15 doctoral students named Connaught PhDs for Public Impact Fellows

Fifteen doctoral students at the University of Toronto have received Connaught PhDs for Public Impact Fellowships for 2026-27.

The annual fellowships are designed to offer doctoral students the opportunity to explore the world of public scholarship. Fellows focus on engaging the public through their scholarly work – this can take a range of forms, from describing their work in a public forum to partnering with a school, community organization or cultural institution in an ongoing exchange of knowledge and practices.

The 2026-27 Connaught PhDs for Public Impact Fellows are:

• Harmata Aboubakar, department of sociology, Faculty of Arts & Science
• Ferdinand (Reke) Avikpe, Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering
• Reese Carr, Women and Gender Studies Institute, Faculty of Arts & Science
• Sajida Chowdhury, Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering
• Ruxandra Filip, department of applied psychology and human development, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education
• Brigid Goulem, Graduate Department of Public Health Sciences, Dalla Lana School of Public Health 
• Amanda Harvey-Sánchez, department of anthropology, Faculty of Arts & Science
• Natasha Henriques, Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, Dalla Lana School of Public Health 
• Lucia Nalbandian, department of political science, Faculty of Arts & Science
• Gemma Postill, Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, Dalla Lana School of Public Health  
• Sterling Stutz, Graduate Department of Public Health Sciences, Dalla Lana School of Public Health 
• Jillian Sunderland, department of sociology, Faculty of Arts & Science
• Songtao (Steve) Wang, department of applied psychology and human development, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education
• Juan-Manuel Vélez-Villegas, department of geography and planning, Faculty of Arts & Science
• Zhangzhu Wan, Women and Gender Studies Institute, Faculty of Arts & Science

Read more about the 2026-27 Connaught PhDs for Public Impact Fellows