2010-2011 Spirit of Service Scholars 

Alyssa is a junior undergraduate student studying political science and an honors student in Barrett, The Honors College.  She is a proud native Arizonan from Mesa.  She serves as a Board of Directors member and Impact Steering Committee member for America’s Promise Alliance - an organization founded by General Colin Powell to make America’s youth a national priority.  Alyssa also serves as a board member for State Farm’s Youth Advisory Board which oversees a $5 million/year service-learning initiative.  She is the leader and founder of STARS (Students Taking Action and Responsibility through Service) and is an intern for the College Savings Foundation.

Alyssa is a three-time Prudential Spirit of Community Award Distinguished Finalist, a recipient of the Arizona Governor’s Volunteer Service Award, an ASU Capitol Scholar and Junior Fellow, a Hon Kachina Honoree and honored by the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute as a Young Leader of Today.  She is a passionate advocate for children’s issues focusing on education, specifically high school graduation rates and financial literacy.

Dimple is an honors student in her senior year majoring in religious studies while also pursuing a Certificate in Religion and Conflict in the School of Historical, Philosophical and Religious Studies.  A proud Arizona native, Dimple enjoys putting on health and education and career development programs for her local community.  She is also involved in numerous community service activities through her temple.  Dimple is very interested in global issues.  Recently, she, along with a group of students from ASU and Teri University in Delhi, India, were finalists in a competition involved in helping develop social businesses to assist bottom-of-the-economic pyramid consumers in impoverished communities. Dimple has several interests ranging from international development to comparative philosophy, but her concentration remains religious conflict and religious discourse.  She hopes to apply her degree towards her goals to create a more cohesive and interdisciplinary perspective of religious conflict in both government and academia.

David is in the second year of law school at the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at ASU.  He is originally from Houston, Texas where he taught fourth-grade reading and writing in a low-income school.  David is a member of the Pro Bono Board and is Director of the Junior Law/Court Works program with the Office of Youth Preparation.  He is interested in issues of educational inequity and equal justice and plans on becoming a school board member while practicing law in Phoenix.

Marcos recently completed a master’s degree in social work and is beginning the Ph.D. program in social work at ASU.  He is originally from Las Vegas, New Mexico - a small community that borders the Rocky Mountains and Great Plains.  As a student, he and a fellow colleague established a Nebraskans for Peace chapter - the oldest peace and justice organization in the country - and re-established a College Democrats chapter at Dana College.  Marcos was the head assistant wrestling and tennis coach at Robertson High School, as well as head k-5 junior wrestling coach.  He is interested in policy, working with youth, and community development, and hopes to be in a position to improve his community and state through comprehensive legislation and community outreach.

Carissa is in her first year of the Ph.D. program at the ASU School of Sustainability.  Originally from Orcas Island, Washington, she received her Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies at Trinity Western University, Canada in 2006.  As a student at ASU, Carissa is coordinator for the Local Food Working Group – an academic/community partnership performing applied research projects to understand and augment the sustainability of Phoenix’s food system.  Carissa is interested in local food system sustainability and plans to develop a program designed to bring university and community partners together to address local food system issues through transformative institutional design.

Jesus is a first-year undergraduate in the School of Community Resources & Development studying Nonprofit Leadership & Management.  He is a native of Phoenix.  As a student, Jesus is the Interact District Governor for Rotary District 5490, which serves as the governing body that oversees all high school interact activities within the district.  He works with Teach For America and also volunteers as the youth coordinator for the committee to elect Jason Williams for State Superintendent of Public Instruction.  Jesus is interested in the nonprofit sector and plans to pursue a career in the field.

Regina is in her third year of undergraduate studies at ASU.  She is a double major in Nonprofit Leadership and Management (College of Public Programs) and Business with a concentration in Global Politics (W. P. Carey School of Business).  She is originally from Mexico City, but has lived in Arizona for 12 years.  Regina is in the ASU Leadership Scholarship Program and founded Oxfam Club at ASU, a social justice club.  She is interested in international development and social entrepreneurship and plans to eventually work with international nonprofits to help invest in social entrepreneurs around the world.

Auriane is a third-year doctoral student studying sustainability in the ASU School of Sustainability.  She is originally from Wakefield, Rhode Island.  Auriane is involved in the GK-12 Sustainable Schools program, is the Graduate & Professional Student Association (GPSA) representative for the Health Facilities Board, and is a member of the Wrigley Lecture Series Committee.  She is also a foster parent for Amazing Aussies.  Auriane is interested in renewable energy development and hopes to apply her degree towards implementing renewable-energy technologies in developing countries as a way of sustainable development.

Sharlissa is in her third year of the Human and Social Dimensions of Science and Technology Ph.D. program in the ASU Graduate College.  She is originally from Rapid City, South Dakota.  Sharlissa is the research assistant for the Senior Vice President for Knowledge Enterprise Development at ASU.  She also serves on the board of Student Pugwash USA, was a student volunteer for the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy last summer, and will be working for the Science and Technology Policy Institute this summer.  Her research relates to climate change and energy policy, and she plans to apply this research to a federal career in science and technology policy.

Bryan is in his second year of undergraduate studies in economics at the W. P. Carey School of Business and Asian languages (Mandarin Chinese).  Although a native Arizona, his education has led Bryan to study and intern out-of-state and abroad.  Bryan is currently studying at East China Normal University in Shanghai on a U.S. Department of State program.  He is examining China’s NGO expansion in addition to learning about China’s societal and economic development.  Specifically, Bryan is analyzing how potential changes in China’s current education policy could enable migrant school children to perform better on middle and high school placement exams.   Eventually, he hopes to work for the State Department and design educational policy for America’s future generations.  In his spare time, he enjoys playing tennis, singing, playing the piano, and traveling.

Adam is a first-year MBA student at the W. P. Carey School of Business.  He is originally from Victor, NY and a graduate of the United States Air Force Academy with a Bachelor of Science in physics and a minor in philosophy.  Adam is currently a military intelligence officer in the U.S. Air Force stationed at Luke Air Force Base.  He is a project leader for Hands On Greater Phoenix, a tutor for seventh- and eighth-graders in various subjects, and an organizer of community events for Luke AFB.  Adam is interested in law, business, science, history, and world issues.  He plans to use his academic and real-world experiences to better understand a complex and multi-faceted American society and perpetuate the principles of democracy during a lifetime of government service.

Ian is in his second year of the Master of Public Policy program in the ASU School of Public Affairs.  He is a native of Phoenix.  Ian works for Neighborhood Ministries, a local nonprofit, directing the high school and social justice programs.  He is interested in issues of migration, poverty, and community development, and hopes to apply his degree towards facilitating increased and healthier dialogues that allow for good policy here in Arizona.

Erica is in her second year of the Ph.D. in Public Administration program in the ASU School of Public Affairs.  She is originally from Boerne, Texas, but has lived in a number of places, most recently St. Louis.  Erica sits on the Alzheimer’s Association Public Policy committee, is an American Anthropological Association member, and is also a research assistant for the Morrison Institute for Public Policy.  She is interested in aging/disability policy and plans to apply her degree towards researching and publishing to advance change, as well as becoming a professor, running a state or federal agency, and serving in public office.

Leah is a sophomore undergraduate studying economics in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and Nonprofit Leadership & Management in the School of Community Resources and Development.   She is originally from San Pedro Sula, Honduras.  As a student, Leah is a community assistant in the Sustainability House at Barrett, the Honors College.  She is also co-president of United Students for Fair Trade at ASU.  Leah is interested in international trading and aid policies and hopes to apply her degrees toward shaping sustainable, economic community development programs across Latin America.

Kaitlyn is in her second year at the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at ASU.  She is an Arizona native, and attended the University of Notre Dame, where she earned a BA in political science with minors in public policy and gender studies.  After college, she returned to Phoenix, where she taught second grade for three years with Teach for America.  At the law school, she is involved with the Advocacy Program against Domestic Violence, OUTLaw and the Women Law Students’ Association.  She is interested in equal rights for minority groups and marginalized populations, education of low-income students, and teen pregnancy prevention.  Kaitlyn hopes to one day work in these areas to improve the lives of Arizona families.

Jennifer is an undergraduate senior studying finance and marketing in the W. P. Carey School of Business.  She was born and raised in Chandler, Arizona and loves it here.  She is co-chairman for Camp Kesem - a national, nonprofit organization which raises funds to hold a summer camp for kids who have parents with cancer.  Jennifer is also a W. P. Carey Business Ambassador, where she represents the business school at events.  She is interested in innovativeness, community development, and international affairs.  Ultimately, Jennifer hopes to establish her own micro-enterprise network to help build opportunities in emerging nations.

Tyson is in his third year of the Bachelor of Science in Criminology and Criminal Justice.  He is originally from the community of Cornfields, Arizona, located within the Navajo Nation.  As a student, Tyson has been involved in the Associated Students of ASU – Downtown Phoenix campus as a Judicial Board member.  He has also been involved with the American Indian Student Support Services.  During respites, Tyson serves as a prosecutor intern with the White Collar Crime Unit of the Navajo Nation Office of the Prosecutor.  He is interested in criminal justice issues, Federal Indian Law, and innovative laws that promote sustainability and conservation, which fosters the corn pollen path and concept of beauty and harmony of the Navajo Nation.  Tyson aspires to become a tribal prosecutor and eventually a tribal judge for the Navajo Nation upon completing law school.