HHG Fellowship Propels Caroline Robertson '24 into Bike and Pedestrian Safety
±¬ÁÏ¹Ï awards up to 15 students a summer fellowship of $4,500 to undertake an independent research project in the humanities or humanistic social sciences. Interested students can attend an info session on Nov. 14 from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. in the Quita Woodward Room.
Below, hear from a recent alum, Caroline Robertson '24, on how her experience with the Hannah Holborn Gray Research Fellowship served as a foundation for her post-grad plans.
Learn more about Hanna Holborn Gray
What are you up to post-grad?
I am currently a member of the Serve Philadelphia 2024-2025 cohort, serving as the Safe Routes Philly VISTA in the Office of Transportation and Infrastructure Systems (OTIS) for the City of Philadelphia. Safe Routes Philly is the city’s youth pedestrian and bicycle safety program which is a part of the City’s Vision Zero team that is working to reduce Philadelphia's traffic deaths to zero. This AmeriCorps year of service was the ideal post grad opportunity for me as someone who is interested in a career in public service.
How did Hanna Holborn Gray prepare you for your career?
The structure of Hanna Holborn Gray has students reflect on the independent research process with an interdisciplinary cohort of students from all different majors. This prepared me well to work on the interdisciplinary team within OTIS as I collaborate with transit planners, engineers, policy experts, educators and more everyday. With the funding from HHG, I was also able to travel to and observe firsthand different metro systems around the country. This confirmed my interest in having a job that works beyond the office, which I have found at the Safe Routes Philly VISTA since I get to visit and work with schools across the city.
How did Hanna Holborn Gray inform your plans post-grad?
As a double major in Growth and Structure of Cities and Psychology, I was interested in how the built environment influences behaviors, perceptions, and cultures. This curiosity inspired my HHG project, which explored the different cultures of public transportation in different cities (New York, Washington D.C., and Los Angeles). My HHG research served as the foundation of my thesis, which further explored perceptions of safety regarding public transportation. Without HHG, I don’t know if I would have been able to have the resources to directly connect what I was learning in the classroom to real-world applications that would inform my career choices. My research was guided by my belief that everyone deserves to get where they need to go safely, so I feel very lucky that today I am a part of a team that is implementing design and policy to make that belief a reality.