Previous Summer Community Service Fellows

Sonja helped Sust'āinable Molokai, a nonprofit in Kaunakakai, Hawaii, carry out participatory design research focused on sustainable energy, conservation, and land restoration. 

Nour-Lyna helped the Boston Housing Authority develop a comprehensive tracking system for minority and women-owned businesses that are working on BHS projects.

Ava helped The Neighborhood Developers (TND), a nonprofit based in Chelsea, MA, on projects including a portfolio matrix for the real estate team to assess TND's assets and properties, tools to explain an upcoming lottery for new affordable housing units, and efforts to better inform and engage with community residents. 

Amadeos helped the cultural corridors team in San Francisco's Planning Department develop projects and plans for the 16th Street corridor in the city's Mission District.

Sam helped the Housing Assistance Council and the Citizen's Institute on Rural Design in Washington, DC, analyze rural housing markets and provide training and technical assistance for organizations focused on improving housing conditions for the rural poor.

Alessandra planned, facilitated, and documented an equitable community engagement for the Mystic River Watershed Association's Mystic Greenways Initiative, which seeks to connect paths and parks in a major Boston-area watershed. 

Matt assisted the Boston Housing Authority's efforts to redevelop and decarbonize its properties.

Tyler helped Black Land Ownership (BLO), a non-profit based in Brooklyn, NY, develop an interactive map and diversity index that will inform BLO's planning and advocacy.

Omer researched and proposed mapping tools that the Inner-City Muslim Action Network (IMAN) could use to advance community-led social action and advocacy efforts in Chicago's Englewood neighborhood and in the city as a whole. 

Richard helped the Massachusetts Housing Investment Corporation, a private, non-profit financier of affordable housing and community development, create a new fund that will provide access to capital and resources for emerging real estate developers, particularly those from underrepresented backgrounds. 

Max helped YouthLink, a nonprofit in Minneapolis, MN, that works with young people who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. He developed a digital system map that visualizes the complex system of youth homelessness. 

Michaela worked at LA Mas, a community based organization in northeast Los Angeles. She supported work related to the area's sharing economy, helping with an ethnographic study of northeast Los Angeles, and assisting efforts to create a new community housing alliance in northeast Los Angeles. 

Felix helped the Design Trust for Public Space, a New York City based nonprofit, develop a policy framework for creating community-designed green spaces at public housing developments that can be carried out by public-private partnerships. 

Aubrey worked at the City of Boston's Housing Innovation Lab on projects related to housing affordability. 

Shivangi helped the New York City Housing Authority's (NYCHA) Connected Communities program develop site-level master plans focused on the transformation of open spaces at some of NYCHA's developments. 

Chadwick worked at Greater Grove Hall Main Streets in Boston on initiatives related to green infrastructure and development.  

Holly helped the City of Boston’s Housing Innovation Lab make it easier and cheaper to develop Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) by creating a compendium of pre-approved plans for ADUs and a prefabricated ADU manufacturing pipeline. 

Chandani helped the Cornell Legal Constructs Lab develop the National Zoning Atlas, an interactive online tool with information on zoning laws across the US. 

Nur helped CultureHouse, a nonprofit based in Somerville, MA develop a community toolkit about a new law that requires multifamily zoning in communities served by the MBTA. 

Zachary worked at HUD’s Office of Community Planning and Development on projects related to the Section 108 Loan Guarantee Program. 

Elizabeth worked with CultureHouse, a nonprofit based in Somerville, MA, on projects that seek to transform underutilized urban spaces into vibrant public spaces. 

Maggie helped Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH) make trauma-informed care part of the design of its projects and the services offered in those developments.  

Gabriel worked at Strategic Actions for a Just Economy in Los Angeles, California. 

Emily worked at the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development. 

Matt worked at Citizen's Institute on Rural Design in Washington, DC.

Grace worked the South Boston Neighborhood Development Corporation.

Taylor worked at the Center for Urban Pedagogy in Brooklyn. 

Amna worked at Homeowners Rehab Inc., in Cambridge MA.

Aaron worked at the NYC Department of City Planning's Division of Zoning and Urban Design.

Gianina worked at Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH) in Boston, MA.

Abdul-Razak worked at the Association for Neighborhood & Housing Development in New York City. 

Michael worked at the New York City Housing Authority. 

Emma worked with the Resiliency Planning Team in the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development's Office of Neighborhood Strategies.

Olivia worked with MASS Design Group on a project to expand their work on Fringe Cities into a book scheduled to be published later this year.

Zoe worked with Greater Grove Hall Main Streets and the Earthos Institute on the creation of a Green Zone for Boston’s Grove Hall neighborhood.

G worked as a Public Realm and Streetscape Design intern with ReBUILD Metro in Baltimore.

Jonathan helped the Cambridge Community Development Department’s Economic Development Division build a new state-funded economic recovery program for local businesses.

Shannon worked as a Planning and Development intern in the office of Boston City Councilor Elizabeth Breadon.

Arshaya assisted with design, research, and planning tasks as well community engagement processes at the Kounkuey Design Initiative in Los Angeles.

Whytne worked on policy research and community engagement on several projects for 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, a community development entity that is part of the St. Philip’s School and Community Center in Dallas.

Clara worked on a neighborhood data portal for the Pratt Center for Community Development in Brooklyn.

Nupur did research for the Greater Grove Hall Main Streets on creating a Green Innovation Zone in that neighborhood of Boston.

Cecley helped Powerful Pathways, a public interest consultancy in Boston, research creative media tools and design thinking methods to facilitate social change.

Yidan did research for the Greater Grove Hall Main Streets on design strategies for that neighborhood and nearby Franklin Park.

Elena researched and wrote content for the National Housing Council’s COVID-19 Housing Resource Center, a comprehensive online resource for housing policymakers, practitioners, and advocates.

Asher worked with the City of Providence’s Department of Planning and Development on COVID-19 responses for the department’s “EveryHome in Providence” program.

Anne worked at The Urban Institute to help implement the High Line Network Equitable Impacts Framework pilot project, bringing together individuals involved with a variety of infrastructure reuse projects to ensure the social, environmental, and economic benefits of the projects reach as many people as possible, especially longtime residents of neighboring communities. 

Lillian helped develop and maintain a COVID-19 small business policy and resource guide for the Emerald South Economic Collaborative in Chicago.

Kanchan worked with the Kounkuey Design Initiative in Los Angeles on design issues for affordable housing, particularly a project primarily serving migrant farm workers in California’s Coachella Valley.

Anna Carlsson researched community land trusts as part of NeighborWorks® America's new Shared Equity Housing Initiative.

Erick Diaz researched how policy-level tools can maximize affordable housing units at the California Housing Partnership.

Hangsoo Jeong worked with the Boston Planning & Development Agency on projects designed to enhance urban resilience.

Emily Klein worked at the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development’s Inclusionary Housing Unit on projects to better track, analyze, and communicate information related to the city’s Mandatory Inclusionary Housing program.

Kyle Miller worked with the Interagency Council on Housing and Homelessness in Boston to research and conduct data analysis on state initiatives addressing youth homelessness.

Samantha Saona worked with the Urbanism and Infrastructure department of Corporación del Proyecto ENLACE in San Juan, Puerto Rico, on housing relocation for families affected by flooding, as well as the development of a new Infrastructural Master Plan for the Caño Martín Peña area.

Isaac Stein worked with ReBuild Metro in Baltimore to study and analyze development potential for the Johnston Square neighborhood.

Syed was part of the citywide community-based planning efforts carried out by the Neighborhood Planning Team at the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development.

Maura Barry-Garland worked on three affordable housing projects being carried out by the South Boston Neighborhood Development Corporation.

Gloria Chang worked at the U.S. Naval War College's Civilian-Military Humanitarian Response Program in Newport, Rhode Island.

Francisco Colom worked at the MASS Design Group, a non-profit in Boston that aims to research, build, and advocate for architecture that promotes justice and human dignity.

Maria de la Luz Lobos Martinez worked with the Livable Streets Alliance and the Southwest Boston CDC on the Emerald Necklace Initiative, which aims to enhance connectivity and walkability and improve access to the Neponset River in Boston's Hyde Park and Roslindale neighborhoods.

Katie Gourley worked at the Mayor's Internship Program in Philadelphia on Rebuild Philadelphia, a $500 million program to revitalize the city's neighborhood parks, recreation centers, playgrounds, and libraries.

Christin Hu worked as a designer at YouthBuild Boston, a non-profit that provides underserved young people with the support and credentials needed to successfully enter the building trades.

Emma Phillips helped design a new urban garden for the Garden School Foundation, which offers garden-based learning in outdoor living classrooms for underserved youth in Los Angeles.

Gabriel Ramos worked at the Africatown Preservation & Development Association, a Seattle-based non-profit that is developing strategies for documenting and preserving the African American presence in that city's Central District and surrounding communities.

Juan Reynoso worked on housing-related issues in the Office of California Assemblyman Todd Gloria (D-San Diego).

Chandra Rouse worked as an Economic Development Intern with the South East Chicago Commission, a community-based organization focused on enhancing the quality of life in five of that city's neighborhoods.

Matt Genova assisted with several projects around the implementation of nMotion, Nashville's, 25-year transportation plan.

Miriam Keller assisted the National Low Income Housing Coalition in Washington, DC on efforts to educate federal lawmakers about housing needs and efforts to analyze and shape policy proposals.

Casey Peterson worked at the New York City Department of City Planning (DCP) in the Waterfront & Open Space Division where she conducted an extensive analysis of New York City's current and future floodplain, taking stock of the various building typologies and land uses along the waterfront. This data will be used by DCP as the agency engages community boards across the city in the process of updating the zoning text for the floodplain. In conducting this research, she enhanced her skills in GIS and Excel and gained an appreciation for the rigor DCP applies to its research. During the course of the internship, Casey also assisted in producing graphic materials for community zoning workshops and for City of Water Day, an annual event hosted by the Waterfront Alliance.

Leah Pickett worked at the New York City Department of Housing Preservation & Development's (HPD) Division of Property Disposition and Finance. As an intern with the Director of Land Disposition, Leah worked on a disposition strategy for a portfolio of HPD owned properties. In particular, she researched the viability of the community land trust (CLT) model. She approached this question from a few different angles: working on underwriting models, researching CLT best practices and case studies around the United States, and helping to identify and address persistent strategic questions within HPD. Ultimately, she produced a memo on the "value add" of CLTs and supported the development of a CLT framework for the City of New York.

Claire Summers worked in Boston’s Department of Neighborhood Development on a variety projects, including research and identification of potential locations for non-profit development of affordable housing.

Katherine Wolf worked with the Boston Planning & Development Agency on recent initiatives in the Glover’s Corner neighborhood of Dorchester. Kate worked with the Community Planning Team on the recent launch of the Glover's Corner Study Area, known as PLAN: Glover's Corner. She was tasked with designing and a community engagement activity for an upcoming public meeting, and creating a summary of "progress-to-date" to update residents on what had been accomplished in terms of the planning timeline. Kate also produced a white paper including precedent research on climate resiliency, specifically surface stormwater conveyance as public open space. This research was adapted to a slide presentation to be used at a fall community public meeting.

Jessica Yuan worked with the Construction Open Space group at Boston’s Department of Neighborhood Development on several projects including updating research on housing typologies for affordable housing developments. She worked on a few projects, including several presentations for community meeetings, design reviews for ongoing projects, revisions of the department's prototype houses, and research and graphics for guidelines and policies. She aided in ongoing revisions to the department's Design Guidelines, and produced a final document which incorporates best practices for unit layouts and kitchens. Jessica also worked with a Housing Innovation Lab fellow, Riddhi Shah, on producing unit layout graphics for a proposed microunit policy. She collaborated on the design guidelines for the policy, basing them off of existing DND guidelines. She also helped with the Neighborhood Homes Initiative (NHI), which uses a set of prototype homes for infill development on city owned lots. Jessica contributed several revisions to these prototypes, as well as reviewed permit drawings for ongoing NHI projects. Her design work also included creating a preliminary site strategy for a large set of parcels in Mattapan, a project which was a collaboration with two interns from the Real Estate Management and Sales team.