Fellows Program

Morgan Vazquez is currently a Vice President of Campus Strategy and Pipeline Development at BNY Mellon in New York City. She is leading the redesign of the firm’s campus strategy with a focus on recruiting, developing and retaining a strong pipeline of future leaders. Prior to joining BNY Mellon in August 2015, Morgan spent six years at JPMorgan Chase in a variety of human resources roles, including compensation, HR business partner and employee relations. Morgan graduated Summa Cum Laude from Fordham University (Bronx, NY) in May 2013 as a double major in Communications & Media Studies and Sociology. While at Fordham, Morgan was President of Lambda Pi Eta (the National Communications Honor Society) and a member of Alpha Sigma Nu, Phi Beta Kappa and Phi Kappa Phi honor societies. She was also a news anchor on Fordham Nightly News TV, as well as a member of the Dean’s Advisory Council and the Fordham Orchestra. Morgan has been a proud member of the National Society of High School Scholars since 2007 and most recently served as the Vice President of Special Events on the inaugural Fellows Program Executive Board. She is very excited to work with Fellows Program members on various new and exciting initiatives aimed at cultivating a thriving alumni network for NSHSS.

Lauren Ritter is the Executive Vice President of the NSHSS Fellows Program, where she acts as a communications strategist working to develop ways to connect NSHSS alumni with each other, current high school students and resources that can assist them after they graduate college. She has been actively involved with the National Society of High School Scholars since she joined in 2003, serving as a Student Council Member while she attended Cornell University. Graduating Cornell in May 2013, Lauren majored in Human Development with a minor in Gerontology. She was very active in various aspects of student life on campus, serving as Sports Editor of The Cornell Daily Sun’s 130th Editorial Board, Executive Director of the Willard Straight Hall Student Union Board and Pub Director of the Bear’s Den Pub Committee. Lauren was also a re-founding sister of the Phi Sigma Sigma, Beta Xi chapter in 2011. In addition to student activities and Greek life, Lauren worked in the Cornell Infant Studies Lab, where she studied early cognition and language development. Lauren has continued to be active in the Cornell alumni network, serving on three separate alumni boards. Currently Lauren is a second year law student at the University of Richmond T.C. Williams School of Law, where she hopes to pursue a career as an advocate for underrepresented individuals. Lauren is very passionate about mentoring and building personal relationships, so she hopes to build a strong network of NSHSS alumni in the Fellows Program.

Shambrekiá Wise is a Health Insurance Specialist for the Department of Health and Human Services in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Before relocating to the Washington, D.C. Metro Area, Shambrekiá focused on her studies in Biological Sciences at The University of Arkansas. She went directly into her Master’s program at The University of Tennessee Knoxville where she was awarded an academic fellowship and other scholarships to obtain her Masters of Public Health degree with a concentration in health planning and administration in 2010. For ten months, Shambrekiá worked on the health reform as a Project Officer in The Office of Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight. While there, Shambrekiá monitored the development and financial activities of seven states to ensure they were not only making advancements towards establishing an Exchange, but to also ensure they were complying with other tenants of President Obama’s Affordable Care Act (ACA). In August of 2011, Shambrekiá took a position in the Division of Children’s Health Insurance Programs where she concentrated on aligning existing policies with the ACA as well as the unique position of a Contracting Officer Representative. Shambrekiá is now residing in the Dallas Fort Worth Area where she is still employed with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services as a Health Insurance Specialist. Her current job focuses on analyzing policies presented to her by State Partners. As a Bill and Melinda Gates Scholar, Shambrekiá has a great appreciation for higher learning and is looking to return to school for her professional degree.

Elizabeth Blanchette is a graduate of Liberty University, where she received her Master of Arts in Executive Leadership. Her achievements include inductions into several graduate business honor societies and recognition as a gold medallion recipient with a 4.00 grade point average. She is a summa cum laude graduate of Eastern Nazarene College (ENC). During her undergraduate studies at ENC, Ms. Blanchette was awarded numerous scholarships, inducted into the Phi Delta Lambda international honor society, and named one of five outstanding seniors in her graduating class. Ms. Blanchette is honored to serve as Vice President of Alumni Relations for the National Society of High School Scholars Executive Fellows Board. Elizabeth has been a member of the NSHSS since 2010, serving as an NSHSS Ambassador, a four-year member of the NSHSS Student Council, and a member of the College Student Council before joining the Executive Fellows Board. Ms. Blanchette has traveled extensively, interning with youth programs – in management positions - in England, France, Ireland, and Wales. She is passionate about changing lives through investing and inspiring the youth of the world. Through developing relationships and connections with NSHSS alumni, fellows, high school members, educators, and families, Ms. Blanchette hopes to assist and advance the alumni in their pursuit of excellence, while fostering a lifelong and worldwide NSHSS community based on fellowship and engagement.

Kolby Keo is the Vice President of Special Events on the NSHSS Fellows Program Executive Board. He is a proud transfer alumnus from Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa, California, where he served as president of the student government and the college district’s student trustee. He also served as President and Chair of the Student Senate for California Community Colleges (SSCCC) Region VIII and Vice President of the California Community College Association of Student Trustees (CCCAST). Kolby graduated summa cum laude from the University of California, Irvine in June 2015 with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. While at UCI, Kolby served as President of Tau Sigma Omicron (the National Honor Society for Transfer Students) and a member of Pi Sigma Alpha, Pi Gamma Mu, Sigma Alpha Pi, and Golden Key honor societies. He also served on UCI’s Senior Class Committee, Student Center Board of Advisors, and the Chancellor’s Task Force on Transfer Students. Kolby has served on several community boards including: the Parks, Recreation, and Arts Commission for the City of Garden Grove; the Sister City Association of Garden Grove; the Orange County Soccer Officials Association (OCSOA); and as an 11-year volunteer for the national non-profit American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO). Aside from community activities, Kolby is a part-time soccer official for U.S. Soccer and the NCAA. In his free time, he enjoys binge-watching House of Cards and the West Wing on Netflix and “borrowing” his friends’ HBO passwords to catch the latest episode of Game of Thrones. Kolby is now residing in Washington, D.C. and currently serves as a Congressional Aide for United States Representative Alan Lowenthal of California's 47th Congressional District.

April Kalinski is a graduate from the University of Nebraska. While getting her Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and International Business, she was a member of the University’s Women in Business group as well as the accounting honor society, Beta Alpha Psi. After graduating in 2014, she was a member of the Board of Directors for a local Nature Center and park in Lincoln Nebraska. In 2016, she moved to the Chicago area where she continues her work in accounting with a manufacturing company. In her free time, she volunteers her time between managing the finances for a local cat rescue, planning Habitat for Humanity builds for her company, and fundraising with the Habitat for Humanity Young Professionals group.