About Us

The Flint Email Lab has been housed at the University of Iowa since 2019. Our core objective is to help community members and researchers to better understand what happened in the Flint Water Crisis by creating a permanent digital record of official primary documents. Undergraduate and graduate student researchers in the Flint Email Lab have iteratively determined and completed complex needs surrounding data cleaning, organization, management, visualization, and analysis, using approaches rooted in digital humanities. Students have also analyzed the archives to learn about water politics, urban inequality, infrastructure, organizational structure and culpability, law, and public health, both in the lab and in an Applied Research class.

A list of our staff members follows below.

Louise Seamster, Director

Louise Seamster is an Associate Professor in Sociology and Criminology and African American Studies at the University of Iowa, with a courtesy appointment in the School of Law. Since 2012, much of her research has focused on emergency financial management in Michigan and its effects on cities. She founded the lab at the University of Iowa in 2019. Her book about the Flint Water Crisis is under contract at Duke University Press.

Carolyn Hoemann, Program Manager

Carolyn Hoemann is a program manager for the FWC Public Archive. She is a law student at Loyola University Chicago and has an interest in regulatory health law. Carolyn wrote her master's thesis about the Flint Legionnaires' Disease outbreak using the archive's email records while earning her M.S. in Health Policy at the University of Iowa. She helps implement the Flint Email Lab’s projects by writing grants, organizing project timelines, helping liaise with project collaborators, and performing other administrative tasks.

Erik Westlund, Web Application Developer

Erik Westlund is an Associate Scientist in the Department of Biostatistics at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, working in data science, software engineering, and statistical consulting. Erik earned a PhD in Sociology from Johns Hopkins University, where he completed the Program on Social Inequality. He then taught courses on social inequality and other topics at the University of Iowa for seven years before moving to Johns Hopkins. Erik builds and maintains the web application for the FWC Public Archive.

Selveyah Gamblin, User Experience Designer

Selveyah Gamblin is a 2023 graduate from The University of Iowa, where she received a B.A. in political science and a minor in Public Policy and Theatre Arts. She is passionate about advocacy and research to highlight racial disparities and the various ways they manifest, public policy, government interference, and law. Selveyah helps oversee the Public Archive’s website design and project planning.

Bee Rinaldi, Graphic Designer and Front-End Developer

Bee Rinaldi received their PhD in 2026 from the Communication, Rhetoric, and Digital Media doctoral program at NC State University. They received their MA in Journalism from the University of Iowa. Before pursuing academic research, Rinaldi worked as a newspaper journalist for six years. Their current research focuses on computational aesthetics and esoteric programming. Rinaldi creates data visualizations for the Public Archive website and contributes to overall web design projects.

Georgia B Page, Website Design and Communications

Georgia B Page is a first-year law student at the University of Iowa College of Law. She studied Political Science and African-American Studies during her undergraduate time at the University of Iowa. Georgia's interests include the relationship between race, community-based organizing efforts, and resource distribution. She writes public communication materials and coordinates events for the Public Archive, and works on website content and graphic design.

Chad Rhym, Researcher

Chad Rhym is a 2019 graduate of Morehouse College and is currently a PhD candidate in the University of Iowa’s Department of Sociology and Criminology. His research interests include race and ethnicity, social inequality, political sociology, and civic engagement. Working with the lab, Chad conducts research about the political and sociological aspects of water infrastructure in the United States.

Ben Brougham, Researcher

Ben Brougham is a PhD student in Sociology at the University of Iowa. He graduated with his BA from UI in May 2025 with a B.A. in Sociology and Psychology, and a minor in African American Studies. His academic interests include place-based racism, race and ethnicity, and social inequality. In the lab, Ben currently focuses on research on Flint water rates and associated mechanisms to enforce payment, including water liens, and their effects on housing insecurity and displacement.

Abby A Smith, Research Consultant

Abby A Smith is a 2020 graduate from The University of Iowa and a current PhD candidate in Sociology at the University of Michigan. Her research applies science and technology studies to the sociology of morality and health inequalities. She contributes these perspectives to an in-progress paper on racism and water governance.

Tristan Reidel, Undergraduate Researcher

Tristan Reidel is an undergraduate sociology, human rights, and pre-law student at the University of Iowa. In the Flint Email Lab, he focuses on cleaning and organizing archival email records related to the Flint Water Crisis. His academic interests include public policy, social inequality, and place-based racism.

Maddie McFatridge, Researcher

The  Democracy Defense League is a grassroots, community-oriented organization with the mission of defending democracy and advocating for Flint residents in the face of disenfranchisement. DDL was initially formed to confront Michigan’s Emergency Manager Law, and the organization has played a key role in advocating for the restoration of local democratic governance. DDL is grounded in upholding the sanctity of democracy in civic processes, confronting unjust laws and policies, and continuing to fight for justice and accountability.

The Democracy Defense League has been actively involved in the collaborative process of building the Public Archive, providing community knowledge and insights to guide the project. DDL’s participation actively ensures that the archive remains rooted in the lived experience of Flint’s residents. DDL set priorities on what should be included in the archive and provided local expertise and context on the nuances of the Crisis. Through their efforts, DDL ensures that the archive serves as an accessible and reliable resource for education and preservation of community memory.

Laura Macintyre

Professor MacIntyre currently serves on the Flint Community Schools Board of Education and serves as City of Flint Service Line Settlement Community Liaison, National Resources Defense Council. She is also a Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Michigan-Flint.

Joyce Ellis-McNeal

Dr. Joyce Ellis-McNeal is a distinguished educator and community leader committed to improving education and bridging the digital divide. She earned her Bachelor's degree in Business Administration and Management from Central Michigan University, and she pursued Computer Information Technology studies at Lewis College of Business. She obtained a Master's in Public Administration and Public Management at Central Michigan University, and earned a Ph.D. in Theology/Spiritual Leadership/Counseling from Bethlehem Ministry (Oral Roberts), reflecting her holistic approach to education and community service.

Bishop Bernadel Jefferson

Bishop Bernadel Jefferson, a seasoned Pastor and dedicated Community Activist, boasts an impressive 30-plus-year history of success. As the Founder of CAUTION (Citizens Advocating United Together Inform Organized, New Direction) in 2003, she has spearheaded numerous domestic and international initiatives across various industries. Currently serving as a Commissioner and Researcher, Bishop Bernadel is a dynamic force in advocating for community well-being. Her commitment to local and global causes is underscored by her active membership in Community-Based Organization Partners (CBOP) and engagement in Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR). Beyond her roles, Bishop Bernadel is an Executive Committee member (Community Representative) of The Charles Stewart Mott Department of Public Health at MSU. She has received the prestigious National Sojourner Truth Award for her outstanding contributions. Notably, she played a crucial role as the Genesee County Chairperson for Public Act 4 Emergency Manager Law, unveiling the Flint Water Crisis.

Claire McClinton

Claire McClinton was born and raised in Flint, Michigan. Currently retired from General Motors, Ms. McClinton has served in a number of UAW leadership positions during her working years. Upon her retirement in 2009, she was active in several social justice causes, including Healthcare for All and the fight to abolish homelessness.

Ms. McClinton is a founding member of Flint Democracy Defense League, which formed to fight Michigan’s Emergency Manager law, and has since been a leading voice in fighting for restorative justice in Flint’s water disaster. Ms McClinton has done extensive media appearances, locally and nationally, relating to her pro-democracy work in Flint. She has been profiled in outlets including The Nation, Grist, and Sojourners, and has also appeared in many Flint water documentaries. Ms. McClinton has also participated in academic panels, including at the University of Michigan and Alma College, and has given lectures at Cornell University and a 2017 keynote address at the conference “Water Is Life: Strengthening the Great Lakes Commons in Flint.”

Keishaun Wade

Keishaun Wade is a lifelong resident of Flint and a member of Flint’s Democracy Defense League. Keishaun is an alumnus of the last public high school in Flint and a recipient of the Yale University Bassett Award for Community Engagement. He is a recent graduate of Cornell University, where he studied Urban and Regional Planning with a concentration in Inequality and Urban Life as well as Real Estate, Housing, and Urban Economics. As a research consultant, Keishaun helped to initiate and develop the oral history project and has produced pertinent content to support the archive.

The Genesee Historical Collections Center (GHCC) was founded in 1974 and built on lands obtained during urban renewal. It is housed on the second floor of the Frances Willson Thompson Library on the campus of the University of Michigan—Flint. The GHCC hosts our parallel digital archive of non-email official documents relating to the Flint Water Crisis, and is collecting related materials shared by residents. The GHCC is also leading our project’s oral history project, where Flint residents can share their perspectives and experiences.

Callum Carr, archivist at the GHCC

Callum Carr-Marquis received a Master of Information Science from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, in 2016 and has served as Head of Archives for the Genesee Historical Collections Center at the University of Michigan, Flint, since 2018. Since moving to Flint, Carr-Marquis has built a strong relationship with various community partners to collect important historic materials and provide access to them to the public. Carr-Marquis is responsible for archiving physical and digital materials for the project, excluding the email corpus, leading the oral history project through the GHCC, supervising community consultants who assist with this work, and conducting community UX website studies. They live in Flint with their partner, young children, and pets.

Keishaun Wade, Community Research Consultant

Keishaun Wade is a lifelong resident of Flint and a member of Flint’s Democracy Defense League. Keishaun is an alumnus of the last public high school in Flint and a recipient of the Yale University Bassett Award for Community Engagement. He is a current undergraduate student at Cornell University, where he studies Urban and Regional Planning with a concentration in Inequality and Urban Life as well as Real Estate, Housing, and Urban Economics. As a research consultant, Keishaun helped to initiate and develop the oral history project and has produced pertinent content to support the archive. In the lab, Keishaun currently focuses on research on Flint water rates and associated mechanisms to enforce payment, including water liens, and their effects on housing insecurity and displacement.

Alayna Goff, Community Research Consultant

Alayna Goff earned her B.A. in Sociology with a concentration in Law, Justice, and Social Change from the University of Michigan in 2023. As a Research Consultant at both the University of Iowa and the University of Michigan, she specializes in qualitative research that explores how legal and social institutions perpetuate social inequalities and how marginalized groups resist these systems for meaningful change. In the Public Archive, Alayna reviews interviews and creates comprehensive transcripts that capture participants' voices, enhancing the understanding of the personal impacts of the water crisis.

The University of Iowa has supported this project through multiple funding mechanisms (see Project Funding).

• Digital Scholarship and Publishing Studio
• The Office of Undergraduate Research
• The Office of Teaching, Learning, and Technology
• Public Policy Center (now the Center for Social Science Innovation)
• Office of the Vice President for Research
• Obermann Center
• Center for Human Rights
• African American Studies Program
• Department of Sociology and Criminology
• Department of Political Science

Former student lab members from the University of Iowa have included Claire Benson, Theodore Byrnes, CJ Hellinger, Marissa Good, Austin Kansa, Kam Kuhn, Morgan Larick, Stella Logsdon, Siyanda Mohutsiwa, Vriti Patel, Terry Saul, Ella Schlueter, Darshaun Smith, Jack Sorenson, and Hannah Zadeh. Additional students involved through class at the University of Iowa have included Elisabeth Allendorfer, Armando Bryson, Kate Beeman, Sarah Berkowitz, Isaac Bills, Lizbeth Celaya, Clay Fenton, Sydney Flanscha, James Herzig, Zakiah Huckins, Alexus Imbouathong, Allison Meyer, Gianna Rudolph, Allyson Stoops, Jesus Vega-Lemus, and Selena Wisner.

At Iowa, thanks also to Kris Ackerson, Mark Berg, Venise Berry, Lauren Cox, Dave Cwiertny, Diane Dick, Erin Hackathorn, Jennifer Glanville, Kate Gloer, Ann Knudson, Brian Lai, Julianna Lee, Teresa Mangum, Carly Nichols, Chris Odinet, Dragana Petic, Ethan Rogers, Shannon Roesler, Mike Sauder, Carrie Schuettpelz, Silvia Secchi, and Sam Zuhlke.

At the University of Tennessee, students involved in the project as researchers included Haley Boles, Derek Galyon, Cresa Lenox, Nichole Proctor, Amanda Ricketts, and Patrick Sonnenberg. Additional students involved through class included Aya Barnes, Carter Cooley, April Ellis, Chad Goral, Grace Hall, Jackie Johnson, Ryan Johnson, Jordan Kaset, Lauren Kataja, Trey Maitland, Cortez McDowell, Jenny Mora-Colon, Tony Nguyen, Andrew Poole, Lydia Vick, and Tucker Wheaton. Thanks also to   Michael Berry, Stephanie Bohon, Rochelle Butler, Blair Christian, Lonnie Crosby Davis, Mark Dean, Junwen Li, and Sherry Watts.