The Beacon is a student publication dedicated to reporting news and providing a platform for student perspectives that often go unheard on Yale’s campus. Our commitment to objective reporting is unwavering as we strive to be a beacon illuminating the rich environment of views, angles, and issues within the Yale community.
In fostering robust and open debate, The Beacon provides a home for honest, fact-based reporting and editorial writing while welcoming and embracing perspectives from all political persuasions. We aim to expose readers to unvoiced and provocative views, and contribute to a vibrant intellectual environment. Our engagement with the Yale community is paramount. We are not just reporters and writers but active participants, committed to publishing the concerns and interests of our fellow students. We believe that genuine intellectual diversity is indispensable for advancing critical inquiry and challenging ideological complacency wherever it may exist.
When Adolph S. Ochs purchased The New York Times in 1896, he wrote that his desire was “to make of the columns of The New York Times a forum for the consideration of all questions of public importance, and to that end to invite intelligent discussion from all shades of opinion.” We here at The Beacon seek the same.
Tori Cook, President of the William F. Buckley, Jr. Program
Tori is a junior in Jonathan Edwards College studying Comparative Literature. She finds great fulfillment at Yale through her involvement with the Buckley Program, Federalist Party, Thomistic Institute, and as a writer for Logos. When she isn’t writing, you can find her curled up with her latest book, diving headfirst into Wikipedia rabbit holes, or on the hunt to expand her gnome collection.
Jack Olson, Editor-In-Chief
Jack Olson is a junior in Trumbull College studying Global Affairs and History. He was born and raised in San Mateo, California, a suburb of San Francisco. He is particularly interested in U.S. foreign policy and how our international politics shape the domestic economy. When he is home in California, Jack enjoys flying, backpacking, and spending time with friends and family.
Contact: jack.olson@yale.edu
Michelle Zheng, Managing Editor
Michelle Zheng is a first-year in Franklin college from Kentucky. She is involved with the Yale Prison Education Initiative and, as a staff writer, hopes to address political polarity through storytelling and catalyze conversations that reconcile differences.
Contact: msz32@yale.edu
Emily Akbar, Campus Reporting Editor
Emily Akbar is a freshman at Yale University pursuing a B.A. in Global Affairs. She is the founder of the nonprofit “BRIDGE” summer program which is dedicated to educating primary-school students in Bangladesh over the summer. In her free time, she loves studying languages, whether that be French in the classroom, Russian with her family, or Portuguese with her friends. As an intern at CNN, she has developed a strong interest in journalism which she hopes to pursue greatly during her time at Yale.
Contact: emily.akbar@yale.edu
Lucas Miller, Investigative Reporting Editor
Lucas Miller is a first-year in Timothy Dwight College from Hopkinton, New Hampshire, majoring in Ethics, Politics, & Economics. He enjoys studying political philosophy, constitutional law, and political economy. On campus, he competes with the Model UN Team at Yale. In his free time, he enjoys working out, spending time with friends and family, and watching the New England Patriots win on Sundays.
Contact: lucas.miller@yale.edu
Jeth Fogg, Arts, Culture, & Scholarship Editor
Jeth Fogg is a junior in Saybrook College from Colorado Springs, CO, majoring in History with a certificate in Medieval Studies. At Yale, he is a Peace Dialogue Leadership Initiative (PDLI) Fellow and is active with the Yale Political Union, St. Thomas More Undergraduate Council, Jewish-Christian Bible Study, Davenport Pops Orchestra, and club hockey. Back home, he volunteers with efforts dedicated to improving environmental resilience and coaching youth in soccer and hockey.
Contact: jeth.fogg@yale.edu
Ari Shtein, Opinions Editor
Ari Shtein is a freshman in Saybrook College, originally from Ann Arbor, Michigan. He mostly has no idea what to do with himself at Yale (math?) or otherwise (bicycles?), but sometimes writes things on Substack anyway (link? understood if it’s against some policy or something). His interests tend to be in American & world politics, freedom, American & world history, liberty, and American & world philosophy.
Contact: ari.shtein@yale.edu
Brett Mellul, Staff Writer
Brett is a Freshman in Trumbull College. He is from New Jersey and intends to double major in Ethics, Politics, & Economics and Psychology. He is interested in the intersection between domestic and foreign policy. In his free time, he enjoys reading psychology books, playing pickleball, and learning new languages.
Contact: brett.mellul@yale.edu
Carrie Sheng, Staff Writer
Carrie Sheng is a dual-degree candidate at the Yale School of Management (MAM ’26) and Fudan University (MBA ’26), pursuing the STEM-designated Management Science track. She is a P.R.C.-licensed attorney with experience in general corporate matters, cross-border business disputes, mergers and acquisitions, and joint ventures. At Yale, she has also taken coursework at Yale Law School, exploring the intersection of law, finance, and technology. Having lived and studied in both China and the United States, with roots in Shanghai, Philadelphia, and Boston, Carrie brings a cross-cultural lens to her coverage of international business and public policy. Outside of writing, she enjoys international travel, weightlifting, and exploring New Haven’s food scene.
Contact: carrie.sheng@yale.edu
Jack Ehlert, Staff Writer
Jack Ehlert is a first-year Timothy Dwight College studying English and Religious Studies. He is originally from the suburbs of Chicago. At Yale, Jack is a coxswain for the varsity lightweight crew team and a member of the moot court oral argument team. He loves music and poetry, plays the violin, guitar, and banjo, and hopes to become a teacher someday.
Contact: jack.ehlert@yale.edu
Miya Zhang, Staff Writer
Miya Zhang is a first-year in Silliman College planning to major in Global Affairs and Political Theory. Coming from Hong Kong, free speech is a subject she is especially passionate about. On campus she is involved in the Yale Dialogue on US-China Relations and other foreign policy organizations. In her free time she enjoys thrifting, philosophizing, and experimenting with mixology.
Contact: miya.zhang@yale.edu
Peenaz Khan, Staff Writer
Peenaz is Masters in Advanced Management degree candidate at the Yale School of Management (MAM ’26), pursuing the STEM-designated Management Science track. She finished her MBA from the University of Oxford (MBA ’25). She has more than nine years of work experience in consulting, data analytics, and project management, and has worked with organizations like Ralph Lauren, AB InBev, Diageo, and Accenture in the past. At Yale, she is learning AI and taking coursework at Yale Law School to explore roles in AI policy. She is a lifetime member of Oxford Union and was very active with the union events last year. Having lived and studied in India, UK, and now United States, Peenaz brings diverse cultural and industry experience.
Contact: peenaz.khan@yale.edu
William Coen, Staff Writer
William Coen is a junior in Pierson College from Pacific Grove, California. He is pursuing a B.S. in Applied Mathematics and participates in Yale’s Air Force ROTC program. He is very interested in US foreign policy. In his free time, he enjoys training for triathlons, taking flying lessons, and debating politics with his suitemates.
Contact: william.coen@yale.edu
Emma Ventresca, Staff Writer
Emma Ventresca is a senior in Benjamin Franklin College pursuing a double major in Economics and Theater and Performance Studies. She is a fourth-degree black belt in Taekwondo and a musical theater writer and producer. Outside of The Buckley Beacon, Emma is involved in the Yale Political Union, Saint Thomas More Undergraduate Council, and the Yale Logos. In her free time, she enjoys serving as an Undergraduate Learning Assistant for Introductory Microeconomics and taking long walks in East Rock Park.
Contact: emma.ventresca@yale.edu
Fiona Bultonsheen, Staff Writer
Fiona is a second-year Master of Public Policy student at the Yale Jackson School of Global Affairs interested in national security and tech policy. She spent four years as a consultant in financial services before coming to Yale. Fiona hails from Allentown, Pennsylvania, and graduated from Vanderbilt University with a degree in economics.
Contact: fiona.bultonsheen@yale.edu
Oscar Miñoso-Rendón, Staff Writer
Oscar Miñoso-Rendón is a junior in Silliman College studying Computer Science and Philosophy. Passionate about his deeply rooted Catholic faith and its intersections with the western philosophical tradition, Oscar is actively involved in the Yale Thomistic Institute, the Yale Political Union, and is a writer for Logos Christian magazine as well as the Buckley Beacon. In his free time, Oscar enjoys spending time on the water: kayaking, drawing, or picking up a good book.
Contact: oscar.minoso-rendon@yale.edu
Jason Cao, Staff Writer
Jason Cao is a freshman in Ben Franklin College from Guilford, CT planning to major in Ethics, Politics, and Economics. He is deeply passionate about topics in law, history, and public policy. Outside academics, Jason is a classical music enthusiast who enjoys playing the flute, the piano, and composing chamber music. If he is not in the practice room or the library, you will find him playing Go, poker, and bridge, or writing and reciting traditional Chinese poetry.
Contact: jason.cao@yale.edu