Each year, CCLP Director Geoffrey Cowan selects some of the best and brightest graduate students in the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism to work with CCLP on dynamic research projects in the areas of media, communications, politics, technology, and diplomacy. Each scholar is awarded tuition assistance and funding in exchange for supporting CCLP’s initiatives.
CCLP is proud to present its 2024-2025 Cowan Scholars:
Alexandria Keller is studying for her Masters of Arts degree in Specialized Journalism Arts and Culture from the University of California’s Annenberg School. She is a Cleveland native and attended Kent State University for undergrad. After graduating college, Keller worked as an Editorial Intern for America’s Test Kitchen, a food multimedia company located in Boston, Massachusetts. During her internship, Keller studied closely with the Editor in Chief of Cook’s Country Magazine and secured a research position with the editor. As the editor’s first-ever Research Assistant, Keller worked for three years compiling historic data for the book, Juke Joints Jazz Clubs and Juice.
Prior to coming to USC, Keller expanded her journalistic expertise to incorporate music journalism. She became a trained DJ in 2023, and is looking forward to exploring the music scene in L.A.
Juliana Maitenaz is a graduate student in the Master of Public Diplomacy program and Cowan Scholar at USC Annenberg, from Brooklyn, NY. Prior to beginning her graduate studies, Juliana completed a Fulbright research grant in São Paulo, Brazil, developing her research on the transformation of percussion from an instrument of military force to one of soft power and cultural diplomacy, primarily focusing on how percussive elements in the Brazilian traditions of Carnival and samba schools are instrumental to the country’s statecraft and national identity. While completing her Fulbright research in Brazil, Juliana held a guest lecture in Portuguese on her project “Rhythm and Statecraft” at the State University of São Paulo, was enrolled in masters courses at the University of São Paulo, performed as a drummer in Carnaval 2024, and wrote a short book, “De Ouvido” about the culture of pedagogy in São Paulo samba schools. Juliana graduated from Bard College and Conservatory of Music as a dual degree student with degrees in global international studies and classical percussion performance. As an undergraduate student at Bard, she worked as a writing tutor for the Bard Prison Initiative, completed studies both in New York City at the Bard Globalization International Affairs program and in Berlin, Germany, and toured with the Conservatory orchestra in Hai Nan, China. Juliana has interned as a French Lingual Analyst at Nonviolence International NY, an organization in special consultative status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations, and at Redland Strategies consulting firm.
Polina Tsurikova is a graduate student, Cowan Scholar, and Peterson Scholar enrolled in the dual degree Global Media and Communications (LSE/USC) program. Originally from Framingham, Massachusetts, she completed her Bachelor of Arts at Leiden University College: The Hague, while also spending a semester abroad at Underwood International College at Yonsei University in South Korea. Additionally, Tsurikova is closely connected with her Ukrainian heritage, having spent most of her childhood summers in Kharkiv, Ukraine, and spent significant time following the start of the war in 2022 doing volunteer work helping Ukrainian refugees settle in the Netherlands.
After leaving the Netherlands, Tsurikova took on consulting work in media and marketing with Elimu Informatics, a healthcare informatics company specializing in clinical decision support and precision medicine and began her first Master’s program in London at around the same time. Having grown up in the motorsports community, her research in London was focused on fan responses to the quality and quantity of female representation within Formula 1 and Netflix’s documentary of the sport: Drive to Survive. Her current professional interests span several spheres, but are mostly based in sports, music, and politics. While in L.A., she aims to continue exploring the intersections of media, culture, and global communication, with a focus on learning how to foster more inclusive narratives in sports media and beyond.