Meet Our Team

Researchers

  • Kara Anderson

    Senior Researcher

    Kara Anderson is a sophomore political science major and English minor, pursing an experiential learning certificate in human rights. At Albion, Kara is a part of the Prentiss M. Brown Honors Program and the Gerald R. Ford Institute for Leadership in Public Policy and Service. She is the Chief of Staff of the Albion Student Senate, the Secretary of the Phi Alpha Delta Pre-Law Fraternity and is a member of Concert Choir. Kara is passionate about human rights and aspires to be a human rights lawyer.

    Kara is a founding member of the Human Rights Lab. To her, the Lab is a way to learn about human rights and start taking active steps to promote and protect them. Kara directs the Lab’s Human Rights Education Committee and has designed a Human Rights Basics training module and helped to create several Innovation Badges. Human rights are important to her because, “they are the basis for human dignity and need to be protected. They are a hope for a better world and help outline the path to get there.” 

  • Egshiglen Batjargal

    Researcher

    Egshiglen Batjargal is a sophomore double majoring in International Studies and International Business with an Economic emphasis. Egshiglen is from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. She is a member of the Gerald R. Ford Institute for Leadership in Public Policy and Service and the Prentiss M. Brown Honors Program. Egshiglen is vice president of both the Rotaract Club and the International Students Union and serves as public relations director of the Asian Awareness Group.

    Human rights matter to Egshiglen because “everyone is born with them, ensuring people’s dignity and wellbeing. Human rights are inalienable, interdependent, equal and universal. By joining the Human Rights Lab I hope to further my knowledge, share that knowledge with others and work with communities to bring change.”

  • Isaac Byrd

    Researcher

    Isaac Byrd is a political science major and sociology minor at Albion College. They graduated from Marshall High School in 2020 and have lived in the city of Albion for most of their life. Isaac has a profound love for the community where they grew up. At Albion College, Isaac is active in various campus organizations including Students for Reproductive Justice and Diversability. They are passionate about reproductive justice, the rights of LGBTQI+ individuals and labor rights.

    “I want to do my part to educate, navigate and contribute to the fulfillment of human rights. Bodily autonomy is one of the most imperative rights we are entitled to from birth as human beings. Another key to equality is to ensure that every individual has the ability to live their life with dignity and favorable working conditions, fair wages and the right to unionize are a key component.”

  • Orion Hower

    Researcher

    Orion Hower is a junior Theatre major with a minor in political science and is pursuing an experiential learning certificate in Arts and Activism. They are secretary of Alpha Psi Omega and an actor in the Theatre Department. Orion is from Columbus, Ohio where they have organized and attended protests about issues such as police brutality, gun violence and voting rights. Orion says, “A life of human dignity is fundamental to the building of a more equitable society. Human rights is a crucial step in reaching that equitable society.” Orion is passionate about showing injustice as it is and especially highlighting human rights issues that are overlooked or that people may not realize are breaches of their human rights. 

Advisors

  • Niyati Kellenberg Callewaert

    Advisor

    Niyati Kellenberg Callewaert is a recent graduate of Albion College where she majored in public policy and was a member of the Gerald R. Ford Institute for Leadership in Public Policy and Service. While at Albion, she served in a public relations leadership position with Albion’s chapter of the American Association of University Women and was a founding member of the college chapter of the NAACP.  During her free-time she loves to read and create art. She plans to attend graduate school for public policy and get a job that focuses on human rights policy. Niyati’s projects have linked the principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights with NGO and community work serving low-income and under-resourced communities. Niyati says “there are basic needs and rights that everyone should be but isn’t attainable for many.”  When asked why others should are about human rights, she replied, “Others should care about human rights because they are built on a foundation of dignity, equality, respect, and autonomy. And even if you aren’t personally affected by the lack of these basic human rights, millions of others are and they might be in your own community.” 

  • Caitlin Cummings

    Advisor

    Caitlin Cummings graduated from Albion College with a major in political science, minor in sociology and a concentration in public service in 2022. While at Albion, Caitlin was a member of the Prentiss M. Brown Honors Program, the Gerald R. Ford Institute for Leadership in Public Policy and Service, and the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority where she recently served as the first Vice President Diversity Equity and Inclusion for the Pi Chapter.  Currently, Caitlin is a full-time student at Indiana University’s McKinney School of Law

    Caitlin’s work with the Albion Human Rights lab has included developing a toolkit for college students curious about human rights advocacy and designing an inclusive curriculum for Albion College’s Tour Guide Program. Caitlin’s goal is to help people gain confidence in speaking in defense of human rights issues. She says, “Human rights apply to everyone in every society and its important people are aware of human rights issues in order to stand up for justice.” 

  • Marco Antonio Colmenares Jr.

    Advisor

    Marco Colmenares is from San Francisco, California. He received his BA in Political Science from Albion College in 2020 and is a full-time student at Indiana University’s McKinney School of Law. Colmenares has a personal interest in civil rights law. He is co-author with Carrie Walling, Morgan Armstrong, and Caitlin Cummings of “The Human Rights Advocacy Toolkit.” 

Faculty