Ruby DeBellis was a participant in the Humphrey School of Public Affairs' first ever PPIA JSI cohort in 2017. 

Ruby is a graduate from the University of Minnesota, Morris, and obtained her Bachelor's degree in Political Science with a minor in Biochemistry in 2018. After graduation, Ruby joined U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar’s Minneapolis office, and is currently serving as an Outreach Director handling housing, women’s issues, public safety and law enforcement, food security, and Asian-American community issues. 

In May 2023, she earned her Master's degree from the Humphrey School of Public Affairs in Science, Technology, and Environmental Policy (MS-STEP), with a focus on environmental justice and food, water, and energy systems. She is currently working as a co-author on a paper focused on race, urban nature, and redlining in the Midwest, and is a Board Member for the Cultural Society of Filipino-Americans.

9:00 am Meet at resident hall

10:00 am Capitol Tour

11:30 am Arrive at East Bank station (Green Line)

Ashwini is a PhD student at Humphrey School of Public Affairs in the Public Policy track. She is also a Population Studies trainee at the Minnesota Population Center. Prior to joining the Humphrey School, she has been involved in quantitative field research in topics of menstrual hygiene and impact evaluations of a renewable energy implementation project in Sierra Leone.

Her overarching research interests are in health and welfare of women and adolescent girls in Sub-Saharan Africa and in current perspectives on fertility and family formation in this region. She is currently working on projects using the American Time Use Survey, looking at racial/ethnic differences in social contact patterns in the US. In her free time, Ashwini enjoys watching movies, trying new recipes, and exploring the Twin Cities.

Donald Mark Ritchie is an American politician and a former Minnesota Secretary of State. Ritchie was elected the 21st Minnesota Secretary of State on November 7, 2006. He was re-elected in 2010.

He co-chairs the Minnesota USA Expo Bid Committee, serves as the Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army for Minnesota, and is the President of Global Minnesota. He is a member of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party.

He was born in Georgia, lived in Pennsylvania, Florida, Maryland, Iowa, Alaska, and graduated from high school in Iowa. He graduated from Iowa State University in 1971 and from the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota in 2013. He and his wife, Nancy Gaschott, have lived in Minnesota since 1980.

Basil Ajuo is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Minnesota Africans United, responsible for the day-to-day operations of the organization. Originally from the central African nation of Cameroon, Basil Ajuo has decades of experience in education, business development and nonprofit leadership management.

In 2016, Basil Ajuo was appointed by Governor Mark Dayton to serve the 4th largest U.S. Boards of Higher Education, Minnesota State Colleges and Universities Board of Trustees. Basil Ajuo’s graduate degree is in public policy and advocacy through Metropolitan State University.

Ajuo has served on many boards, including the Metropolitan Workforce Council, Center for Innovation and the Arts, and the Nellie Johnson Scholarship Foundation. A centerpiece of the MAU program has been serving Minnesota businesses that are interested in exporting and importing goods and services overseas with Africa.

In the course of his efforts, Basil Ajuo has organized and promoted many conferences and webinars to address key issues. Topics covered have been mining, agriculture, healthcare investment, educational exchanges, trade and investment in Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Ghana, Malawi, and other African Countries. He has promoted trade fairs and helped US companies understand the value of showcasing their products through these channels and advising African businesses who are interested in taking advantage of the US markets through the African Growth and Opportunity Act. These efforts have led to success for African diaspora companies willing to invest in their countries of origin and for midwestern companies as they expand their market into Africa.

Justine manages Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) training for the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) Learning Center. She is passionate about DEIA and has facilitated numerous DEIA sessions to help GAO, other government agencies, national associations, and universities recruit and retain a diverse talent pool and minimize the effects of unconscious bias.

She joined GAO’s headquarters in 2009 and is currently in the Oakland field office. She spent over a decade in the GAO’s Homeland Security and Justice and International Affairs and Trade teams. She successfully led multidisciplinary audit teams and made significant contributions to the GAO’s work on aid to conflict areas, democracy assistance, foreign investment, human trafficking, intelligence, and territorial economies.

Justine obtained a bachelor of arts in psychology and interdisciplinary studies from the University of California, Berkeley, and a Master of Public Policy from the Goldman School of Public Policy at the University of California, Berkeley. She is a Public Policy and International Affairs Fellow and a National Pacific American Leadership Institute Fellow.

Michelle is a senior analyst on GAO’s Natural Resources and Environment team, focusing on environmental protection and programs serving Tribes and their members. Her recent work has examined COVID-19 relief to tribal recipients, EPA enforcement of environmental laws, and the federal government’s fiscal exposure due to climate change. She serves as a mentor and adjunct faculty at GAO and has facilitated numerous DEIA discussions and sessions at GAO, local government, and universities. Michelle has also co-authored research papers and journal articles for the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions. Prior to GAO, Michelle worked in higher education and the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.

Michelle holds an MPA from New York University’s Wagner School of Public Service, and BAs in sociology and the College Scholar Program (thesis on community-based art and ethnic enclaves) from Cornell University. She completed her Public Policy and International Affairs Junior Summer Institute at UC Berkeley. She is based in GAO’s Oakland office, although currently working in Philadelphia. Outside of GAO, she enjoys learning new things from her 4-year-old kid, running, and trying new food.

Greg Lindsey joined the Humphrey School of Public Affairs in 2008 as associate dean, served as interim dean in 2011, and served as executive associate dean until September 2012. As the Humphrey School's principal academic officer, he led efforts to develop the Master of Development Practice degree program, its early admissions graduate programs, its Public Affairs Leadership certificate program, and its award-winning Humphrey by the Numbers information management system.

Lindsey specializes in environmental planning, policy, and management. His current research involves non-motorized transportation systems, including bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure, and studies of relationships between the built environment and active transportation and physical activity.

Partners in his research include the Minnesota Department of Transportation, the Minneapolis Department of Public Works, Transit for Livable Communities, and the Minneapolis Parks and Recreation Board. Lindsey previously has directed research projects on water infrastructure finance, greenway use, annexation policy, and erosion and sediment control programs. He has served on commissions for neighborhood development, park land acquisition, comprehensive plan implementation, tree preservation, groundwater protection, and soil and water conservation.

Lindsey teaches capstone and workshop courses in non-motorized transportation and the Humphrey School's CHANCE course, a course in which students do research with neighborhood organizations in the Cedar-Riverside area on issues of concern to local residents. Past projects have included planning for a special services district, creation of the Somali Data Center, and engaging local residents in the 2010 Census.

Lindsey has received a number of awards for his work to link research and practice. In 2008, he was named a Distinguished Hoosier by the Governor of Indiana and was recognized by the City-County Council of Indianapolis, Indiana for his contributions to the city. In 2004, he was named the inaugural recipient of the Chancellor's Faculty Award for Excellence in Civic Engagement at IUPUI. He was a Senior Fulbright Scholar in Vietnam in 1999. He twice received Best Paper Awards from the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning for papers linking academic research to planning practice.

Lindsey has published articles in Journal of the American Planning Association, Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, Journal of Physical Activity and Health, Professional Geographer, Journal of Recreation and Park Administration, Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management, Public Works Management and Policy, State and Local Government Review, Landscape and Urban Planning, Public Productivity and Management Review, and Journal of Planning Education and Research.

Lindsey previously served as associate dean of the Indiana University School of Public and Environmental Affairs (SPEA) at IUPUI in Indianapolis. He earned his doctorate and a master's degree from the Department of Geography and Environmental Engineering at Johns Hopkins University. He also received a master's degree in geography and environmental studies from Northeastern Illinois University. His bachelor's degree is in urban planning from the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign.

The bike tour will depart from the Humphrey School. Please arrive at the Humphrey School by 12:45 pm and we will assist you with getting a bike.

Simone Gbolo joined PPIA as the national director in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 2016. The Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota was selected as the new host institution for the Public Policy and International Affairs (PPIA) Program National Office and moved in the spring of 2016. In this capacity, she is responsible for overseeing organizational operations and supporting our alumni and consortium members. In all of her work, Simone has demonstrated a deep commitment to developing meaningful initiatives that cultivate and engage students as they pursue careers that impact social change and transformation and providing service to others in addressing the social challenges in the world.

Amber Bieneck Thom is the assistant director of the Office of Career and Student Success Prior to joining the Humphrey School, she was a career counselor and educator at the University of St. Thomas for nine years.

She has experience as a career counselor, program manager, and adjunct faculty member. Her  areas of expertise include exploring the intersection of global experiences and career development, working with first-generation college students, and facilitating meaningful connections among students, alumni, and university constituents.

Thom is active in many professional associations, and has held numerous leadership positions over the past five years. She has presented at a variety of conferences, including NACE and the Career Integration Conference. 

Thom earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Superior, and her master’s degree in counseling psychology from St. Thomas.

The Minneapolis Sculpture Garden is one of the largest urban sculpture gardens in the country. Spoonbridge and Cherry is the most popular sculpture and the symbol of the garden!

1:00-2:00 pm Travel to the Sculpture Garden

2:00-3:00 pm Explore the Sculpture Garden

3:00-4:30 pm Explore the Walker Art Center

5:30 pm Arrive at the Resident hall

Gabe Chan is an associate professor at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs in the Science, Technology, and Environmental Policy (STEP) area. Chan's research examines policies to stimulate innovation in energy technologies and mitigate global climate change in the United States, China, and internationally. Gabe's research blends economic methods and theory with a broader set of social science and technical knowledge.

Joe Soss is the inaugural Cowles Chair for the Study of Public Service at the University of Minnesota, where he holds faculty positions in the Humphrey School of Public Affairs, the Department of Political Science, and the Department of Sociology. His research and teaching explore the interplay of democratic politics, societal inequalities, and public policy. He is particularly interested in the political sources and consequences of policies that govern social marginality and shape life conditions for socially marginal groups. His coauthored book, Disciplining the Poor: Neoliberal Paternalism and the Persistent Power of Race (2011), was selected for the 2012 Michael Harrington Award (APSA, New Political Science) and the 2012 Oliver Cromwell Cox Award (ASA, Section on Racial and Ethnic Minorities), the 2012 CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title Award (American Library Association), and the 2015 Herbert Simon Award (APSA, Section on Public Administration). In 2010, he received the campus-wide Outstanding Faculty Award from the University of Minnesota's Council of Graduate Students (COGS). In 2013-14, he served as Dale T. Mortensen Senior Fellow at the Aarhus Institute of Advanced Studies, Aarhus University, Denmark. In 2016, Professor Soss was honored with the University's campus-wide award for outstanding contributions to graduate education, named a Distinguished University Teaching Professor, and inducted into the UMN Academy of Distinguished Teachers. Outside his academic work, Soss is an active musician and recently released an album, The Sound of Sweet Ruin.