Introducing the ARIN 55 Fellows

By Amanda Gauldin – Project Manager

ARIN staff is busy preparing for ARIN 55, our spring Public Policy and Members Meeting taking place 27-30 April in Charlotte, North Carolina. Meanwhile, we are also excited to be kicking off the ARIN 55 Fellowship Program!

A Hybrid Experience

The Fellowship Program will once again be conducted in a hybrid format. The agenda will include:

• Three virtual sessions before the meeting to introduce the workings of the organization and the ARIN Policy Development Process (PDP),
• The virtual ARIN 55 Meeting Orientation, and
• Participation in ARIN 55 either virtually or in person in Charlotte.

Throughout the program, Fellows will also benefit from mentorship by an ARIN Board of Trustees or Advisory Council member.

Click here to learn more about this spring’s program agenda.

The ARIN Fellowship Program provides a fun and engaging way for Fellows to get immersed in ARIN’s work and feel ready to participate in the upcoming meeting. With the addition of this group of 16 Fellows, we have now welcomed nearly 250 new voices to our community over the last decade.

Meet the Fellows

To get to know them better, we asked each of our new Fellows to share a few tidbits of information about themselves, including: one word that describes how they felt upon learning they were selected for the program; what they are most looking forward to about the experience; and their favorite book, movie, or hobby. Let’s meet the ARIN 55 Fellows!

USA

Aderonke Akinbola — Technical Program Manager, Google
Reaction: Surprised
Looking forward to: Connecting to fellows and learning more about Internet governance.
Favorite book: “The Devotion of Suspect X” by Keigo Higashino

Amanda Hsu — Graduate Research Assistant, Georgia Institute of Technology
Reaction: Excited
Looking forward to: Meeting with others in the ARIN community. Favorite mobile app: Strava

Andrew Hsu — Full-time Student, University of Nevada
Reaction: Elated
Looking forward to: The policy meeting.
Favorite hobby: Powerlifting

Atefeh Mohseni — Software Engineer, Harness; independent computer security researcher
Reaction: Happy
Looking forward to: Knowledge sharing, connecting with like-minded people.
Favorite hobby: Rock climbing

Bayo Olotu — Senior Engineering Program Manager, Google
Reaction: Excited
Looking forward to: Insights into emerging technologies, trends, and Internet number resources.
Favorite movie: “The American President” (1995)

Kevin Schoenfeld — Network Engineer IV, Rochester Institute of Technology
Reaction: Grateful
Looking forward to: The mentorship aspect of the program, as well as the opportunity to connect with others and learn from their experiences.
Favorite podcast: “Making It” with Jimmy Diresta, Bob Clagett and David Picciuto

Michael Goodyear — Acting Assistant Professor, New York University School of Law
Reaction: Ecstatic
Looking forward to: Getting to meet and learn from others interested in Internet policy.
Favorite mobile app: Duolingo

Munachimso Nwaiwu — Network Backbone Engineer, Google
Reaction: Excited
Looking forward to: Learning from experienced mentors.
Favorite hobby: Taking long walks

Mustapha Nasomah — Full-time Student, University of Cincinnati
Reaction: Elated
Looking forward to: The mentorship aspect of the program.
Favorite podcast: “Coffee Break French”

Canada

Caleb Ogundele — CEO, Olum Consulting Group
Reaction: Excited
Looking forward to: Great learning and professional networking with colleagues.
Favorite hobby: Observing nature

Wyatt Jerome — Full-time Student, University of Alberta
Reaction: Astounded
Looking forward to: Strengthening my knowledge of Internet governance on the more technical side of things.
Favorite movie: “The Shawshank Redemption” (1994)

Caribbean

Altie Jackson — Senior Capacity Planning Engineer, Columbus Communications Limited (FLOW JA)
Reaction: Excited
Looking forward to: Knowledge gain.
Favorite mobile app: Instagram

Charles Grant — IT Manager, Jolly’s Pharmacy; Master’s Student, University of Portsmouth
Reaction: Excited
Looking forward to: Engaging with industry experts, learning more about ARIN’s Policy Development Process, and networking with fellow professionals who are passionate about Internet governance and infrastructure.
Favorite podcast: “Darknet Diaries”

Matthew Forbes — Azure Cloud Engineer, Digicel Group Limited
Reaction: Grateful
Looking forward to: Exploring how recent developments in U.S. public policy and advancements in tech (e.g. AI, blockchain) have an impact on ARIN’s policies.

Orren Joseph — Software Engineer, Government of Saint Kitts and Nevis
Reaction: Ecstatic
Looking forward to: Meeting people
Favorite mobile app: WhatsApp

Timothy Scott — Chief Executive Officer, National Telecommunications Regulatory Commission of Grenada

Our Mentors and Special Guests

Fellows will be paired with an experienced ARIN Board of Trustees or Advisory Council (AC) member to help guide them through the meeting and policy discussions. During the preparatory sessions, Mentors also lead small group breakout sessions to discuss policy development and other topics in more detail. Additional members of the AC and ARIN staff will join us throughout the program to explain the PDP, what policies to expect on the docket for discussion at ARIN 55, and ARIN resources and services.

Thank you to these volunteers for their involvement in the ARIN 55 Fellowship Program — their participation is key to the success of our Fellows!

Mentors

Douglas Camin — ARIN AC member and Chief Information and Technology Officer for Coordinated Care Services, Inc.
Gerry George — ARIN AC member and ICT Consultant
Kaitlyn Pellak — ARIN AC member and Technical Business Developer at Amazon Web Services
Nancy Carter — ARIN Board member and independent director
Ron da Silva — ARIN Board member

Peek Inside the Program

The ARIN 55 Fellowship Program will consist of multiple sessions held virtually in the weeks leading up to the meeting.

Kat Hunter and Matthew Wilder, ARIN AC Chair and Vice Chair, respectively, will join us for the first few sessions. They, along with ARIN’s Policy Analyst, Eddie Diego, will discuss the PDP at ARIN and policies on the docket at ARIN 55. And Kevin Blumberg, CTO of The Wire Inc. and an ARIN representative on the Number Resource Organization (NRO) Number Council, will provide a high-level introduction to global Internet governance through ICANN’s NRO Number Council/Address Supporting Organization Address Council. Each Mentor will also have time in the spotlight, too, to talk about their career journey and their experiences with ARIN.

For the last pre-meeting session, Fellows will attend the virtual Meeting Orientation to learn more about ARIN and receive helpful information for attending and participating in the ARIN 55 Public Policy and Members Meeting.

After the meeting, Fellows will discuss their experience in the program and takeaways from ARIN 55 in a final virtual session. We look forward to a fun and meaningful time with this group of Fellows and to adding more new voices to our public policy discussions.

For more updates, follow us on LinkedIn at ARIN’s company page and at @TeamARIN on Facebook and X. Stay tuned for information regarding the ARIN 56 Fellowship Program next year!

Want to be the first to receive updates like this? Subscribe to the ARIN Blog.

Post written by:

Amanda Gauldin
Project Manager

Recent blogs categorized under: Fellowship Program

• Apply Today for the ARIN 55 Fellowship Program
• My Experience as an ARIN Fellow
• Introducing the ARIN 54 Fellows
• Journeying from Novice to Contributor: My Path into ARIN Policy Development