Kenice is a standup comedian and filmmaker who regularly appears on SiriusXM, hosts Complexify on ViceNews, and is a Finalist in the StandUp NBC Competition. She works on all of CMSI’s comedy initiatives. She keeps our team meetings fun and punctual (usually these are opposite skills, but not for Kenice).
Fun Fact: Kenice had to take etiquette lessons growing up and can now tap dance while balancing a bowl of fruit on her head. 

Aras is a researcher who explores the relationship between media, technology, and democracy, focusing on the privatization of governance, surveillance, and political economy of media. He has also worked as the diplomacy and foreign news editor at the Hurriyet Daily News in Istanbul, Turkey.
Fun Fact: Aras never misses a Galatasaray Sports Club football (soccer) game and has, on few occasions, alarmed his neighbors by yelling, “GOAAL!” during games. CMSI is so delighted to have Aras on our team after he finished his PhD at AU.  

Alya is a writer who develops communications strategies for brands and organizations, writes fiction and essays, provides private instruction to high school students, and edits all types of writing. She specializes in bringing humor, clarity, and a recognizable voice to all of her writing. At CMSI, she writes about and helps promote all we do.
Fun Fact: Alya once let a golden retriever into her third-grade classroom, where it went unnoticed by teachers for an hour. With her outstanding wordplay, we sure always notice her amazing work. 

Bethany is the Creative Director of comedy projects at CMSI -- and we have quite a few of them because she can’t get enough (and neither can we). She manages all aspects of the creative thought process from conceptualizing the Comedy ThinkTanks collaborative writers’ rooms to giving them direction. 
Fun Fact: Bethany once ran seven miles and then quickly decided that never needed to happen again. Ever. Though she does now run after her adorable little ones, every day, which will add up to way more than a marathon or three. 

David is our meticulous researcher whose projects bring together media practitioners and academic communities to produce data on media diversity and representation, civic storytelling, and media/communication for social justice.
Fun Fact: For years, David was frequently mistaken on Twitter for the actor David Conrad from Ghost Whisperer. They look nothing alike, but that didn’t stop (our) David from celebrating when he received messages on (the other) David’s birthday. CMSI loves celebrating David every day, too. 

Varsha oversees operations at CMSI, from research proposal stages to personnel relations, promotion of research to budget handling and reporting. In other words, people do not get *fun* emails from her (even though everyone actually loves a Varsha email)! With two elementary school kids, she manages her complicated job thanks to her favorite fuel: ginger chai!

Fun Fact: Varsha’s name means “rain” in Hindi and her younger sister’s name means “cloud,” so her love for nature was introduced right at birth and continues today. 

Caty leads CMSI as Executive Director. She is an award-winning documentary producer, engaged scholar, professor, and strategist focused on social justice through media. At CMSI, Caty serves as principal investigator and leads the team in all aspects of research and creative production protocol, writing, events, and external communications.
Fun Fact: Caty’s parents were called into parent-teacher conferences every single year (kindergarten to senior year of high school) to deal with her “talking problem.” It seems she could never be quiet, regardless of where teachers placed her desk in the classroom. This surprises no one who knows adult Caty.