With our small staff, SLS could not do what we do without the work that is accomplished by our undergraduate student fellows.  Each year, SLS employs 10 - 12 undergraduate students who work with us in various capacities.  In addition to daily office work, these students also choose a long-term project to work on over the course of a semester or two, as part of our student fellows program.  They work as part of a student cohort, meeting regularly with each other, and with staff to develop and move SLS initiatives and programs forward.  This week, we celebrate four of our fellows as they graduate and move on from SLS.  We will miss them terribly, but are so proud of their accomplishments and excited for their future endeavors!

Adair Garrett, B.S. Civil Engineering

SLS has truly shaped my college career.  As soon as I started as a freshman at Tech, I walked into the SLS office and asked how I could get involved.  Luckily, the office was looking for student assistants and they reached out to me about an opportunity a few weeks later.  Once I began working at SLS, I couldn’t imagine what college life would have been otherwise.  I signed up for almost every program that I advertised to other students, including the Sustainable Cities minor, Buzz Course for Social Entrepreneurship, and the Internship program and I loved every single program I was able to participate in.  Many of the student workers I met became very close ‘sustainability peeps’ that continue to inspire me to commit to sustainability in my daily life.  The passionate people driving SLS are the kind of people that will never stop trying to grow and achieve more for Georgia Tech students.  SLS is one of the main reasons I’ve chosen to stay for graduate school, and it will be the center of many memories that make me smile when I think of my time at Georgia Tech. Adair will be completing her M.S. in Civil Engineering at Georgia Tech.

Tiana Hom, B.S. Computer Science

Being an advocate for sustainability, I loved being able to work on the RCE Greater Atlanta website to further a mission I believe in. While working here, I enjoyed having the opportunity to use the skills I was learning in my computer science degree and seeing how I could combine them with my passion to have a real-life impact. In particular, my favorite part of working at SLS was designing the web pages since I enjoy seeing how it creates an avenue of discussion and resources that brings together a community of like-minded, driven individuals.

My time working here at SLS also changed my progression at Tech. After seeing the work that SLS and RCE Greater Atlanta was doing, I sought out SLS affiliated courses that allowed me to have an impact on the local community. This allowed me to connect the work I was doing at SLS to my courses at Tech. I especially loved being able to see the impact I could achieve on the nearby community while also working towards my degree completion. 

Mira Kaufman, B.S. Public Policy

SLS has shaped my college experience, and my work at the Center influenced me to stay at Georgia Tech even when I considered transferring schools. It is difficult to articulate how instrumental my job at SLS was in making Georgia Tech feel like a place that I could fit in. SLS connected me to a community of people who were interested in and dedicated to sustainability and equity. Beyond sharing my interests, the people I found through this job are welcoming, accepting, and fun (and they will remain my friends even after I graduate from Georgia Tech and can no longer work here)!  The office was always a positive work environment, and I took pride in contributing to the programs and initiatives that SLS has to offer because I truly believe in the Center's mission. By working at SLS, I felt that I created a positive impact on campus and supported efforts to make the Georgia Tech student body more educated, well-rounded, and aware.  This job has taught me many skills that I now can bring with me into my future workplaces and my personal relationships. Learning about asset-based community development and learning how to listen are two lessons from my time at SLS that I will always keep in mind as I move forward. Undoubtably, my job at SLS and the community I found through their programs left an impression on me that will last far beyond my graduation.  Mira will be completing her M.S. in Public Policy at Georgia Tech.

Jazmin Lucio, B.S. Environmental Engineering

Over the past couple of years, working at SLS has helped me feel more connected to the greater sustainability community in Atlanta and beyond. I’ve met and worked with incredible people along the way and made memories that I’m going to hold near and dear to my heart for the rest of my life. SLS played a major role in my personal and professional development. I was given opportunities to showcase my own creativity and be a leader on campus – and it actually gave me the confidence to pursue higher roles in my other extracurriculars.

I worked on a lot of meaningful projects but I would have to say that assisting with the Building for Equity and Sustainability VIP course was one of my favorites. I learned SO MUCH throughout the two semesters that I was on the project and felt that my work was directly impactful to the community we were working with. I gained a better understanding of asset based community development and even got to apply what I was learning!