Rachel Lauren Storm, PhD. Candidate

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Rachel Lauren Storm has worked in educational programming and advocacy for over 10 years, focusing on women’s rights/gender equity, youth programming, social justice, and international development. Currently pursuing her Ph.D. in Educational Policy, Organization and Leadership with a concentration in Global Studies in Education (GSE) and Gender Relations in International Development (GRID).

She received her B.A. in International Studies and M.Ed. in Educational Policy Studies at the University of Illinois where she holds a full-time appointment as the Assistant Director of the Women’s Resources Center in the Office of Inclusion and Intercultural Relations within Student Affairs.

Within her role as Assistant Director, she is responsible for overseeing the center’s educational programs, as well as, offering counseling, support, and advocacy for survivors of violence and trauma. She has received numerous international awards for her research on the effects of state restructuring on the work of feminist organizing in Ecuador, including the the Tinker Fellowship for Latin American Field Research, the Barbara A. Yates Award, the Due and Ferber Award, and the Illinois International Graduate Achievement Award. She was also named the 2013 National Women’s Studies Association Women’s Centers Committee Emerging Leader and received the prestigious Campus Award for Excellence in Public Engagement (CAEPE).

She teaches within the Departments of Educational Psychology and Gender and Women’s Studies at the University of Illinois where her course on U.S./International Dialogue explores development narratives, solidarity vs. charity, and international dynamics of power. Her current research interests include restorative and transformative justice, international development, and gender-based violence.