Emerging Leaders Council

Navjot Dhadwal

Navjot Dhadwal is a Lieutenant Junior Grade in U.S. Navy for the past four years. Before joining the Navy, he held several high level internships for Senator Joe Donnelly, Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund, Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, and State of Indiana as a Legislative Intern. During his time at Indiana University, Navjot was a Cadet, Indiana University Police Officer, and a Critical Languages Scholar pursuing an intensive Punjabi summer program in India. Navjot graduated with a B.A in International Studies and Psychology from Indiana University.

Asya Kislyuk

Asya Kislyuk is the Policy Programs Manager at Instagram where she focuses on small businesses and tourism. Previously, she worked on the Public Policy team at Airbnb, focusing on state and local government relations across the mid-Atlantic, South and Midwest regions. Asya has worked for the National Democratic Institute focusing on Eurasia and interned at the U.S. State Department in Washington D.C. Asya graduated from Indiana University with a Bachelors of Arts in International Studies, Business, French and Spanish.

Ru Lee Kim

Ru Lee Kim is an Intermediate Intelligence Strategy and Policy Analyst at MITRE Corporation focusing on issues related to federal, state, and local governments. Before her position at MITRE, Ru worked at Deloitte's Financial Risk and Advisory practice, interned at the Center for Strategic and International Studies as a Korea Chair Intern, and interned at the Obama Foundation. During her time at the Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies, Ru served as the Operations Coordinator for Pete Buttigieg's presidential campaign and interned in Seoul, South Korea as an Economic Affairs Intern for the U.S. Department of State. Ru earned a Bachelor’s of Arts in International Studies with a minor in East Asian Languages and Cultures from Indiana University and a Master’s Degree from the Elliot School of International Affairs at The George Washington University.

John McHugh

John McHugh is a Marshall Scholar at Oxford, where he is pursuing a masters in China studies. Previously, John was a Research Associate at Harvard Business School, where he authored cases on Chinese companies in technology, infrastructure, and financial services industry, and interned at the Center for Strategic and International Studies focusing on Belt and Road Initiative. During his time at the Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies, John participated in the Chinese Flagship Program, won a U.S. State Department Critical Language Scholarship, and interned at the Council on Foreign Relations. John, graduated with a B.A in East Asian Languages and Cultures, and minors in Political Science and Central Eurasian Studies from Indiana University. He also received the Wells Senior Recognition Award, the top academic award for IU undergraduates.

Jillian Turner

Jillian Turner is the Vice President, International Programs at the Indiana Economic Development Corporation, an organization that is the State of Indiana’s lead economic development agency. She focuses on attracting, growing, and strengthening Indiana’s international business investment and governmental engagement. Jillian worked for seven years at the US Department of State, including as the Secretary of State’s Public Affairs Advance Lead where she communicated US foreign policy objectives globally. Jillian worked in the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs where she advised Bureau leadership on policy and strategic planning initiatives and managed Fulbright Programs throughout South and Central Asia. She holds a B.A. in International Studies from Indiana University and a M.Ed. in International Education Policy with a concentration in Negotiations from Harvard University.

Ryan Van Slyke

Ryan Van Slyke is an Associate at Booz Allen Hamilton in Washington, D.C., where he supports federal government agencies across homeland security at the intersection of policy analysis, data science, technology, and project management. He has worked with international, federal, state, and local government organizations on veterans affairs, social service contracting, international development, cybersecurity, exercise planning, and migration, including with the World Bank in Moscow, UN Development Program in Bangkok, UNICEF USA, and the UN in Maastricht, the Netherlands. Prior to Booz Allen, Ryan worked at the Institute for Veterans and Military Families at Syracuse University, where he retains a Research Associate affiliation. He is a member of the Young Professionals Briefing Series at the Council on Foreign Relations. Outside of work, Ryan is a professional musician in the greater Washington D.C. area as Principal Trombone of the Washington Metropolitan Philharmonic Orchestra. Ryan graduated from Indiana University-Bloomington with a B.S. in International Studies and Music.

Andrea Vega Yudico

Andrea Vega Yudico is an Assistant Program Officer with the Center for International Media Assistance at the National Endowment for Democracy where her work revolves around researching media development and promoting independent media. She previously covered the White House and the 2020 presidential election as a producer for NHK Japan Broadcasting. Andrea has advocated for press freedom and human rights during her time with Reporters Without Borders at its East Asian bureau in Taiwan. She has also written for English publications in China and Uganda. Andrea graduated with a B.A. in International Studies and a B.A. in Journalism from Indiana University.

Anna Williams Waninger

Anna Williams Waninger is the Senior Director for U.S. Market Access & Strategy at Eli Lilly and Company, where she develops portfolio strategies to address implications of regulatory or legislative changes. Previously, she led the market access strategies for brands in the immunology and oncology therapeutic spaces. From 2015 – 2017, she served on the Indiana University Board of Trustees where she championed career services offerings and a system-wide reduction of application fees for students. Prior to joining Lilly, she worked in trade and international economics in Spain, Ireland, Washington, D.C., and Chicago. Williams Waninger completed her graduate degrees from IU’s O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs and the Hamilton Lugar School focusing on economic policy and foreign direct investment in Turkey. She was a Foreign Language and Area Studies fellowship recipient for Turkish and taught advanced Spanish grammar during graduate school. She earned her bachelor’s degrees in International Studies and Psychology at Indiana University.

Keshawn Young

Keshawn Young is a graduate student at Boston University, pursuing a degree in Journalism. While at Indiana University, he interned at Southwestern Mental Health and studied Swahili at the HLS Summer Language Workshop. His volunteering efforts include speaking with disadvantaged students, organized a Black Lives Matter rally, and created a language learning program in his hometown. Keshawn graduated with a BA in International Studies and a minor in African-American and African Diaspora Studies from Indiana University.