Meet the Team!
Executive Board
President
Hannah Qin (she/her/hers)
My name is Hannah Qin, and I am the President of Buckeyes for Harm Reduction. I joined in the second semester of my freshman year through Honors Semester of Service, where I saw the importance of harm reduction, especially on OSU’s campus. I recognized barriers that prevented harm reduction measures like resource distribution, education, and barricades on health reforms, realized that much work was still necessary in this area, and dedicated myself to BHR's principles. My favorite thing about BHR, aside from the wonderful people, is the receptive environment fully conducive to learning. I'm extremely excited to spread awareness about harm reduction to college students and connect BHR to additional initiatives on and off OSU's campus!
Vice President
Alec West (he/him/his)
My name is Alec West and I am a fourth year biology major on a premed track! I am from Dayton, Ohio which happens to be one of the national hotspots for opioid use and overdose. Growing up and seeing how these issues affected my community inspired me to join BHR in my sophomore year at OSU. Since then, I’ve been able to lead Narcan trainings, present at conferences, volunteer in the community, and most importantly, hang out with the rest of this amazing group! I am thrilled to serve as the vice president this year and can’t wait to see all we can accomplish!
Treasurer
Dana Oehme (she/her/hers)
Hello! My name is Dana Oehme and I am a third-year environmental public health major. Harm reduction is a core public health approach that saves lives and helps our campus and community immensely, yet has yet to be a widely understood nor known strategy at OSU. After hearing about BHR through the College of Public Health, I joined my sophomore year to better understand harm reduction practices and how I myself could become a “harm reductionist”. Since then, BHR has given me the resources and tools to lead, grow, connect, and help others do the same! Additionally, BHR has given me a wonderful group to continue to volunteer and work with on and off campus. I hope to continue to expand Buckeyes for Harm Reduction’s wonderful community and am excited for what the future holds for BHR!
Secretary
Zach Horwitz (he/him/his)
Hi my name is Zach Horwitz and I am a fourth year chemistry major and pre-med student. I joined BHR during my freshman year and have had a fantastic experience ever since. It has been amazing watching the club grow over the past few years and I have thoroughly enjoyed being a part of providing new experiences for our members. Last year, we started a program we call BHRxChange which has allowed us to enact harm reduction directly in the Columbus community each week. Aside from all the fantastic opportunities we have to volunteer and advocate for harm reduction we have also built a great sense of community. Very excited for the coming year and the new harm reductionists we have yet to meet!
Social Media Coordinator
Ren Hackley (they/them/she/her)
My name is Ren Hackley, I am a fourth year social work and psychology major, and I am so honored to have the opportunity to spread BHR’s message as the 2023-2024 Social Media Coordinator! I first found out about harm reduction through a course on AIDS here at Ohio State; after learning more about harm reduction and its core tenants of non-judgement, compassion, and understanding for other people and their self-autonomy, I knew it was a cause that aligned with my values, leading me to BHR! After graduation, I hope to work in harm reduction professionally, and I am so excited to be placed with the Student Wellness Center this year to expand harm reduction strategies both on campus and in the greater Columbus area!
Campus Training Coordinator
Laura Powers (she/her/hers)
My name is Laura Powers, and I’m a third-year public health sociology major. I joined BHR last fall, knowing that I had an interest in understanding how drugs impact individuals and society, as well as how our social structures have shaped the opioid epidemic. Volunteering with Safe Point through BHR throughout last year and giving Naloxone trainings around campus further sparked my passion for harm reduction. Last spring, I had the privilege of organizing trainings for OSU’s campus as the Naloxone Training Committee Chair, and I am thrilled to continue to facilitate these trainings and further expand our campus presence and impact as Campus Training Coordinator this year!
Advocacy Coordinator
Kylie Hayes (she/her/hers)
My name is Kylie Hayes and I am a second year Psychology and Public Policy major. I joined BHR my freshman year and I am honored to be the Advocacy Coordinator for the upcoming school year! I look forward to promoting harm reduction, reducing stigma, and bonding with the amazing people in this org throughout the year. This past semester was full of opportunities to present Narcan training to organizations on campus, work in the community, make amazing memories, and learn more about “meeting people where they are at.” In the future, I look forward to pursuing harm reduction professionally and am currently working on a research study studying the efficacy of fentanyl test strips and advocating for their implementation in communities throughout Ohio.
Community Outreach Coordinator
Nate Plant (he/him/his)
Hi my name is Nate Plant and I am a second-year physics major on the pre-med track. I joined BHR last fall and have since then made so many new friends through the club. Last year I worked in the collaborations committee to connect BHR with other health/wellness related organizations on campus, and it was one of my favorite experiences along with the community cleanups that we do every semester. I love doing everything I can to make a difference in my community, and with the various service, outreach, and social events, BHR definitely equipped me to do so on issues related to harm reduction. I’m excited for the upcoming year and looking forward to getting BHR more involved in our local communities!
Fisher Partners
Andrea Hefferan
Miles Skove
Addi Moeller
Jennifer Nguyen
Zach Skufca
Mauricio Parra
Claudia Casey