Student Forum Leadership, 2020-2021

Alexandra Boufarah

Co-President

Email: aeb8@rice.edu
Major: History; minor in Business

Alexandra Boufarah is a senior from Jones College, majoring in History and minoring in business. Having grown up in the Middle East, Alexandra is passionate about US-Foreign Policy in the region, energy policy, and the global migrant crisis. She has travelled to Syria, Lebanon, Spain, and Jordan as a volunteer and teacher for refugees, and worked as an Arabic translator for refugees in the Greater Houston area. Last year, she served as the Director of Events and created BISF's first ever international affairs debate on the topic of climate change and what steps the US should be taking to combat global warming. Although this year will be different, Alexandra is looking forward to the new challenge of moving most events to a virtual format, and is also excited for the events BISF will be hosting this semester centered around the 2020 presidential elections.

Annie Chen

Co-President

Email: ac109@rice.edu
Major: Political Science, Philosophy; minor in Politics, Law, and Social Thought

Annie Chen is a senior at Martel College interested in the socio-economic and racial ramifications of policymaking. As one of the Co-Presidents of BISF, she works with Baker Institute fellows and the officer team to create events across a spectrum of different policy areas and encourage student engagement. She first became involved with BISF through the policy competition in freshman year. This year, she hopes to keep the forum running as smoothly as possible despite the circumstances and to give students more opportunities to safely interact with each other. Outside of BISF, she is also a member of the Rice debate team and can be observed stress-baking or curled up with a book in the nooks of the library.

Sree Yeluri 

Executive Vice President of Formal Events

Email: ssy2@rice.edu
Major: Economics, German Studies; minor in Politics, Law, and Social Thought

Sree Yeluri is a senior at Lovett College and has been involved in BISF since joining the General Board her freshman year. As the previous Director of Outreach, she helped increase student engagement with BISF and informed students of policy-related opportunities at Rice and beyond through weekly emails. As the current VP of Formal Events, Sree is excited to set up remote engagement opportunities for Rice students to meet policy experts and change-makers in Houston and around the country (and possibly the world?!). Sree manages the Rice Examiner as co-Editor-in-Chief, serves on the Rice Honor Council, and assists students with summer and post-grad opportunities as a Peer Career Advisor. In her free time, Sree can be found creating endless to-do lists, biking, or zooming with her friends.

Andrew Wan

Executive Vice President of Informal Events

Email: azw2@rice.edu
Major: Political Science and Cognitive Science

Andrew Wan is a junior from Jones College, double-majoring in Political Science and Cognitive Science, who is interested in U.S. diplomacy and foreign policy. Andrew has been involved with BISF since his freshman year through the General Board, and as a sophomore, he organized the 2020 Undergraduate Policy Competition: Global Energy Policy. As the Vice President of Informal Events, he is eager to organize exciting, interesting, and accessible events for students during the challenging times of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Aaron Pathak

Executive Vice President of Community Engagement

Email: ap68@rice.edu
Major: Social Policy Analysis

Aaron Pathak is a Junior majoring in Social Policy Analysis at Jones College. As the Executive Vice President of Community Engagement, he is excited to build relationships with other like-minded groups around campus and help combine resources to build a love for policy at Rice. Aaron has been involved in BISF since freshman year as a member of the General Board and served as the Director of Partnerships last year. In Aaron's free time, he enjoys learning Chinese, trying new restaurants, and playing board games with his friends.

Anh Nguyen

Director of Policy Competition

Email: ahn4@rice.edu
Major: Biosciences and Sociology

I joined BISF because I fell in love with the idea that policy is for every field. For me, I have enjoyed including policy in my work in health/medicine and science. As part of the BISF Executive Board this year, I hope to amplify this kind of message for others as well and truly highlight the value of public policy. Even though this year will certainly be challenging with the current world events, I'm excited for the opportunity to meet new people who are passionate about public policy and help them build a strong foundation with their interests here at Rice. Particularly, as the Policy Competition Chair, I'm looking forward to the chance to inspire students in making amazing and impactful policy solutions for current issues! 

Krithi Pachipala

Director of Outreach

Email: kp33@rice.edu
Major: Neuroscience and Social Policy Analysis; certificate in Spanish

Krithi Pachipala is a junior at Will Rice College majoring in Neuroscience and Social Policy Analysis and completing a Spanish certificate. As the Director of Outreach, she is committed to increasing student involvement in BISF and interest in policy and social change. Outside of BISF, Krithi is on the board of Rice PERIOD and serves as the treasurer at Will Rice College. She is specifically passionate about education equity and helping children through organizations such as Camp Kesem and BrainSTEM. You can find her eating chocolate, running and swimming, and dancing on Rice Riyaaz, the Bollywood fusion dance team.

Thomas Kovac

Director of Logistics

Email: tsk2@rice.edu
Major: Political Science, European Studies; minor in History and Business

Thomas Kovac (TK) is a sophomore at Wiess college interested in foreign policy and international relations. His areas of interest are Eastern Europe and the Middle East; this semester he is beginning to learn Arabic as well as advancing his French skills. TK was a member of the general board as a freshman and is excited to take on a bigger role. He hopes to spread awareness about BISF and get students more involved with policy. Outside of BISF, TK enjoys playing sports and board games, and going out with friends.

Mimi Baker

Editor-in-Chief of Rice Journal of Public Policy (RJJP)

Email: mlb13@rice.edu
Major: Political Science and Sociology

Mimi Baker is a senior at Duncan College. As Editor-in-Chief of the Rice Journal of Public Policy, Mimi is looking forward to putting together an excellent journal that highlights student work across campus. Her goal is to attract new readers and increase the variety of policy topics discussed in the journal. She also hopes to engage with BISF by partnering together for events. Outside of RJPP and BISF, Mimi is a member of the varsity swim team and a Head PAA at Duncan College, and you can almost always find her studying on Fondy 6th.