Alumni Spotlight Kate Cella
Kate Cella '11
Kate Cella, 2011 alum with an International Studies degree, recently published a free-lance article in the online version of the prestigious Foreign Policy. The journal is committed to “rigorous exploration of the world’s biggest issues” and publishes the work of some of the best known scholars in the field. As an intern she wrote extensively for them and has also published in Jadaliyya, an online magazine about the Arab world.
Cella’s recent Foreign Affairs article focused on Hooshang Amirahmadi, a professor of public policy at Rutgers University, who is running for the presidency of Iran. Amirahmadi has not lived in Iran for 40 years and some argue that he has no chance of obtaining approval from Iran’s Guardian Council that decides who can run for the presidency. Amirahmadi is running on a reform platform that pledges to address unemployment in Iran, improve the status of minorities, and repair relations with the United States. He is optimistic about his chances of winning the election if he can gain the approval of the Council. Even more optimistically, he thinks that the Supreme Leader Khamenei might not be opposed to his bid. Most commentators disagree, citing the conflict between his platform and Khamenei’s policies. Cella spent some time with the candidate in New York, interviewing him and observing his interaction during a day of media exposure.
Cella recently completed a master's degree in journalism and Middle Eastern studies at New York University. Her master’s thesis won the New York University’s top investigative journalism award and is in the process of being published. Cella is currently working at a start-up writing curriculum for schools in Africa.
