I am a junior at Tufts University in Medford, MA. I study biochemistry, and also have chosen to focus on bridging barriers for low-income, first-generation students that will allow them to get into colleges that are financially feasible.
I volunteer as an advising mentor through the nonprofit organization Matriculate and launched a resource website targeting important resources for first-gen, low-income students who are applying to college during the pandemic.
My first summer of Laidlaw research focused on writing a literature review that focused on tissue engineering and biomedical techniques that are making way into more personalized medicine. I focused on how these new upcoming technologies will pave way for more inclusive medicine. I also highlight the pitfalls within the FDA process of approval of medicines and technologies and how research should encompass more diverse patient populations
My second summer of Laidlaw research focused on college access and reaching out to students who come from first-generation low-income backgrounds. I collected data from students who were mentored through Matricualte over the pandemic, and I hope to provide information from my survey to organizations like Matriculate to help them use for funding, donation opportunities in the future.
I am an undergraduate student at Tufts University pursuing a degree in International Relations and Civic Studies, with a concentration in culture and identity systems. One of my greatest passions is participating in social activism initiatives and finding productive and creative ways to combat pressing issues and work toward positive global change. Through my experience as a researcher, I have been able to explore how various socially-constructed systems of oppression and privilege interlock and affect one another to create concrete patterns that impact people’s lived experiences and shape their worldviews. Every day, I continue to learn more about how to be a productive activist and ally in my community, and I am always open to new experiences and challenges. I absolutely love working with people, and in my life, I hope to have the opportunity to continue learning more about the world and its inhabitants.
I'm an alumni from Tufts University, I majored in cognitive and brain sciences. My project is titled 'The Neuroscience of Intellectual Disability', and through multiple molecular biology techniques my lab aims to better understand the effect of β-catenin and Adenomatous Polyposis coli Protein (APC) malfunction on intellectual disabilities. I do most of my work at the Michele Jacob Lab, in the Tufts School of Medicine in downtown Boston. I'm now working at the Martinos Center on Alzheimer’s research.
As Associate Provost of Tufts University, Dr. Dawn Geronimo Terkla oversees the Offices of Institutional Research & Evaluation (OIR&E); The Center for Enhancement of Learning & Teaching (CELT), and the Tufts Laidlaw Scholars Program: serves on the USAID funded EPT2 One Health Workforce Project; provides guidance across the university on issues relating to institutional research, outcomes assessment, and evaluation; provides critical management information to senior administrators; and serves on university-wide committees (Academic Council, Administrative Council, Social Science IRB, Tufts IT Steering Committee, Information Stewardship Sub-committee, Student Information Steering Committee, as well as, co-chairing the University-Wide Committee on Teaching and Faculty Development.
Dr. Terkla is the University Accreditation Liaison Officer to the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE). In addition, she participates in school-level accreditations, providing support as needed.
She has held leadership positions in several organizations serving as President of both the North East Association for Institutional Research and the Association for Institutional Research, as well as the Chair of the US Department of Educational National Postsecondary Executive Committee (NPEC) Council on Postsecondary Education Statistics. In addition, she has served on the Higher Education Data Sharing Consortium Board of Directors, the UCLA/ACE Cooperative Institutional Research Program Advisory Committee, National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities Commission on Policy Analysis and the National Student Clearinghouse Advisory Committee.
Dr. Terkla earned a doctorate in higher education research from Harvard University, a Masters of Public Policy from the University of California Berkeley, and a bachelors degree from Ohio Wesleyan University where she majored in politics and government. In addition, she was awarded a management certificate from the Management Institute for Women in Higher Education.
Hello! I am a multidisciplinary designer and have been with the Laidlaw Foundation for over five years, working to strengthen our global Scholar community and amplify the impact of our programmes.
My work lives somewhere between design, education, and anthropology, usually with sticky notes involved. I studied Human Sciences as an undergrad and recently finished a Master’s in Anthropology, both at UCL.
Born and raised in Kazakhstan 🇰🇿 Outside of work? Probably in the ceramics studio or a yoga class. Big fan of nature and very small bugs.
Alex was the Programme Director of the Laidlaw Scholars Leadership and Research Programme from September 2021 - May 2024.
Prior to joining the Laidlaw Foundation Alex spent over a decade at the University of St Andrews, Scotland, where he most recently managed the university’s Laidlaw Scholars Programme. In addition, Alex taught leadership courses and guest-lectured internationally on the subjects of strategy and leadership.
A bilingual speaker, dual national and keen traveller, Alex has lived, visited and worked in several countries around the world. During this time, he has had a unique opportunity to encounter and explore different cultures and working environments, experiencing first-hand what good leadership can achieve. His passion for this topic is driven by these experiences and a desire to challenge people to unlock their full leadership potential.
Alex holds an MBA from the Open University and a Master of Research in Management from the University of St Andrews. He has also obtained Associate Fellow status with the Higher Education Academy. In his spare time, Alex is an avid skier and volunteers with a local guide dog organisation.
My name is Valeria Lopez, and I am a current junior at Tufts University studying Biology and Child development. I hope to one day go to medical school and become an ophthalmologist.
I am a Senior Mechanical Engineering student with a minor in Engineering Management and Human Factors Engineering at Tufts. Throughout my undergraduate Laidlaw research career, I have been working on two different research projects. At the Tufts Human Factors Lab, I was designing the next generation soft robotics exoskeleton suit. Together with the research team, we are discovering creative way to embed silicone based soft robots to a lightweight exoskeleton suit. When COVID-19 pandemic out broke in the US, our lab got shut down so I switched to a different research project: investigating the effect of stirring and undercooling on the phase transformation of the FeCo alloy. Two journal publications are pending and I am finishing up my Senior Honor thesis on this topic. Currently I am the Product Management Coop in the New Product Development team at iRobot
