As we close out the Fall 2022 semester, we wanted to highlight our student staff, who function as an integral part of our office. SLS could not do the work we do without them!
Lara Bailen (Computer Science)
My name is Lara Bailen, I am an international student from a small town in Madrid, Spain. I am a second-year Computer Science Major with a Film and Media Studies Minor. I am responsible for maintaining and updating the RCE Greater Atlanta and Serve Learn Sustain websites.
Jennie Baker (Environmental Engineering)
My name is Jennie Baker and I am a third-year environmental engineering major. My interest in sustainability grew significantly after participating in SLS's Asset-Based Community Development short course and adding the sustainable cities minor. This past summer I interned with the Center for Sustainable Communities through the SLS Summer Internship Program and am currently working as a Public Interest Technology Fellow to develop an ethics course to teach engineers at Tech about community engagement!
Julie Chen (Architecture)
My name is Julie Chen, and I am a 2nd-year Architecture major from Columbus, GA. My hobbies include cooking, skating, and painting, and I am very much an INTP. This fall, I'm working as the network weaving coordinator for RCE Greater Atlanta. I work closely with other coordinators to strengthen the RCE onboarding structure through group consultation and plan events to foster community building. It's a lot of work managing a network, but it's definitely worth it! I get to work alongside our fabulous student coordinators, expand my network, and along the way, meet new people!
Aditya Desai (Masters, Environmental Engineering and Public Policy)
Aditya Desai is an Environmental Engineering and Public Policy graduate student. He is working with the Center for Serve-Learn-Sustain (SLS) as a GRA for RCE Greater Atlanta, and as a GTA for the class Organizing for Social Change (HTS 2803). As part of his work, Aditya coordinated the RCE Greater Atlanta SDG Futures Fellowship – an ongoing programming spanning sustainability initiatives, equity and justice, professional and leadership development. He also worked on furthering RCE Greater Atlanta’s global engagement efforts. In Spring 2023, along with the global engagement and the fellowship program, he will also coordinate with the Public Interest Technology fellows to found a course in the College of Engineering that introduces community engagement in engineering – a necessary step to increase social and environmental justice within the scope of engineering. Aditya’s academic research includes urban and energy policies, sustainable energy technologies, and urban infrastructure. He holds a degree in Biotechnology and Environmental Biotechnology. In the past, Aditya has worked with UNDP on boosting women entrepreneurship and social finance. He has also worked with the State Government of Maharashtra in creating and administering the state’s climate change mitigation and adaptation program which had a lot of focus on DEI in decision making. Aditya is passionate about international partnerships and astronomy. Outside of work, you can find Aditya going to the beach, watching Sumo, or sharing his love of Indian cuisine.
Juliette Goff (Environmental Engineering)
My name is Juliette Goff. I'm a 4th year environmental engineering major with a minor in sustainable cities. I have a passion for water resources in cities and expanding sustainability within engineering. My work at SLS focuses on creating a community engagement course for engineering students here at Tech with the Public Interest Technology Fellows.
Megan Jermak (Civil Engineering)
Meg is a second year Civil Engineering major with a minor in Sustainable Cities. She has been involved with SLS on multiple different projects. She first got involved with SLS in the Building for Equity and Sustainability VIP in Spring 2022. Then, she participated in the SLS Summer Internship program during Summer 2022, working with the West Atlanta Watershed Alliance (WAWA), an environmental education, justice, and stewardship non-profit based out of Atlanta’s Oakland City neighborhood at the Outdoor Activity Center. There, she was involved in the Atlanta Watershed Learning Network and planned the outdoor classroom project in collaboration between the Building for Equity and Sustainability VIP and WAWA which began Fall 2022. She now helps lead the VIP team in their partnership with WAWA and the designing of the outdoor classrooms. Working with the PIT fellows this Fall, she helped to create a course on community engagement in engineering, particularly with a focus on how engineers can emphasize equity in their work at GT and in the industry. In the coming semester, she is staying on with PIT and looks forward to building out the course and furthering community partnerships between Georgia Tech students and Atlanta communities. Also, she eagerly anticipates the PIT fellow’s meeting with community engaged engineering expert Juan Lucena.
Miguel Jimenez (Masters, City Planning and Architecture)
My name is Miguel. I am a graduate student from Mexico. I am pursuing a dual master's in architecture and city planning. I work at SLS as the graduate teaching assistant of the Building for Equity and Sustainability VIP. In this position, I help instructors organize coursework, run activities in class, and advise students with their projects that relate to community and campus engagement.
Ayush Kotru (Aerospace Engineering)
My name is Ayush Kotru, and I am a 1st year Aerospace Engineering major. I became involved with SLS because of my interests in sustainability and energy. I am currently working with Mr. Garry Harris at the Center for Sustainable Communities to develop outreach activities and programs.
Mark Lannaman (Masters, Sustainable Energy and Environmental Management)
Hi! My name is Mark Lannaman. I am a graduate student at Georgia Tech studying Sustainable Energy and Environmental Management. I am a student coordinator with RCE Greater Atlanta focusing on youth engagement. I enjoy helping student across out multi-institutional network connect and collaborate towards advancing the UN Sustainable Development Goals!
Min Sol Lee (Industrial and Systems Engineering)
My name is MinSol Lee. I am a graduating senior who’s majoring in Industrial and Systems Engineering (ISyE) and minoring in Industrial Design (ID). As fellows of the Public Interest Technology (PIT) program, with the guidance of (amazing) Ruthie Yow, the five of us are developing a community engagement course for engineering students. Last summer, I participated in the SLS Internship program and worked with Grove Park Foundation (GPF), a non-profit organization that paves the way for the Grove Park neighborhood to be a more equitable and sustainable place.
Juniper Sloman (Materials Science and Engineering)
Juniper Sloman joined SLS for the 2022 Summer Internship program. A fourth year Materials Science and Engineering major and Environmental Science minor, she wanted to find an opportunity that utilized the skills she'd learned in class while focusing on sustainability. June worked as a Public Interest Technology intern with WunderGrubs, Inc., a company that promotes regenerative agriculture by using mealworms to make protein, fish feed, and fertilizer and uses its resources to educates students, farmers, and citizens on regenerative agriculture. June continued her work with the PIT Fellowship fall. The PIT Fellows worked on a syllabus for a course they hope to introduce to the GT curriculum on the importance of community engagement in developing good and equitable engineers. The Fellows have also been able to invite Dr. Juan Lucena, Director of Humanitarian Engineering Undergraduate Programs and Outreach, to speak on Georgia Tech campus this coming Spring 2023. Dr. Lucena is one of the leading researchers in sustainable and equitable engineering. June is excited to be continuing her work with the PIT Fellowship in Spring 2023.
Erica Zheng (Biomedical Engineering)
My name is Erica Zheng. I am a Biomedical Engineering student at GT minoring in Industrial Design. I interned for RCE Greater Atlanta Network over the summer and continued some of that work with a focus on Marketing and Communications in the fall semester. What I do for the RCE includes managing the social media accounts, writing articles and compiling news for monthly newsletters, and supporting student engagement initiatives, such as the SDG Futures Fellowship. I am graduating in the spring, and my workload is increasing, so I will be passing my torch to the next student working on MarComm. RCE has been an incredible, eye-opening experience for me, and I hope to carry what I have learned in my time here into the future. I hope to continue to support the RCE as a member moving forward.
Milly Zheng (Computational Media)
I'm Milly Zheng. I'm a Georgia Tech first year from New York City and am majoring in Computational Media. I currently am an SLS student designer and am in charge of SLS's social media accounts. As a part of SLS, I've had the opportunity to work on branding guidelines, photographic organization, and a variety of design projects requested by those working in SLS.