At the recent 2019-2020 Trainee Orientation, PROTECT welcomed the new class of student researchers and honored the 2018-2019 Individual Development Plan (IDP) Award Winners. The following 5 trainees were given IDP Awards for their exceptional efforts to complete their Individual Career Development Activities: Shayan Hojabri, Elienisse Rodriguez, Nancy Cardona, Luisa Feliciano, Amailie Santos-Rivera.
Each of the 5 IDP Award Winners gave a presentation on the activities they included within their IDP Projects with the goal of sharing their experience throughout the process, how it impacted their career growth, and what they learned. Award winners receive financial support to attend a conference or visit an affiliated lab of their choice.
Shayan Hojabri, Northeastern University PhD Candidate mentored by Co-Director and Project 5 Leader Akram Alshawabkeh, was honored for his efforts to develop a Professional Development Webinar on CV/Resume Building for his fellow trainees and participating in Training Core Operations by helping manage the Coursesites Trainee Platform. Learn more about his accomplishments here.
Elienisse Rodríguez, University of Puerto Rico – Mayagüez PhD Candidate mentored by Project 4 Leader Ingrid Padilla, was honored for her efforts to develop and lead a Tracer Test Experiment in Tallonal Spring, Arecibo, where she engaged in community discussions, planning, and implementing the study. Learn more about her accomplishments here.
Nancy Cardona, University of Puerto Rico – Medical Sciences Campus recent PhD graduate mentored by Community Engagement Core Co-Leader Carmen Velez Vega, was honored for her efforts to create a community-based participatory research project with local underrepresented communities in Puerto Rico and facilitate collaboration across PROTECT Cores C and F Trainees. Learn more about her accomplishments here.
Luisa Feliciano, University of Puerto Rico – Mayagüez PhD Candidate mentored by Project 4 Leader Ingrid Padilla, was honored for her efforts to create a Public Communication Platform to alert and educate local Puerto Rican community members affected by Hurricane Maria aftermath on how to properly process water and avoid waterborne illness such as Leptospirosis. Learn more about her accomplishments here.
Amailie Santos-Rivera , University of Puerto Rico – Medical Sciences Campus MPHE candidate mentored by Community Engagement Core Co-Leader Carmen Velez Vega, was honored for her efforts to engage in community outreach by creating materials such as magazines, infographics, brochures, etc. as well as engaging in activities such as presentations and reporting back to cohort participants and their communities. Learn more about her accomplishments here.
Congratulations to the 5 IDP winners! We are excited to see what they will do with their awards, and look forward to the upcoming class of 2019-2020 IDP Award Winners announced Summer 2020.