The Building Healthy Places Initiative is delighted to announce the 2017 participants in the ULI/Randall Lewis Health Mentorship Program, which is generously supported by ULI Foundation Governor Randall Lewis.

The new program supports learning and sharing about health and real estate among graduate students. In addition to being matched with a ULI Full Member mentor based on professional interests, mentees earn the opportunity to attend the 2017 ULI Fall Meeting in Los Angeles, where they will experience a Product Council meeting and the Building Healthy Places Interest Forum alongside their mentors.

We received applications from many outstanding students. Candidates were chosen based on a highly selective evaluation process. The following graduate students were selected because they demonstrated strong commitment to addressing public health challenges through responsible land use development, outstanding potential to bring impactful contributions to the field, and received glowing letters of recommendation.

We are thrilled to announce and congratulate the first recipients of the ULI/Randall Lewis Health Mentorship Program. Follow the links below to read about each of their experiences at the ULI Fall Meeting in Los Angeles.

Dawit Beru
Masters student, Real Estate and Infrastructure
Johns Hopkins University

Dawit works in the real estate and community development field and is a student in the MS in Real Estate and Infrastructure program at Johns Hopkins University. A Washington, DC native and first-generation American, Dawit’s interests include sustainable design and affordable housing development. He is a graduate of Georgetown University and spent five years as a retail planning consultant for airport modernization projects before shifting his focus to residential development.

Mentor: Christopher Kurz, President and CEO, Linden Associates Inc. (Small Scale Development Council, Blue Flight)

Read Dawit’s Fall Meeting Reflection

Alyia Gaskins
Masters student, Urban and Regional Planning
Georgetown University

Alyia is the Assistant Director of Programs/Health at the Center for Community Investment. Prior to joining the Center, she worked as Senior Associate at the National League of Cities (NLC) Institute for Youth, Education, and Families supporting mayors and city leaders in engaging residents, building multi-sector collaborations, and advancing policies to build healthier, more equitable communities. Alyia began her career as a Policy and Program Associate at D.C. Hunger Solutions, an initiative of the Food Research and Action Center. Alyia has a B.A. in Medicine, Health and Society from Vanderbilt University and a Masters of Public Health from the University of Pittsburgh. She is pursuing a Masters of Urban and Regional Planning from Georgetown University with a concentration in Housing, Community, & Economic Development.

Mentor: Clare De Briere, Founder, C+C Ventures (Urban Revitalization Council, Gold Flight)

Read Alyia’s Fall Meeting Reflection

Lorenzo Antonio Gonzalez
Medical degree candidate, University of California San Diego
Masters student, Planning, University of Southern California

Lorenzo has worked on various projects that focus on advancing access to higher education and health equity throughout his career. During the last four years, Lorenzo has been caring for the binational San Diego – Tijuana community. Lorenzo has been recognized by the City of Santa Ana for his contributions on the Wellness Corridor, is currently involved with Community Health Councils on developing healthy environments in South Los Angeles, and is a Land Use Health Ambassador for Physicians for Social Responsibility. Lorenzo credits his current success to his Mexican immigrant parents who instilled in him a work ethic around sacrifice, resilience, and passion. Lorenzo received a Bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from Chapman University. He is currently finishing his Medical Degree from UC San Diego and a Master’s Degree in Planning from the University of Southern California.

Mentor: Christopher Bodnar, Executive Vice President, CBRE (Health Care and Life Sciences Council)

Read Lorenzo’s Fall Meeting Reflection

Ashley Pollock
Masters student, Real Estate
Roosevelt University

As a Ronald E. McNair Scholar during her undergraduate career, Ashley was introduced to the various elements that combined make up the built environment. Ashley’s personal motivators and goals have led her down the path she is currently pursuing, which involves obtaining an interdisciplinary PhD in that combines Urban Design and Planning as well as Sociology and Real Estate. These fields, in her mind, together can offer holistic solution to revitalizing dying cities and communities. As a student member of both ULI and the USGBC, Ashley has begun to lay the foundation for gaining an understanding of the current problems that stifle cities/communities and ways they are currently being solved and dealt with. A unique feature of Ashley’s outlook on the world stems from her experience growing up on the southside of Chicago and witnessing the degradation of both the built environment and the people living within that environment.

Mentor: Teri Frankiewicz, Vice President of Community Development, Crown Community Development (Community Development Council, Silver Flight)

Read Ashley’s Fall Meeting Reflection

Rodolfo L. Rodríguez
Masters student, Urban Planning and Public Health
University of Colorado Denver

Rodolfo serves as an Aide to At Large Councilwoman Robin Kniech in Denver, Colorado, where he supports the Councilwoman in spearheading policies that dissolve structural inequities across Denver. Simultaneously, Rodolfo directs a research project through The University of Colorado at Boulder that explores how to transform Denver’s neighborhoods through community engagement, architecture, urban planning, enhancing public health and social equity. Over the past decade, Rodolfo has spearheaded healthy communities work across the United States and in Nicaragua and Mexico, while pursuing a “health focused” architecture track at The University of Texas, and advancing his studies in urban planning and public health at The University of Colorado.

Mentor: Colleen Carey, President, The Cornerstone Group (Sustainable Development Council)

Read Rodolfo’s Fall Meeting Reflection

We are now accepting applications from graduate students for the 2018-2019 ULI/Randall Lewis Health Mentorship Program! Please visit uli.org/healthmentors for more details and to apply.