Click on a student’s name or picture to learn more about their experiences with the Bridging Disciplines Program in the School of Undergraduate Studies. To view student success stories from other UGS programs, visit the student success page.
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Flawn Academic Center (FAC)
Room 338
2304 Whitis Avenue
Austin, Texas – 78712
512-232-7564
Student Profiles
Jacob Blas is pursuing a BDP certificate in Human Rights & Social Justice. This summer, he worked with the Rapoport Center and researchers from Harvard University and Northeastern University, on a research project entitled “The Persistence of Inequality: ‘Essential’ Work and COVID-19” where they looked at the ways the pandemic has exacerbated inequalities among Latinx construction workers in Austin. They also looked at legal and political drivers that have made COVID-19 especially destructive to Latinx and other Black, Indigenous, People of Color communities.
Maurizio Marcotulli, a civil engineering major pursuing a BDP certificate in Environment & Sustainability, completed an independent research project where he looked at the applicability of small modular reactors in Latin America. His goal was to see whether there were systemic reasons that small modular reactors could compete on more even grounds with the current popular hydroelectric energy in the region.
Destiny Gonzales, a Psychology major pursuing a BDP Certificate in Design Strategies, worked at ZTech as a UI/UX designer and user researcher. She conducted research on user behavior and identified how the organization could accurately and creatively address user needs.
Innovation, Creativity & Entrepreneurship student Keyanna Maxwell conducted market research to better understand startup needs and failures, looking specifically at startups in creative arenas. She explored the intersections between these types of businesses as she prepared to create a business plan for a makers studio focused on baking, cooking classes, sewing, and other creative endeavors.
Veronica Remmert, completing a BDP in Social Inequality, Health & Policy with an emphasis in Public Health, conducted research focused on the health needs of four communities in rural Puebla, Mexico and created an inventory of health resources in each community. As a winner of the President’s Award for Global Learning, her research will be used to inform a comprehensive needs assessment for each community, which will be implemented this summer.
Isheta Kumar, majoring in Chemistry and Economics and completing a BDP certificate in Public Policy, interned with Austin Technology Incubator (ATI), an organization dedicated to funding promising scientific innovations. While at ATI, Isheta had the opportunity to research the public benefit funds used by over 30 states to provide funding for renewable energy research. Texas is one of the few states without such a fund, so she used her research to craft a proposal for Texas to create a public benefit fund.
Kaity Dallas, pursuing a BDP certificate in Children & Society, spent the spring semester as an intern with the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Austin, where she worked children and youth programs conducting community outreach, compiling data, and attending meetings and events with community stakeholders. Through this internship, Kaity had the opportunity to play an integral role in NAMI’s Ending the Silence program.
Anna Rose Isbell, a Corporate Communication major completing a BDP certificate in Ethics & Leadership in Law, Politics & Government, served as a Media Ethics Citizen Scholar through the Moody College of Communication’s Media Ethics Initiative in spring 2018. She researched and wrote case studies related to media ethics and law, politics, and government as well as assisted with the public relations and advertising efforts of the Media Ethics Initiative.
Valeria Montemayor, Digital Arts & Media student and Studio Art major, created an animated comic named Skull-Kidz!, which gave her the chance to combine animation and comic books in a unique way that allowed her to expand her skills as a digital artist. She also had the opportunity to engage with an online audience, write her own scripts, and build her “portfolio“https://valeriamontemayor.carbonmade.com/.
Sriram Palepu, majoring in both Business and Biology and completing the Environment & Sustainability BDP certificate, conducted research in India on the effects of mercury content on the fishing industry of the Godavari River. He focused on whether or not a correlation existed between fish mercury content and neurodegenerative diseases in the area of Andhra Pradesh, India.