2026–2027 Executive Team
The Executive Team for the 2026–2027 term is here to support the operations of the GSG assembly, and spearhead efforts to build a graduate community that opens up avenues for advocacy for and by graduate students.
Please feel free to reach out to any E-Board member throughout the year. No concern is too small. We are here for you!
Ph.D. in Journalism Studies
Keegan Clements-Housser is a Ph.D. candidate at the Philip Merrill College of Journalism at University of Maryland, College Park. His research focus is on mapping and bridging the rigor-relevance divide or the "knowledge gap" between practicing journalists and journalism scholars. Prior to this, he spent a decade as a journalist, media analyst, and consultant in Portland, Oregon. He was a research assistant at Urbanism Next, a University of Oregon-based research center focused on investigating the impacts of automation and e-commerce on urban planning and design. He was also project manager at Gather, an Agora Journalism Center-based project and platform to support community-minded journalists and other engagement professionals. Prior to his Presidency, Keegan served as the Director of Operations, Keegan was the Journalism Studies (JOST) representative to GSG from 2022-2024, where he served in a variety of capacities, including chairing the 2022-2023 Student Affairs Committee.
Masters in Information Management
Emily Shoemaker is pursuing a Master of Information Management (M.I.M) with a certificate of Non-Profit Leadership at the University of Maryland (UMD), College Park, where she serves as the Vice President of Legislative Affairs in the Graduate Student Government and as a Graduate Teaching Assistant for the College of Information. She earned her bachelor's in Information Science and Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE) from UMD in 2026. During her time at UMD, Emily has served as the Residence Hall Association President (2025-2026) and was also selected as a member of the Sustainability Collective of Maryland. From the collective, she was promoted to work in Dining Services Marketing, Communications, and Sustainability where she authored and secured a $21,000 grant for the South Campus Botanical Refresh Project. She is a published artist through Stylus: A Journal of Literature (2025, 2026) and a published author through 1763: The Palmetto Journal (2026).
PhD in Government and Politics
Lizzie Irlbacher is a Ph.D. candidate in Government and Politics. Her research explores elections, institutions, and contentious politics in developing democracies with a regional focus in East Africa. Lizzie has conducted fieldwork in Kenya. During the 2023-2024 academic year, she lived in Kenya learning Swahili with the Boren Fellowship. Her previous experience in GSG includes being a department rep for Government and Politics, and serving as Vice-President of Legislative Affairs.
Ph.D. in Epidemiology and Biostatistics
Nora is a 4th year PhD Candidate in the EPID program in the School of Public Health. They grew up in Northern Virginia and have lived in Europe, the midwest, and along the west coast before moving back to Baltimore to pursue their PhD in Epidemiology and firearms violence prevention, LGBTQIA+ population health, social theory, pedagogy, and values and ethics. They like to spend their free time rock climbing, doing photography, and art, playing violin and DJing music, reading for pleasure and fixing up their home when time permits.
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Ph. D. in Electrical Engineering
Sydney Overton is a PhD candidate in Electrical Engineering at the University of Maryland, College Park. Her research focuses on micro- to milli- scale devices for measuring specific biomarkers in the gastrointestinal tract. Sydney has previously served as an Electrical and Computer Engineering program representative in GSG and as the president of the Electrical and Computer Engineering Graduate Student Association. She is currently a member of
the Engineering Graduate Student Society and Engineering Senator.