Major: Civil Engineering Interests: Global Development Engineering Certificate
I can play four instruments: Piano, Flute, Trumpet and Euphonium
I was drawn to Duke University by the sense of school pride that Duke students and alumni seemed to collectively share. After completing my first year in the Pratt School of Engineering feel a great sense of pride in being a Dukie as well. As a civil engineer, I have focused heavily on energy access programs at Duke including a Bass Connections project that will research the business and policy landscape for energy access in Africa. As a part of the project, I will be traveling to Zambia in spring 2019. I also completed a Duke Engage project this past summer in conjunction with EnergyX, a student run energy focused organization. During the project, I worked for WindAid, a Peruvian NGO, to build wind turbines for communities without electricity. Being in Peru for two months left me with many memories such as being taught how to salsa by friends and seeing Machu Picchu. Since leaving Peru, my long-term goal has become to use engineering to improve the standard of living around the world by increasing access to electricity and technology. During sophomore year, I look forward to how I can become more involved in energy access projects at Duke.
Outside the classroom, I am a member of FIN, an organization that seeks to empower young girls by pairing them with a mentor at Duke that they meet with every weekend. One of the best parts of my week is getting to see my mentee and catching up. I am also a part of the National Society of Black Engineers and attended the national convention in Pittsburgh this past year. Apart from clubs, I love attending Duke Basketball games; March madness and the Duke vs. UNC game are some of my favorite memories from freshman year. I also love traveling, hiking, and trying foods of any variety or culture. When I need to relax my go to activities are playing piano and hanging out with friends on the quad.
As a part of SPIRE I have really enjoyed being under the guidance of Dean Blackshear and Dean Crowley. Both of them as well as rest of the SPIRE cohort have been supportive through tutoring and a variety of guest speakers. Beyond academic support, SPIRE has become an invaluable community of students at Duke that I have greatly appreciated over the course of this year.
