Meet the Team

The Gender+ Justice Initiative is led by a dedicated team, including an executive director, faculty co-directors from the Main Campus, Medical Center, and Law Center, a program director, and a steering committee. Supported by student assistants, this team works collaboratively to advance intersectional gender justice through research, advocacy, and community engagement across Georgetown’s campuses.

Team

Melyssa Haffaf, Ph.D.

Executive Director, Gender+ Justice Initiative
Lecturer of French, African Studies, and Women’s and Gender Studies

Coco Tait

Program Director, Gender+ Justice Initiative
G+JI Fellow, 2025

Faculty Co-Directors

Dionne S. Coker-Appiah, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Georgetown University School of Medicine
G+JI Faculty Co-Director, AY2027

Naomi Mezey, J.D.

Professor of Law, Georgetown University Law Center
G+JI Faculty Co-Director, AY2027

Kwame Edwin Otu, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of African Anthropology
G+JI Faculty Co-Director, AY2027

Steering Committee

Denise Brennan, Ph.D.

Professor of Anthropology
Director, Dept. of Anthropology

Nadia Brown, Ph.D.

Professor of Government
Director, Women’s and Gender Studies Program

Janel George, J.D.

Associate Professor of Law
Director, Racial Equity in Education Law and Policy Clinic

Kristi Graves, Ph.D.

Professor of Oncology
Associate Dean for Faculty Development, Georgetown University School of Medicine

Sara Omar, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of Arabic & Islamic Studies

Amanda D. Phillips, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of English, Film and Media Studies

Student Assistants

Lauren Burns

Program Assistant