Meet the 12th Cohort of A'Lelia Bundles Community Scholars

The 12th cohort includes a filmmaker, philanthropist, nonprofit leader, community stakeholder, and local advocate, all driving change in their local communities with unique projects. 

By
Kymani Hayden
October 08, 2024

Columbia University welcomes its newest class of A’Lelia Bundles Community Scholars who will work on a project or skill that relates to or benefits their community.

This is the 12th cohort of Bundles Scholars to join the University in a three-year affiliation that gives them the resources to expand their research, realize a project, and increase their knowledge through access to Columbia’s libraries, course auditing, and building a community with passionate individuals working on a wide variety of projects. 

This year, the group of scholars includes an independent filmmaker, a visionary leader in the arts and culture industry, a community stakeholder with a dedication to uplifting local youth, a philanthropist whose work is centered around community connection, and a former government employee navigating the intersection of healthy relationships and healthy neighborhoods. 

The scholars, chosen through a competitive application process, all hail from Upper Manhattan.

This year’s new scholars are:

Cathleen Campbell

Cathleen Campbell

Cathleen Campbell is a Yale University graduate and a longtime Harlem resident who has photographed Harlem for decades. She worked primarily as an independent filmmaker, assisting on numerous productions, before writing and directing her own short films, including “Langston Hughes’ No Crystal Stair.” Televised nationwide, her films have also been screened at prestigious festivals. She’s currently completing a documentary about four generations in a Harlem family.

As a Bundles Scholar, she will produce short films about Harlem heroes and cultural landmarks, making these films available via QR codes at different Harlem locations. These short films will be shared on a website with an interactive map. Armchair tourists can seek information virtually while in-person visitors can find previously unmarked Harlem cultural landmarks. Campbell will shoot photographic portraits of current residents living in these historical and cultural landmarks, in the spirit of extending, expanding, and celebrating the phenomenal, ongoing legacies of Harlem.


Joseph Malik Suba Turner

Joseph Malik Suba Turner

Joseph Malik Suba Turner is a prominent community stakeholder in Harlem, known for his continuous dedication to mentoring youth and contributing to the local community. Turner organizes a Basketball Classic every summer that provides scholar-athletes and community members from urban areas with a positive and secure seasonal activity. His mission is centered on fostering prosperity, inspiration, innovation, originality, encouragement, and leadership among every scholar, beginning with local youth from the immediate community.

As a Bundles Scholar, Turner aims to instill values of discipline, teamwork, resilience, and leadership, both on and off the court for local community youth through the continuous development of his nonprofit organization's mission of empowering scholar-athletes to excel in everything, whether academically, athletically, and personally, to prepare them for success in both middle and high school, college and life beyond basketball.


Richard E. Pelzer II

Richard Pelzer

Richard E. Pelzer II is a visionary leader in the arts and culture industry, known for his expertise in event and film production, audience development, and community engagement. He is the founder and executive producer of HarlemCLX and MEGA Personalities, and co-founder of iN-Hale Entertainment, LLC. Currently, he serves as the interim general manager of the Harlem Fine Arts Show (HFAS) and is an advisory board member of NYCxDesign Festival. Pelzer holds a bachelor's degree in art history and business management from Kent State University and is widely respected for his innovative approach to building and sustaining creative communities. 

HarlemCLX (Creative, Learn & Experience) is a dynamic hub dedicated to nurturing the creative spirit within the Harlem community. By seamlessly blending technology, education, and artistic expression, the CLX fosters an environment where ideas flourish and voices are amplified. 

As a Bundles Scholar, Pelzer will continue his mission of empowering the community to preserve its vibrant local history through storytelling that encompasses oral histories, digital archives, and interactive exhibits. 


Marianna Schaffer

Marianna Schaffer

Marianna Schaffer is a curious connector and strategist with over 20 years of service in the philanthropic and movement sectors. She brings a highly passionate, personable, and dynamic approach to her work as vice president of programs at the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation where she oversees and manages all programmatic activities and ensures alignment with foundation goals and values focused on equity and justice. 

Before Dodge, she was the inaugural director of artist initiatives at Creative Capital, an organization that provides adventurous artists across the country with substantial financial and capacity-building support. Schaffer began her career in philanthropy as a member of David Rockefeller Sr.’s philanthropic team rising to become the director of programs at the David Rockefeller Fund, where she was responsible for day-to-day operations and grantmaking focused on arts access and engagement, criminal justice reform, and climate justice and advocacy.

As a Bundles Scholar, Schaffer will further explore and develop Philanthropic Leadership for Change — a research project and community for philanthropic board leaders navigating transformational change at their institutions.


Roslyn Walker

A woman smiles and poses for a photo in front of a purple background.

Roslyn Walker is a longstanding member of the Manhattan community. After serving decades within the government, Walker retired and returned to her passion for engaging with both younger and senior members of the Harlem community in which she was raised. Walker is currently active in the community with St. Luke Baptist Church, neighboring Columbia University in Morningside Heights. She's a senior member of the church's New Disciples Team and engages people as they embark on their journey of growing in their faith. She enjoys being a peer navigator across age groups. Walker believes that both a religious and post-secondary educated society promotes healthy relationships and healthy neighborhoods. She was honored for her hard work at St. Luke Baptist Church and received a citation from the New York State Assembly signed by Representative Al Taylor. 

As a Bundles Scholar, Walker will develop a research project centered on helping mothers provide academic support to their incarcerated children who are pursuing college. It is about designing a mentorship program to help moms in New York City who have kids participating in college while also incarcerated in New York State prisons.


You can learn more about past and present scholars, and their projects, at our directory on the A'Lelia Bundles Community Scholars website. The website also features information on how to become a scholar in the next cohort — applications will open in Spring 2025.

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