Meet Team Pocket Change
Hello! We are Team Pocket Change, a group of five undergraduate students from James Madison University working together to map the field of micro-lending in Virginia. Together, we represent seven majors from across a wide range of departments. Below, you can learn more about our individual team members and the unique skills, interests, and experiences we each bring to the project.
Zachary Alvarado
International Affairs & Spanish
Zachary is from the D.C. suburb of Gainesville, Virginia and is a double major in International Affairs, with a concentration in International Relations, and Spanish. His work experience includes interning for a local non-profit in Valencia, Spain this past summer, as well as serving as a student representative for JMU’s Center for Global Engagement and co-new member coordinator for his professional foreign service fraternity. His goal is to pursue a career either within the U.S. State Department or with a consulting firm.
Aubrey Sharman
International Affairs & English Liturature
Originally from Fairfax, Virginia, Aubrey is a senior double majoring in English Literature and International Affairs with a concentration in Latin American Studies and a minor in Spanish. This past summer, she interned with the State Department at the U.S. Embassy in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She currently works as a Peer Writing Consultant at the JMU Writing Center and is the Community Service and Outreach Coordinator for her profesional foreign service fraternity. Collectively, these experiences have honed her skills in writing, critical thinking, and communication. Aubrey hopes to pursue a career as a Political Officer in the U.S. Foreign Service or working for an international NGO focused on promoting women’s rights in the Americas.
Aaron Sloss
Engineering
From Warrenton, VA, Aaron is a junior engineering student at James Madison University (JMU). He has been working closely with engineering faculty to study chemical engineering with a special interest in brewery systems and applications. He has also worked as a Madison Engineering Research Assistant for multiple research groups, including the study of the social and environmental implications of large energy infrastructure projects, as well as the study of industrial hemp. Aaron hopes to translate his knowledge of brewery science and other chemical engineering concepts into the area of bio-pharmaceutical production and pursue a career in the field.
Liv Stephens
Communication Studies
Liv is a senior Communication Studies major with an advocacy concentration and a political science minor, and plans to attend law school in 2020. She has worked as a Business Development intern for Akin Gump Strauss Hauer &Feld, as a Research intern for Media Matters For America, as a Legal Assistant at Whittington Law, as an intern at the Virginia Beach Courthouse, as a Huber Experience Intern at the Valley AIDS Network, and is currently a JMU Police Cadet. She is interested in law enforcement, aviation, pharmaceuticals, insurtech, medical justice, the First Amendment, mass media, social movements, and congressional politics.
Nathan Humphrey
Writing, Rhetoric, and Technical Communication & Public Policy and Administration
Nathan Humphrey is a Senior at James Madison University and he is double majoring in Writing Rhetoric and Technical Communication and Public Policy and Administration. Nathan has experience interning at a lobbying firm in Richmond Virginia where he gained experience with grant writing, publication management and policy analysis. He also has extensive work experience with customer service which sharpened his people skills and interpersonal communication skills. Following his graduation this Spring he hopes to work for a local government,or possibly another lobbying firm.