Claire Marie Ellis

Claire Marie Ellis will graduate from Columbia College in May 2023 with a major in Human Rights, a specialization in Women’s and Gender Studies, and a concentration in English and Comparative Literature. Her academic research centers on asylum claims from gender-based violence survivors, which she has investigated through the work of NGOs in the United States, France, and Switzerland. As a bilingual descendant of Cuban refugees, Claire has volunteered at various New York–based nonprofits such as Sanctuary for Families, The Brave House of the Urban Justice Center, and National Advocates for Pregnant Women. Most recently, Claire clerked for a judge in the Civil Court of New York City and has since developed a passion for labor rights and consumer-debt fairness policy. With hopes to dismantle gender-based forms of socio-economic oppression as they particularly impact migrant and immigrant workers, Claire plans to engage in more human rights activism abroad in the near future and then pursue a JD back in the states.