Human Rights in the Time of Corona: A Warm Welcome to our MHR Class of 2022

Meet our new cohort for the Master's in Human Rights Program!
MHR Cohort 2022
Pictured: Cohort members Zoe Martens, Hanna Nussair, Samiira Husein, Ariana Kopycinski, Shonni Krengel, Kerim Orsel, Bassel El Mrawed, Maclan Campbell, Eric Ryu, Veronica Cadavid Gonzalez, Madeline Titus, Naa Korkoi Larmie and HSPA Senior Fellow Janet Walsh

Beginning their time with the Master’s of Human Rights Program (MHR) in a year unlike any other, the MHR cohort of 2022 is full of diverse, resilient, and driven individuals. Coming from Peru, Ghana, Colombia, Lebanon, Texas, Florida and Minnesota, among many other places, this cohort of individuals is the largest and most diverse yet. The 2022 cohort is composed of 20 accomplished individuals dedicated to human rights work. Each member of this group brings to the program unique life, professional, and academic experiences and we, here at the Human Rights Program, are excited to learn from each of these incoming students over the course of their time at the U.

The MHR degree is jointly offered by the Humphrey School of Public Affairs (HSPA) and the College of Liberal Arts (CLA). The interdisciplinary nature of the program is reflected in the diversity of classes students are able to take and the personalized nature of the concentrations each student adopts. Cohort members Verónica Cadavid Gonzalez and Eric Ryu both cited the individualized nature of the program as among their principal motivations for choosing to study at the U.

Outside of the classroom, MHR students are presented with many opportunities to put into practice what they are studying through internships and research. For example, Verónica Cadavid Gonzalez and fellow cohort member Bassel El Mrawed are working with HRP director Barbara Frey on a study requested by the UN OHCHR in collaboration with UMN on protection networks for human rights defenders. This group of individuals is trying to understand Protection Networks and their impact on and support to Human Rights Defenders. Zoe Martens, another first year student, is involved in research, studying the impacts of COVID-19 on the immigrant workforce with Ryan Allen, professor with the Urban and Regional Planning Program at HSPA.

In addition to pursuing research, members of the MHR program have the opportunity to participate in prestigious summer internships with organizations such as Amnesty International and the United Nations after their first year in the program. Students are then able build on these experiences in the following year and work with dedicated staff members as they navigate the competitive career search that accompanies human rights work. Cohort member Hanna Nussair emphasized the willingness of faculty members to assist students in their professional development and the fact that staff members take interest in the well-being and success of each cohort member. In fact, the availability and support that staff members offer students was one of the principal reasons for which Hanna decided to enroll in the MHR program.

Despite being socially distanced, the members of this year’s MHR cohort have managed to create a vibrant community. Through group study sessions over zoom, socially distanced get-togethers, and a few group chats, members of this year’s MHR cohort are coming together and overcoming the obstacles presented by COVID-19.

Over the course of the next several weeks on the HRP website, we will be introducing and following the experience of five members of the 2022 cohort to get to know them a little better. Until we “meet” them one by one each week, join us in welcoming this year’s 2022 MHR Cohort!

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