Cogent Strategies is pleased to welcome our new class of fellows for Summer 2023! These Cogent fellows bring an array of early career experiences and perspectives and are an integral part of the work we do with our clients. We’re excited to have them on board!
Meet them below:
Caroline Gorter
Caroline Gorter is a recent graduate of American University, where she studied Economics and Political Science. Caroline brings to Cogent her experience working in the Office of Rep. William Timmons (R-SC) and the Office of Rep. Drew Ferguson (R-GA). This summer, she hopes to further her interests in a variety of policy issues and combine her passions for technology, economics, policy and law throughout the summer.
Avi Gupta
Avi Gupta is a recent graduate of New York University with a degree in Economics and Politics and is an upcoming master’s student in Foreign Service at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service. He has prior work experience at the U.S. Department of State at the U.S. Embassy in London and the U.S. Mission to the United Nations. Avi also has worked as an Investment Banking Public Finance Analyst at Wells Fargo. He hopes to diversify his experiences and work to provide insight on congressional issues for a wide variety of clients.
Emily Kane
Emily Kane is a current master’s student at the School of International Service at American University, where she is studying Global Governance, Politics and Security. During her first year of graduate studies at American, she was a virtual Intern with the Office of Alumni Affairs at the U.S. Department of State. Before moving to Washington, Emily was a bilingual Kindergarten/1st-grade teacher with Teach for America. While working for Teach for America, she received her master’s degree in Bilingual Education. For her undergraduate degree, she attended Davidson College, where she played Division I volleyball and double majored in Political Science and Hispanic Studies. She is excited to expand her knowledge and skillset on congressional issues by working with a wide variety of clients at Cogent Strategies.
Daneel Konnar
Daneel Konnar is a senior at the University of Mississippi majoring in Public Policy Leadership. He serves as an Ole Miss Ambassador and currently is the executive director of the Ole Miss Student Activities Association, which is the university’s programming board. Daneel also is a member of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity, where he serves as philanthropy chair. He was the Director of Sponsorship for the RebelTHON fundraiser during his sophomore year, which he raised more than $55,000 to benefit the Blair E. Batson Children’s Hospital in Jackson, Mississippi. He also served as an Ole Miss Orientation Leader and was an intern for Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves’s office in the summer of 2021. More recently, he worked as an intern in Rep. Trent Kelly’s (R-MS) office in Washington, DC. In his free time, Daneel enjoys traveling, spending time with friends and being outdoors. He is a member of the Sally McDonnell Barksdale Honors College and the Trent Lott Leadership Institute. Daneel is excited to bring his past experiences and work with Cogent Strategies this summer as he expands his knowledge of government relations to better serve clients’ needs.
Kathryn Monahan
Kathryn Monahan is a recent graduate of Saint Anselm College, where she majored in Politics and Psychology with a minor in International Relations and a focus in Gender Studies. She previously has worked as a research fellow at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics and as an Associate Producer/Assignment Editor at WMUR-TV.
Jack Nichols
Jack Nichols is a recent graduate of Duke University, where he majored in Political Science and minored in Spanish. He brings to the team political experience from his time as a South Carolina State House campaign intern in 2020. Jack looks forward to using his passion for political theory and politics alongside his enjoyment of writing.