Public Service Fellowships: Summer 2009

The Americas

United States: Arkansas

Kelli Pointer ('10 Course 2) will develop a project-based program for the Boys & Girls Club in Helena-West Helena, Arkansas that exposes underprivileged children to the fields of Math, Science and Engineering.

Massachusetts

Karina Pikhart ('09 Course 2) will identify a manufacturer for the Braille Labeler her team designed. The Braille Labeler is a low-cost device that enables blind people to produce labels for household items (food, CDs, etc) in Braille script. Karina will collaborate with the manufacturer to prepare for production of the labeler.

Shomon Shamsuddin (G Course 11) will create, develop, and refine a set of protocols to test for discrimination in the Boston Housing Market by using internet-based online applications for mortgages.

New Orleans NOLA Fellows (a joint program with CoLab)

Bernadette Baird-Zars (G Course 11) will be working in New Orleans on creating a plan for homeownership financing for the future 27 families who will inhabit the new 'green' homes constructed this year. She will also create a directory of 'green building' initiatives in the New Orleans area.

Anna Brand (G Course 11) is working with the Lower Ninth Ward Center for Sustainable Engagement and Development on a long-term project to assist the return of people and businesses to historic St. Claude Avenue and the Lower Ninth Ward Communities in New Orleans. She is also working on a carbon neutrality plan for the community.

Jacquelyn Dadakis (G Course 11) is working with the St. Roch project to help launch two environmentally based economic development programs in New Orleans.

Aditi Mehta ('11 Course 11) will be working over the summer with the Broad Community Connections to strengthen and expand their community development programs.

San Diego

Spencer Williams (G Course 15) will be working with the Lewis Middle School, San Diego, as a coordinator for the Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) federal grant. Spencer's work will enable the school to apply for a major grant to support low-income students as they prepare for and enter post-secondary education.

South Carolina

Graham Van Schaik ('12) will be working this summer on Science Captivates Minds, an experiment-based science program he founded in South Carolina to provide elementary school students a foundation in basic scientific concepts and encourage them to pursue scientific studies.

Ecuador

Richard Mancco ('11 Course 2) and Lauren Vegter ('11 Course 15) will be working with a women's empowerment group, Frente Femenino, in Pascuales, Ecuador. As part of the International Development Consulting group at MIT, Richard and Lauren will be helping the women to start small businesses and develop materials and support structures that will enable other women to do the same in the future.

Africa

Helen D'Couto ('12) is project manager for the MIT-EWB (Engineers Without Borders) Uganda team. She will be traveling to Uganda to implement a mobile phone-based health diagnosis and records tracking system for the rural Engeye clinic. She will also do needs analysis for the MIT-EWB team.

Danielle DeLatte ('11 Course 16) will incorporate wheelchair workshops in Uganda into the Worldwide Mobility network that links donors in the US to workshops in developing countries that make robust, affordable wheelchairs. She will also travel to Kenya to build a Leveraged Freedom Chair, an innovative wheelchair designed for traveling long-distances over rough terrain, and conduct extensive tests of the prototype with local wheelchair riders.

Harrison O'Hanley ('11 Course 2) will be working on the Leveraged Freedom Chair (LFC), a lever-powered wheelchair designed specifically for use in the developing world. This summer he will work with local workshops in Africa to produce prototypes that will be tested under real world conditions and receive feedback for the final design phase of the LFC.

Ting Shih (G Course 15) will be implementing Click Diagnostics' mobile telemedicine services to treat HIV/AIDS, cervical cancer, and skin ailments in Ghana, Uganda, and Botswana. In addition to pilot services, she will also engage key partners in mobile telecommunication organizations, health ministries, local NGOs, and doctors' networks to ensure continued success of the program.

India

Rutuparna Das ('12 Course 8) will be developing curriculum materials, designing science experiments, and teaching Science and Mathematics to students at Rtapalli Vidyapitha, a free residential high school in India.

Raqeebul Ketan ('11 Course 16) will develop the second phase of iSchool, an education program he started in Bangladesh over IAP 2009. iSchool (Interactive School) uses interactive software and video to demonstrate physics concepts in an effective and engaging manner. This summer, Raqeebul will be focusing on the future sustainability of the program and developing the iSchool curriculum website.

Asia

Yang Jiang (G Course 11) will be working in Jinan, China this summer to develop software tools for city planners. These tools will enable planners to incorporate energy-efficient transportation choices into their designs for new urban areas.

Katherine Kuan ('09 Course 6) and her team will travel to the Philippines to pilot Moca, a low-cost, open source, remote medical diagnostics platform. Katherine will be working with the University of Philippines National Telehealth Center.

Sunaree Kim Marshall (G Course 11) will be working with the Urban Development Resource Center in Mongolia. She will evaluate the performance of their community savings groups and investigate the potential for energy efficient construction and retrofit practices in the communities the organization serves.

For more information on these Fellows, contact Alison Hynd, Fellowships and Internships Coordinator.

Posted on May 12, 2009