Rarely is there ever a project at CBER that happens without involvement from just one person. CBER staff and students often work together in the research process and final production of a study or project. Because of this, we enjoy watching our alumni 'leave the nest' and take the next steps in their careers.

CBER Alumni – Where Are They Now?

Amy Buck Haneline

Amy is deputy editor at USA TODAY. Her multimedia skills have landed her in varied roles through her career; notably, she earned local fame as beverage reporter for the Indianapolis Star. She worked at CBER as an undergraduate design assistant (’08-’09) and graduated from Ball State with a degree in journalism graphics & women’s studies (BA ’09).

Hilary Fichter Bricker

Hilary is director of financial reporting at RPM International Inc. She graduated from Ball State with a degree in accounting and finance (BS ’12) and was an undergraduate research assistant at CBER (’09-’12).

Aswin Guntupalli

Aswin is senior vice president and senior data manager at Bank of America. He worked at CBER for two years, first as a graduate assistant (’08) and then as a research associate (’09). He graduated from Ball State with a degree in computer science (MS ’08).

Lewis Jones IV

Lewis is a business banking commercial underwriter at First Merchants Corporation. He was an undergraduate research assistant at CBER (’16-’17) before participating in the Koch Internship Program at the Charles Koch Institute (Summer ’17). He graduated from Ball State with a degree in economics (BS ’17).

Karthik Kumar

Karthik is a data scientist at Cognizant Onvida. He graduated from Ball State with a degree in actuarial science (MS ’14) and was a graduate research assistant at CBER.

Nathanial Law

Nathan is an urban planner for the City of Fort Wayne, IN. He was a graduate assistant in research and GIS at CBER (’16-’17) and graduated from Ball State with degrees in urban planning and development (BS ’15) and public administration (MPA ’17).

Morgan Lewis

Morgan is a business analyst at Astronomer, a data technology firm. She was an undergraduate research assistant at CBER (’13-’14) and graduated Summa Cum Laude from Ball State with a degree in economics and finance (BS ’14).

Nii Narku Nortey

Nii is a loan portfolio analyst for the Development Finance Authority of Summit County, Akron, OH. He was a graduate assistant in business analysis for CBER (’19-’22) and graduated from Ball State with degrees in public administration (MPA ’21) and business administration (MBA ’22).

Pamela Quirin Howard

Pamela is assistant director of community development at the City of Westfield, IN. She also a planning consultant and owner of Zoned IN Planning. She was a graduate assistant in research and GIS for CBER (’13-’14) and graduated from Ball State with a master’s of urban and regional planning (MURP ’14).

Whitney Ruble Bross

Whitney is a lecturer of economics at Butler University at a research fellow at Ball State CBER. Her experience at CBER as an undergraduate research assistant (’10-’12)—along with mentorship from the late Dr. Lee Spector, professor of economics—prepared her to enter a doctoral program right after college. Bross earned a bachelor’s in international business at Ball State (BA ’11) and a doctorate in economics of education at Tulane University (PhD ’16).

Rebecca Schlesinger

Rebecca is a credit markets finance and business management associate at JPMorgan Chase & Co. She was an undergraduate research assistant at CBER (’15-’17) and graduated from Ball State with a degree in economics and business administration (BS ’17).

Amber Simos

Amber is executive director of academic innovation at IWU National & Global. At CBER, she was a graduate editorial assistant for the Mid-American Journal of Business (’05-’07). She graduated from Ball State with a degree in business administration (MBA ’07).

Shayna Smith Bonzey

Shayna is a speech pathologist at UMass Memorial Medical Center. She was a graduate assistant in survey research at CBER (’10-’12) and graduated from Ball State with degrees in speech pathology and audiology (BS ’10, MS ’12).

Zhenlei Wang

Zhenlei is vice president of revenue at BHG Financial. He was a graduate assistant in research and statistical analysis at CBER (’11-’12) and earned a degree in actuarial science from Ball State (MA ’12).