Yev Gelman is a NY-based student, writer, and theatre artist currently getting his B.A. in Theatre Directing and Creative Writing from Fordham University, where he is active as a theatre director, poster artist, and designer. Through his work with Fordham Creative Writing and the Poetic Justice Institute, Yev hopes to learn more about advocacy within the literary world, and how to best uplift voices that have long been silenced. In his writing, Yev tells stories of queer love, immigration, and the New York ecosystem.

Emma Burden is a sophomore English major at Fordham Lincoln Center. Her long-time love of prose and recent devotion to poetry drew her to the Poetic Justice Institute. She is excited to apply creative writing to her intersecting identities and social justice work, alongside working with the rest of the Poetic Justice Institute to change the world through poetry. Emma's poetry had been published in Fordham's Bricolage and The Comma, the later of which she is the managing editor. In her free time, Emma loves watching The X-Files, talking about Carrie Fisher, reading memoirs, and video calling with her cats at home.

Jacob Myron Cerdena is a sophomore studying English with a concentration in Creative Writing and a minor in Psychology. Though he is involved in many areas around campus, he has been a Black Sheep Performance Poet since his first semester of freshman year and hopes he can continue their legacy of bringing experimental entertainment to Fordham. He enjoys writing about deep, messy, infatuating systems of human connection and finds overwhelming comfort in nature. He has been published in the Ampersand and Bricolage and is striving to spread his talents elsewhere.

Chaise Jones is a rising junior at Fordham College at Lincoln Center studying New Media & Digital Design and English with a creative writing concentration. Through her studies, she aspires to investigate design impact on Black and brown communities and diversity in literature. She enjoys poetry that explores self-love and generational trauma. She is excited to uplift much-needed, diverse voices through her fellowship at the Poetic Justice Institute.

Katherine Lussen (she/her) is a rising junior studying English and Communication and Culture at Fordham College Rose Hill. A poet and songwriter, she is incredibly excited to work with the Poetic Justice Institute and the opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of how lyrical work can evoke compassion and change. An executive board member for Fordham's oldest literary magazine, the Ampersand, and a member of Black Sheep performance poetry, she hopes to spread appreciation for student creative work in the Fordham community.

is a junior at Fordham College at Lincoln Center studying psychology and English, with a creative writing concentration. Through her dual majors, she hopes to better understand the role of storytelling in identity formation. As a Fellow at the Poetic Justice Institute, she is excited to continue learning about art as a tool for social justice.

is a junior at Fordham College at Lincoln Center majoring in English with a creative writing concentration. She is excited about how the Poetic Justice Institute emphasizes human connection and poetry’s place in social justice. A poet and prose writer, she enjoys exploring the line between fiction and nonfiction. Her work has appeared in Fordham’s The Comma and the (un)common sense digital chapbook.