Hujambo (Hello)! We are the 2018 Global Leadership team that is travelling to Tanzania to work on projects relating to education, water, health, and safety. We will embark on this exciting adventure on July 3rd and will spend three weeks in Boma Ng’ombe followed by two weeks in Moshi, both of which are cities near Mount Kilimanjaro. To give you an idea of how interesting (or uninteresting) we are, here is some general information about us:
Ian Johnson
idjohnso@mtu.edu
Ian is a third year Materials Science & Engineering student at Michigan Tech. He hails from Bloomington, Indiana, a mid-sized college town in southern Indiana. He has two younger sisters with whom he’s spent countless adventures with and an odd ecclection of pets. Growing up, Ian always had a love for science and the outdoors, which eventually drove him to Michigan Tech to pursue a career in engineering. He is involved in the Materials United professional society as well as the Advanced Metalworks Enterprise in order to further his education. Outside of his studies, Ian enjoys hiking with the Outdoor Venture Crew and participating in recreational college sports such as broomball and soccer.
Jennifer McDonald
jrmcdona@mtu.edu
Jennifer just finished her third year as a psychology student at Michigan Tech. She is from Cannon Falls, Minnesota, a small country town that sits in Southeastern Minnesota. She is the youngest of two children, one older brother, and a proud aunt to one nephew. On campus, she participates in two organizations: Huskies Pep Band and Ducks Unlimited, a organization that supports the conservation and restoration of Wetlands in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Off campus, she is involved in Lutheran Collegians Campus Ministry and attends Peace Evangelical Lutheran Church. Jennifer enjoys hiking, broomball, soccer, snowmobiling, skiing, and hunting with her father and brother. When not outside or in school, Jennifer enjoys reading, writing, and playing the piano and trumpet. She is looking forward to the new adventures that are ahead of her with her travels to Tanzania.
Andrew Miscimarra
ajmiscim@mtu.edu
Andrew just finished his second year as a civil engineering student. He is from Hinsdale, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, and he has two younger brothers. On campus, he is involved in Outdoor Venture Crew, Engineers Without Borders, and St. Al’s Catholic Church. For the past two summers, he has enjoyed working as a day-camp counselor to a group of thirty elementary school children. Additionally, he loves hiking, skiing, sledding, and has been a gymnast for 13 years. After graduating, he plans on serving in the U.S. Peace Corps and becoming a water and sanitation specialist. He is very excited to work with his astonishing teammates in Tanzania this summer!
Lauren Sandy
lasandy@mtu.edu
Lauren just finished her third year studying biomedical engineering. She is from a small town called Somerset, WI and has one younger brother. At Michigan Tech Lauren is involved in the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) and the Michigan Tech Women’s Soccer Club, along with the Pavlis Honors College. She enjoys volunteering, especially doing STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) outreach and has been an assistant youth soccer coach for the past few summers. In her free time, Lauren enjoys snowboarding, exploring the outdoors, playing broomball, and traveling. After going to graduate school, Lauren hopes to go into the medical device industry working as an engineer.
Where We Are Traveling
Tanzania is a country on the eastern side of Africa that is famous for Mount Kilimanjaro, which, according to the 1980’s rock band Toto, “rises like Olympus above the Serengeti.” We will actually be working in two towns that are right next to Kilimanjaro, so we will have a great view to share with you all! For the first three weeks, we will be working with three schools in the town, Boma Ng’ombe. Our last two weeks will be spent working with a children’s home and school in the town, Moshi.
What We Will Be Doing
In Boma, we will be working with the three schools on various projects relating to education, mental health, and hygiene. We will all be working on each project together, with one team member taking the lead. Lauren and Ian will lead the educational projects, which will include teaching STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) lessons and piloting a math competition program for the students. Jennifer will lead the mental health project, which will include presenting information on testing anxiety, career choices, and the importance of education. Andrew will lead the hygiene project, which will include filtering the water at one of the schools, as well as teaching the children proper hygiene techniques.
We are very excited (and a little nervous) about our trip, and we look forward to sharing our adventures with you all on this weekly blog!
Tutaonana Baadaye (See you later)!