Duke Sanford Presents the Black Policy Conference
Black Mobility: What does it mean to shape black opportunity?
Click HERE to register for the event!
Please email the planning committee at dukemppblackpolicy@gmail.com with any questions regarding the conference.
Location: Duke Sanford School of Public Policy; Durham, North Carolina
Cost: FREE
Panelists and schedule to be updated as events are confirmed.
This conference is an opportunity for diverse minds to come together to share their insights on today's most pertinent policy issues. Our intention for creating Duke Sanford's Second Annual Black Policy Conference is to create a space for students of color to see policy in living color. For us to be able to envision ourselves in policy areas that do not commonly represent us and to know if one person can make it, we all can make it. Our hope for our time together is to foster community across policy disciplines, provide a space for robust dialogue and discourse, and provide an opportunity to network with future colleagues and mentors.
Black Policy Executive Planning Committee
Aysia Gilbert - MPP '24
Aysia Gilbert is a second-year Master of Public Policy Candidate and President of the MPP Student Council at Duke University’s Sanford School of Public Policy.
Originally from Jackson, Mississippi, and raised in Jacksonville, Florida, Aysia attended the University of Florida (UF), where she majored in History and minored in African American Studies. At UF, she served on the Presidential Task Force for Honorary Namings, supporting racial equity initiatives in the honorary naming process of campus buildings. After graduation, Aysia returned to Jacksonville as a fifth-grade English Language Arts teacher and community activist. She became Co-Chair of the Jacksonville Community Remembrance Project’s Research Committee, working alongside the Equal Justice Initiative to uncover her community’s history of racial terror and leading a public awareness campaign to educate residents. Aysia is also a board member for 904WARD, a nonprofit dedicated to fostering racial reconciliation and social justice in Northeast Florida, where she influences initiatives like Little Free Diverse Libraries, Race Cards, and research addressing exclusionary and racist policies across the state.
Driven by her passion for equitable policy-making, Aysia aims to reduce barriers to success for marginalized communities. She plans to leverage her Master of Public Policy degree to continue her advocacy work, aspiring to become a policymaker focused on equity and grounded in the lived experiences of diverse communities.
Reylan Cook - MPP '24
Reylan Cook is a second-year Master of Public Policy student at Duke University Sanford School of Public Policy and a native of Simpsonville, South Carolina. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Public Health and African American Studies with Leadership and Distinction in Diversity and Social Advocacy from the University of South Carolina. She has served as an AmeriCorps VISTA and community advocate, focusing on combating food insecurity and expanding access to basic needs resources for marginalized communities. The basic needs hub framework and programming she has created was platformed by the White House Healthy Futures Initiative to be recreated at higher education institutions nationwide. With a personal history and a deep passion for environmental justice and agricultural sovereignty, Reylan is dedicated to making a positive interdisciplinary impact on environmental and social policy within Black Southern communities. She holds leadership positions as Student Council Second Year Representative, Vice President of Policy In Living Color, and President of the Black Policy Student Association. During the 2023-2024 academic year, Reylan was recognized with the Sanford Women in the Policy Emerging Leader award. In her free time, Reylan is an avid reader with a taste for culinary and outdoor adventures.
De'Omini Daniely - MPP '24
De’Omini Daniely is a second-year graduate student at Duke University’s Sanford School of Public Policy. Her concentration is international development and environmental policy with a focus on human rights, gender equality, and climate-based migration. Last year, she obtained a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Georgia. During that time, she interned with the Congressional Office of Congressman David Scott. In this position, she oversaw office operations, prepared memos, attended policy briefings, and conducted tours throughout the U.S. Capitol. This past year, De’Omini worked with World Relief as a Resettlement Case Aid and helped provide resources for asylum-seeking individuals in the research triangle. She hopes to continue working to create a safer transition for victims of war and immigration through her commitment to public service and passion for finding pathways to peace.
Her passion for research has grown through her participation as a Pipeline fellow with the Women of Color Advancing Peace, Security, and Conflict Transformation (WCAPS), where she developed publications on Black Maternal Health & Reproductive Legislation and Femicide against women in Latin America and the Caribbean. Currently, she serves as a VSFS Intern with the Department of State, where she works with Education USA-Armenia to coach their Competitive College Club (CCC) on best practices for applying to graduate schools in the United States. These roles have helped her develop professionally and expanded her experiences with public policy, global affairs, and research.
Eni Owoeye - MPP '24
B. Eni Owoeye is a first-generation Nigerian-American and second year MPP student in the Sanford School of Public Policy. She graduated from New York University with a dual degree in International Relations and Environmental Science with a minor in Spanish and Portuguese. Eni gained work experience at the United Nations Foundation, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the Department of State among other nonprofit organizations. Eni enjoys working on ocean-climate-related issues and used her research in the shipping industry to further expand her repertoire of environmental issues while capturing concerns such as public health and labor rights. She serves as the President of Policy in Living Color, Co-President of Sanford’s Africa Policy Group, and member of the Duke Climate Commitment Advisory Council.
Diontre Davis - MPP '24
Diontre Davis is currently a second-year masters student in Duke University’s Public Policy Program. Diontre is originally from Cincinnati, Ohio and graduated from The Ohio State University in 2019 with a B.A. in African American Studies. His passion lies in creating change in domestic social policy and international advocacy to build safer living environments for marginalized communities across the world to prosper in life.
From 2021-2024, Diontre Davis consulted internationally for The Black Policy Institute (TBPI), a non-profit based in the United Kingdom. During this time Diontre founded TBPI’s youth division, the Young People Advisory Board, as the Joint International Chair. Diontre also worked at Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) between 2021-2023 advancing from an Executive Coordinator to an Administrative and Program Events Specialist. He supported the Organizing and Electoral Campaigns Department of PPFA to help provide abortion access and mobilize supporters of sexual and reproductive healthcare across the U.S. From 2019-2020, he also worked in the U.S. House of Representatives as a member of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation and the House Democratic Caucus as an intern.
Black Policy Conference Committee Advisors
Dr. Cassandra Boyd
Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Dr. Jay Pearson
Associate Dean of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Conference Agenda
Coming Soon...