Introducing the ARIN 56 Fellows

Introducing the ARIN 56 Fellows

By Amanda Gauldin - Project Manager

ARIN staff is busy preparing for ARIN 56, our fall Public Policy and Members Meeting taking place 30-31 October in Arlington, Texas. Meanwhile, we are also excited to be kicking off the ARIN 56 Fellowship Program!

An Engaging Experience

The Fellowship Program agenda includes:

• Three virtual sessions before the meeting to introduce the workings of the organization and the ARIN Policy Development Process (PDP),
• The virtual ARIN 56 Meeting Orientation, and
• Participation in NANOG 95 and ARIN 56 either virtually or in person in Arlington.

Throughout the program, Fellows will also benefit from mentorship by an ARIN Board of Trustees or Advisory Council member.

To learn more about the Fellowship Program and this fall's agenda, read the blog post: "Apply Today for the ARIN 56 Fellowship Program."

The ARIN Fellowship Program provides a fun and engaging way for Fellows to get immersed in ARIN's work and feel ready to participate in the upcoming meeting. With the addition of this group of 17 Fellows, we have now welcomed more than 260 new voices to our community over the last decade.

Meet the Fellows

To get to know them better, we asked each of our new Fellows to share a few tidbits of information about themselves, including: one word that describes their reaction upon learning they were selected for the program; what they are most looking forward to about the experience; and their favorite book, movie, or hobby. Let's meet the ARIN 56 Fellows!

USA

Chris Rapier - Senior Research Scientist, Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center
Reaction: Elated
Looking forward to: Meeting with members of the ARIN community and learning from them.
Favorite book: "The Use of Weapons" by Iain Banks

Colin Anderson - IT Systems Engineer, SRT Communications
Reaction: Honored
Looking forward to: Networking and mentorship opportunities
Favorite book: "Where Wizards Stay Up Late: The Origins of the Internet" by Katie Hafner

Eric Landgraf - Network Engineer II, DDI Specialist, IPv6 Evangelist, Virginia Tech
Reaction: Chuffed
Looking forward to: Listening to stories from longtime ARIN members and other Fellows.
Favorite hobby: Cave survey/mapping

John Stitt - Senior Network Engineer, Hopkinsville Electric System (EPBCH)
Reaction: Surprised
Looking forward to: Networking with other people who are passionate about making the Internet better.
Favorite movie: "Hackers" (1995)

Lily Dzamesi - Student, University of Cincinnati
Reaction: Honored
Looking forward to: Building connections with peers and applying those insights to my current work and future career in cybersecurity.
Favorite podcast: "What Now" by Trevor Noah

Max Doumit - Senior Software Engineer, Amazon Web Services
Reaction: Thrilled
Looking forward to: Understanding who truly owns the Internet! And meeting people established in the field.
Favorite book: "The Giver" by Lois Lowry

Oksana Denesiuk - Lead Product Manager, Kaiser Permanente Health Plan
Reaction: Excited and inspired
Looking forward to: Learning more about Internet policy, governance, security, and protocols.
Favorite hobby: Traveling and golfing

Preston Ursini - CEO, Quad State Internet; Executive Director, Paducah Internet Exchange
Reaction: Excited
Looking forward to: Meeting others with the same interests.
Favorite mobile app: The Fire Horn

Qidi Zhao - Fellow, ISOC
Reaction: Honored
Looking forward to: Connecting with experts and peers in the ARIN community and gaining practical insights into Internet governance and policy-making processes.
Favorite movie: "Kill Bill" (2003)

Vankata Bandlapelli - IT Manager, Colovore
Reaction: Excited
Looking forward to: Engaging with the ARIN community, learning from policy discussions, and building connections that will help me bring valuable insights back to my work.
Favorite book: "Wings of Fire" by A.P.J. Abdul Kalam

Zachary Cummins - IP Administrator, Lumen
Reaction: Content
Looking forward to: Networking
Favorite hobby: Hiking

Canada

Abdelkrim Mekkaoui - President, Mektel
Reaction: Thrilled
Looking forward to: Meeting people.
Favorite hobby: Soccer

Bradan Fleming - Software Developer, IXK Research Corporation
Reaction: Surprised
Looking forward to: Besides the policy meetings, I look forward to talking with people.
Favorite book: "Dune" by Frank Herbert

Rudolph Legerme - Security Systems Administrator; Student, Laval University
Reaction: Honored
Looking forward to: Expanding my knowledge of how Internet policy is created, particularly in areas that are directly related to my academic work and technical work, such IPv6 rollout and routing security.
Favorite movie: "The Imitation Game" (2014)

Samuel Gasparro - Founder, Securitech Systems
Reaction: Excited
Looking forward to: Interactions and conversations as well as the opportunities to learn about more technical and formal operations of ARIN.
Favorite hobby: Organizing Malware Village at Defcon and other conferences

Caribbean

Arsenia Brown - Information Technology Instructor, HEART/NSTA Trust
Reaction: Overjoyed
Looking forward to: Networking with other members of the community, exchanging ideas, and exploring strategies and solutions to challenges faced in the Internet industry.
Favorite podcast: "Reasonable Doubt"

Malisa Richards - Computer Science Lecturer, Dominica State College
Reaction: Elated
Looking forward to: Policy implementation and cybersecurity updates.
Favorite mobile app: National Geographic Explore VR

More Fellowship Content

Stay tuned to the blog (you can subscribe here!) for an introduction to the Mentors and special guests whose participation in the program is key to our Fellows' success.

For more updates, follow us on LinkedIn at ARIN's company page and at @TeamARIN on Facebook and X. Information regarding the ARIN 57 Fellowship Program will be shared in the new year!

Registration is open for the ARIN 56 Public Policy and Members Meeting, and we are excited to provide opportunities for both virtual and in-person participation. We hope you can join us for this free event on 30-31 October 2025! The agenda includes discussions of multiple draft policies, reports from our Board of Trustees and Advisory Council, videos from candidates running in the 2025 ARIN Elections, and more. Learn more and register at arin.net/arin56.

Recent blogs categorized under: Fellowship Program

• Apply Today for the ARIN 56 Fellowship Program
• Introducing the ARIN 55 Fellows
• Apply Today for the ARIN 55 Fellowship Program
• My Experience as an ARIN Fellow