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Karekezi worked on the documentary and feature film Fight Like a Girl, about a women’s boxing gym founded by a former child soldier in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. He met the American director in his native Kigali, Rwanda, and because Karekezi speaks the local languages and had prior experience in production, he became a field producer and interviewer who even negotiated logistics with Congolese rebel group members. Supported by a Martin Scholarship, he continued filming in the DRC last summer and attended the film’s premieres in New York and Los Angeles. 

 

Karekezi plans to return to Rwanda one day to start a computer technology company while continuing to work in film and art. “I’m a firm believer that, at a young age, we should try as many things as we can. This is part of growing up you’re always learning about yourself.”

Gallardo spent last summer conducting political science research at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She examined how foreign direct investment from China and the United States may influence the voting behavior of African countries in the United Nations General Assembly. She learned about the opportunity through the McNair Scholars Program, which aims to increase the attainment of doctoral degrees by students traditionally underrepresented in academia.

 

“Because of McNair, I’ve learned to ask more questions, to be more curious, to find out why things happen and how they impact vulnerable communities." 

 

Gallardo plans to become a professor and is open to working for an intergovernmental organization such as the UN. She aims to be a mentor for students like herself.

 

“I would hope to support future generations, just like people have supported me."

As a participant in the Douglass-O’Connell Global Internship last summer, Franks worked at Smashing Times International Centre for the Arts and Equality, a Dublin company that uses creative arts to promote social change. 

 

Franks is earning a dual degree from ���Ǻ��� and Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University and will spend two years at APU’s campus in Beppu, Japan. To meet people and immerse herself in the culture, she has joined several “circles” — or clubs — including a Japanese Yosakoi dance circle.

 

“In Ireland, the program pushed us to get comfortable being uncomfortable. I’m scared all the time in Japan, and I don’t speak the language yet. But because I value this experience, I’ve tried to push through that fear and do it anyway."