AFT, has received its nominations for Executive Council positions. Nominations were conducted by emailing elections@wearegage.org. Members could nominate or self-nominate whomever they choose to so long as they submitted their nominees by Wednesday, July 1, as described in the Elections and Nominations notice emailed to all members. Nominees had until Friday, July 3, to accept their nomination and send us eligibility verification and candidacy information and all have done so.
Because we have candidates for every Executive Council position and all are running unopposed, we will not be conducting a formal election. Nominees will host a town hall on Wednesday, July 15, between 3 and 5pm, with the GAGE membership and will begin to take on their official duties during the following week.
Here are the candidate profiles as submitted to Elections Committee by the nominees:
Jewel Tomasula- Nominee for President
Jewel Tomasula (she/her) is a rising 4th year PhD candidate in the Biology Department. She served on GAGE’s Bargaining Committee during the final months of negotiations. She’s a Department Organizer and the Chair of the Communications Committee. Jewel understands that GAGE is the strongest avenue to advocate for Georgetown graduate students and to secure the compensation, benefits, and rights they deserve for their work. Especially as Georgetown operates during the COVID-19 pandemic, GAGE has a crucial role in protecting graduate workers and being a resource for them. Further, she sees GAGE as part of a larger movement to revolutionize academia towards an equitable and inclusive system. In the role of President, Jewel aims to ensure that the contract is fully implemented, the core functions of the union are established, and GAGE continues to build power as a force for social progress on and beyond campus.
As an ecologist, Jewel’s research involves experiments in a salt marsh and genetic analysis of plant samples in the lab. She worked as a teaching assistant for introductory Biology and Evolutionary Processes. Though the final years of her PhD are funded through the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program, she knows her research is still work and that fellows also benefit from a strong graduate union.
Jewel is married and lives in Arlington, Virginia. Before starting at Georgetown, Jewel worked at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. She earned a BS in Environmental Science at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. Jewel is from Texas and is Mexican American; her mother immigrated from Mexico to Texas. She wants to see GAGE continue to break down systemic barriers that nearly stopped her from pursuing a PhD and currently make it more challenging for people from marginalized groups to pursue graduate work.
Daniel Solomon - Nominee for Vice President
Daniel (he/him) is a rising 3rd year PhD student in the Government Department. He has been an active GAGE member since he started his PhD program, as a department organizer in the run-up to the fall 2018 union election, and then as a member of the Bargaining Committee throughout our contract negotiations with the university. In his role as Vice President, he’s excited to jump back into the spadework of organizing by building relationships with new and ongoing members and finding ways to center their experiences in our activism. Daniel looks forward to building a union that both advocates for the immediate needs of graduate workers at Georgetown, and serves as a platform for solidarity with other movements for justice that motivate our work.
Daniel’s research explores the dynamics of pogrom violence in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Nazi Germany. Prior to beginning his PhD program, Daniel worked as a researcher at the US Holocaust Memorial Museum, where he is still an affiliated researcher. Since starting his PhD program, he has worked as a teaching assistant and research assistant in the Government Department. He knows that doing this work well requires an environment that protects our health and safety and compensates us fairly for our labor. Daniel’s research and his work with GAGE both underscore that we only achieve these goals through collective action. These values have motivated Daniel’s work with GAGE in recent months to ensure that the university does not compel graduate workers against our will to work on campus in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Daniel lives in Alexandria with his dog Sherlock. He enjoys hiking, baking sourdough bread with his 6-year-old starter, and jigsaw puzzles. He is originally from New York City and received his BA in international politics from Georgetown’s School of Foreign Service.
Brent McDonnell- Nominee for Treasurer
Brent McDonnell (he/him/his) is a rising 5th-year PhD candidate in the Department of History and an alumnus of the MA program in German and European Studies at the School of Foreign Service, first arriving at Georgetown in the Fall 2014 semester. Recognizing that the pay for graduate workers was woefully insufficient for living in Washington, DC, and that the University’s ability to unilaterally determine working conditions for graduates was unjust, Brent has been involved in organizing since GAGE’s earliest days. He was also part of the bargaining team which negotiated the union’s first contract with the Georgetown administration. Brent recognizes that the bargaining team was only able to win such significant improvements for graduate workers because of the work organizers and members did to demonstrate GAGE’s collective power during negotiations. As a candidate for the position of treasurer, Brent envisions this position as one which will contribute to the development of a robust, diverse union which reflects the collective power graduate workers have on campus when working in solidarity with one another.
Brent’s dissertation, “Reaction in a Time of Revolt,” analyzes the far right in the Federal Republic of Germany and Italy from the mid-1960s into the early 1980s through comparative and transnational perspectives. Brent has worked as a research assistant, a teaching assistant, and an instructor of record over his time at Georgetown.
Originally from Long Island, New York, Brent received a BA in Political Science and Italian Language and Literature from Fordham University in The Bronx, New York. In his free time (when and where concerns for public health allow), Brent enjoys playing a game of bar trivia with friends, watching arthouse films, and taking in a game of baseball or hockey. He has yet to see any of his favorite teams win a championship.
Gerald Taylor - Nominee for Secretary
Gerald Taylor (he/him/his) is a rising 6th-year PhD candidate in the Philosophy Department. He has been actively involved with GAGE since its inception (he was a Department Organizer way back then), and is proud to have served more recently as a member of GAGE’s Bargaining Committee, which recently negotiated a first contract with Georgetown University. Gerald knows that this monumental achievement was possible only because grad workers were willing to stand for and with one another, and to use their collective voice to fight for a contract that supports them as whole people. He also knows that there is much more work to be done when it comes to holding Georgetown accountable for treating its workers with the respect and dignity that they deserve. In the role of Secretary, he aims to continue doing this work by helping grad workers build power, both at Georgetown and across all of academia.
Gerald’s philosophical research centers around the concept of ‘agency’, and his dissertation, which lies at the intersection of metaethics and action theory, articulates a novel conception of agency and demonstrates how it can be used to generate interesting metaethical results. When he isn’t philosophizing, Gerald enjoys listening to and playing music, dancing, going on long walks, getting the most out of his streaming subscriptions, playing a good game of chess, trying new craft beers, and eating barbecue.
Gerald lives in the Glover Park neighborhood of the District, and finds himself there by way of Youngstown, Ohio (where he was born and raised), Columbus, Ohio (where he completed his BA in Philosophy at The Ohio State University), Atlanta, Georgia (where he completed his MA in Philosophy at Georgia State University), and Arlington, Virginia (where he once paid way too much in rent for a studio).
Ari Janoff - Nominee for Grievance Officer
Ari Janoff (she/her) is a rising 4th year PhD candidate in the Linguistics Department. She served as a member of the Bargaining Committee for the Humanities, and was a vote-yes captain and Department Organizer during the 2018 election process. She was also a member of the Constitution and Bylaws committee. She originally joined the union before receiving funding or work from the university precisely because of the solidarity in this community. Here, she found a group giving voice to her concerns about a lack of transparency and protections for graduate students. Since then, Ari has been an unfunded student, an hourly worker, and a stipended worker. She feels very passionately about the power of the union and how it allows workers to share their experiences across departments. However, she knows that winning our first contract with the University was just the beginning, and she hopes to continue fighting for the protections of workers as your Grievance Officer.
Ari’s research focuses on political discourse, in particular on how nationalism, racism, and hegemonic discourses are constructed on the American presidential debate stage. She has worked as a research assistant for the Educational Transformation program in addition to multiple concentrations of the Linguistics department. She has also served as a teaching assistant for the undergraduate Linguistics course How Languages Are Learned. This fall, Ari will be the assistant to the director of the Masters in Language & Communication.
Ari moved to Georgetown after completing her MA in English Sociolinguistics at North Carolina State University. Prior to that, she earned her BA in Linguistics from Pitzer College in her home state of California. In her non-academic pandemic free time, she loves bothering her very old cat, doing yoga and meditating, playing board games over zoom, reading sci-fi, and hiking.
Zac Park - Nominee for Lead Organizer for Natural and Biomedical Sciences
Zac Park (he/him) is a rising 4th year PhD candidate in the Biology Department. He has served as a Department Organizer since the Spring of 2019 and has been involved in member development and communications. Zac strongly believes that collective power is the most effective way to ensure that grads have control over their working conditions. He sees GAGE as the embodiment of that collective power. However, Zac also knows that this collective power can only be achieved through solidarity. He understands that through solidarity GAGE can ensure that graduate work at Georgetown is accessible, equitable, and just for people from every background. In the role of Lead Organizer for The Natural and Biomedical Sciences Degree Programs, Zac will build solidarity across the sciences on both campuses by creating more spaces for cross department/campus interactions, expanding on an already strong network of Department Organizers who will help ensure our membership is always heard, and establishing GAGE as a force for progress both on and off campus.
Zac’s research focuses on how baker’s yeast, which has become a hot commodity once again, undergoes a specialized cell division called meiosis. He has worked as a teaching assistant for introductory Biology and Genetics. Zac currently works as a research assistant. From running 12 hour experiments to working weekends to meet deadlines, Zac knows how long lab work can take and will make sure that workers in the Sciences are being protected by our contract.
Zac moved to Arlington, Virginia after completing his BS in Biology and Biochemistry from Elmira College in his home state of New York. He started at Georgetown immediately after finishing his undergraduate degree. As a member of the LGBTQIA+ community, Zac is excited to expand upon GAGE’s social justice work, which he believes will help reshape the exclusionary system that is academia.
Dominick Cooper - Nominee for Lead Organizer for Humanities and Languages
Dominick Cooper (he/him) is a rising 2nd year PhD candidate in the Philosophy Department. He joined GAGE in the Fall of 2019 and began serving as a Department Organizer in the final months of GAGE's first contract negotiations. He is also active in the Member Development Committee, as well GAGE’s recent work to call for racial justice and support the Movement for Black Lives. Dominick learned a lot from the supportive and experienced community of GAGE organizers about the know-how and the importance of organizing in that time, from the strategic importance of contesting administration power in organizing to win a fair contract, to the value of organizing as the fundamental way to build relationships in solidarity with all of our fellow grad workers and in communities in the greater DMV area and beyond. He also affirms that effective organizing only happens when all grad workers at Georgetown are engaged and are ready to stand up and fight for themselves and for one another for better protections and working conditions, and is committed to empowering the growing community of GAGE grad workers, both in the U.S. and internationally, in person and virtually, to do so. In the role of Lead Organizer for Humanities and Languages Degree Programs, he aims continue organizing in this spirit.
As a philosopher, Dominick’s general interests lie in moral and political philosophy, especially in theories of justice and equality, the methodology of political philosophy, economic justice, and health justice.
Dominick lives in the wonderful D.C. neighborhood of Columbia Heights, and grew up in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley. He earned a B.A. in Philosophy and Political Science from Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, as well as an M.A. in Philosophy from Virginia Tech. Dominick originally began his PhD in Philosophy at University of Virginia, and transferred to Georgetown in the Fall of 2019.
Andrew Gibson - Nominee for Lead Organizer for Social Sciences
Andrew Gibson (he/him)is a rising third-year Ph.D. Student in the Department of Government, where he studies political theory and international relations. Andrew signed a membership card in his first weeks on campus in 2018 and has worked as a Department Organizer during GAGE’s contract fight.
Having served as a teaching assistant in intro courses within the Department of Government and the School of Foreign Service, Andrew understands the work that graduate students do everyday. He is particularly interested in ensuring that grad workers are protected during this global pandemic. The university works because we do and no grad worker should be compelled to return to campus to work. Similarly, no grad worker should face the choice between unsafe working conditions and the risk of losing their employment or health insurance. Andrew will work to ensure grad workers are protected by their union.
Andrew comes from a family of educators and organizers. Both of his parents were high school teachers in Michigan public schools and his father currently works for the Michigan Education Association, the teacher’s union for the state of Michigan. In his research, Andrew is often thinking about Renaissance republicanism, 20th century political thought, and the philosophy of history.
Residing in the Adams Morgan neighborhood of DC, Andrew enjoys walks through the city and Rock Creek Park. Before coming to Georgetown, Andrew completed his B.A. at James Madison College at Michigan in 2016 and his M.A. at the University of Chicago in 2017.
Samar Saeed - Nominee for Lead Organizer for Graduate Student Assistants Serving in Hourly Positions
Samar Saeed (she/her) is a rising 2nd year PhD candidate in the History Department. She joined GAGE in 2018 when she was a Master’s student in the School of Foreign Service. Samar believes that GAGE is a powerful platform to ensure that equity, inclusion, and workers’ rights are not empty slogans but practiced actively on our campus. GAGE’s community also enables students’ voices to be included in the decision-making process. Samar also believes that GAGE is more than a union working within the confines of the University. In recent months, GAGE has stood in solidarity with the movement for Black Lives and supported their call for justice. In the role of Lead Organizer for Hourly workers, Samar will build strong relationships with MA students to ensure that their rights under the new contract are protected and their unique concerns and frustrations are being addressed. She will also ensure that international students are also represented, especially now under the pandemic and ensuing uncertainties.
Samar is a researcher of Palestinian and Jordanian history. She focuses on gender, revolutions, and resistance. She has worked as a teaching assistant and as a research assistant for different professors. Samar understands the pressure and anxieties that surface from juggling a schedule with full-time classes, work, and personal commitments. She hopes to make GAGE a place where students feel comfortable to share their experiences.
A Palestinian/Jordanian who lived most of her life in Jordan, Samar first moved to the U.S. in 2004 for her undergraduate studies at George Mason University and returned in 2017 to start an MA program at Georgetown. In between, Samar lived in Amman and Zurich for work, and in London, where she completed an MA from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS). Samar believes that the systems of oppression that dispossess Palestinians from their land, murder Black people, and exploit workers are interlinked, and in order for us to dismantle these systems we need to build meaningful solidarity and organize collectively. This is why she is committed to GAGE and building power for the union. In her free time, Samar loves to watch basketball games (both NBA and WNBA), go dancing with friends, and walk/run around the city.