Our Team

Pran Saha is the Human Rights Initiative’s medical director for medicine and pediatrics and performs medical and psychological evaluations for clients seeking asylum. He is an assistant clinical professor of pediatrics. He spends 50 percent of his time in a busy primary care practice in the upper west side of Manhattan and 50 percent of his time as a medical educator. Besides precepting students in Foundations of Clinical Medicine (FCM) and directing the Health Promotion Block in FCM–II, his focus is developing a motivational interviewing curriculum at the Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons (VP&S). In his free time, he loves cooking in his tiny NYC kitchen and nurturing his recently discovered love of creative writing. 

Alexander (Alex) grew up in Miami, Florida, and graduated from the University of Miami in 2022 with a degree in Neuroscience and minors in Health Policy and Management and Entrepreneurship. Having come from a family of Cuban refugees that escaped political persecution from the Cuban authoritarian regime, Alex hopes that through CHRIA he can help provide others escaping persecution with the same opportunities given to his own family in the past. In college, he served as co-director of Kesem at the University of Miami, an organization that supports children affected by a parent’s cancer and provides them with a free overnight summer camp, for two years. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic he assisted his community through contact tracing and vaccine advocacy work. He was also a part of a home health and community care non-profit called United HomeCare that provides free home health services for seniors and disabled individuals in the South Florida community. In his spare time, Alex enjoys rooting for his favorite Miami sports teams, trying new recipes, and hiking.

Ryan grew up on Long Island and graduated from the Life Sciences and Management Dual-Degree Program at Penn in 2019. He subsequently earned an MSc in War and Psychiatry at King’s College London as a Thouron Scholar and concurrently worked with the former Surgeon General of the British Military. Ryan then served as a Presidential Management Fellow at the Department of Defense and Department of State, working on healthcare policy and operations issues, before leaving to complete U.S. Army officer training and start medical school. Outside the classroom, Ryan likes to run, lift, travel, and mosh at pop-punk concerts. He is excited to apply his background in policy to support refugees and asylees as a Programming Co-Coordinator for CHRIA!

Isabella grew up in Bethesda, Maryland, and went to undergrad at Yale University. At college, she studied Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry and conducted research in PET neuroimaging on neurodevelopment and patients with Alzheimer’s disease. Isabella is deeply interested in neurology and neurological research, and in her spare time she is a dedicated volunteer. At Yale, Isabella worked at the HAVEN free clinic. Since coming to Columbia, Isabella volunteers at Love Kitchen, a local food pantry, and the Companionship Project. Isabella also enjoys cooking and baking for friends and family.

Dylan is from Atlanta, GA, and graduated from Princeton University with a major in chemistry and minors in global health policy and computer science. During his gap year after graduation, he worked in a surgical practice with an orthopedic surgeon and ophthalmologist. In college, one of his most formative experiences was working with and tutoring incarcerated students at a local correctional facility. He hopes to combine his experiences in such advocacy work and academic research to better support asylum seekers, refugees, and other clients as research coordinator at CHRIA. Outside of medical school, Dylan loves fencing, a sport he was involved with since childhood.

Eunice grew up in the Bay Area, California, and graduated from Stanford University in 2022 with dual degrees in Computer Science and Biology. During undergrad, she served as a Director for Camp Kesem at Stanford and was a Live-In at the Bridge Peer Counseling Center. She is passionate about working with vulnerable populations and has had a long-standing interest in refugee and immigrant health. Outside of school, Eunice enjoys road-trips, hedgehogs, and sparkling water.

Allison grew up in central New Jersey and attended Brown University, graduating in 2021 with a degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. After graduation, she worked in clinical research in developmental and behavioral pediatrics. She is interested in the intersection between government, medicine, and law due to her previous experiences working for a government agency. Outside of academics, she loves Broadway, live music, and trying new cuisines. Allison is excited for the opportunity to serve as a Case Coordinator and learn to navigate the legal field on behalf of refugees and asylum seekers. 

Mina grew up in Maple Grove, MN, and attended Stanford University for undergrad, where she majored in economics. After graduating in 2021, Mina spent a year working in community engagement, research, and policy innovation at United States of Care, a nonprofit dedicated to building a better, more equitable healthcare system by listening to people and affecting policy change at the state and federal levels. Mina joined CHRIA because she is passionate about listening to, working with, and advocating for immigrant and refugee populations. As a case coordinator, she is excited to help foster interdisciplinary collaboration between clinicians, legal teams, and students to better serve CHRIA’s clients. In her free time, Mina loves to bake, craft, and read anything and everything Tolkien!

Originally from Dallas, TX, Robyn has happily resided on the East Coast for the last fourteen years. She received her B.A. in Cultural Psychology from Wesleyan University in 2013.  Since then, she has lived in NYC, working at non-profits such as Catholic Charities and World Animal Protection, in various capacities, from operations to development. While pursuing her MSW at Columbia, she has had the opportunity to engage in casework with a refugee and asylum-seeking population and she plans to pursue this type of work further upon graduation.  She looks forward to working directly with CHRIA’s clients and is eager to support them in navigating available NYC resources for asylum-seekers. In her free time, Robyn is a calligrapher and mixed-media artist.