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DukeEngage Gateway Program

Open to all incoming first-year students

Consistent with Duke’s longstanding commitment to the global public good, the DukeEngage Gateway summer program is a call to action in students’ communities around the world. Open to all incoming first-year Duke undergraduates, the program invites students into the Duke community of engaged peers, faculty and alumni and affords an opportunity to tackle a social problem in their hometown while also beginning to explore their own sense of purpose in the world.

**The Gateway program is an offspring of DukeEngage (a program open to current undergraduates). Information found on the rest of this website pertains to DukeEngage, not to the Gateway Program. Please contact us with questions: dukeengage@duke.edu.

A Gateway Program student will:

  • Spend at least 100 hours in their home community, over a minimum of five weeks in the summer before arriving at Duke, engaged in a project they have arranged in collaboration with a local organization. Please note that, in accordance with the 2024 Duke Minors Policy, DukeEngage cannot approve projects in which participants will be working with minors.
  • Participate in a virtual orientation + training session on the principles and ethics of community engagement
  • Have the opportunity to travel to Durham to participate in an (optional) three-day, in-person Gateway welcome gathering at Duke led by Kenan and DukeEngage staff
  • Participate in weekly programming (one or two sessions per week) to explore the challenges of community engagement and strategies for both making sustainable relationships and maximizing impact. Programming will consist of at least three virtual reflection workshops led by Duke faculty, plus weekly conversations with Duke partner organizations and others.
  • Share their summer work at a September welcome brunch for fellow participants
  • Receive a $1500 stipend for participating (Please note that the stipend will be paid to participants when they have matriculated to Duke, after the start of the fall semester. Participants for whom this will cause financial strain should email Inga Peterson, Associate Director of Operations, at inga.peterson@duke.edu).

 

2025 Dates

Application opens: Apr 14th

Application Deadline: May 12th

Application Notifications: May 16th

Commitments Due: May 21st

[Optional] “Gateway: Summer School” welcome gathering: Late June

Summer Programming (Community Lunches & Reflection Groups):  July 6th– Aug 8th

 

Ready to Apply?

 

Access the Gateway Program application here.

2024 Gateway Students

Andrew Balson (Southlake, TX)

Organization: Mission Arlington

This summer, Andrew worked with the Mission Arlington medical clinic to provide aid to the local community. Alongside a team of doctors and nurses, he helped transfer written patient records to an online database system. In addition, he managed the distribution and storage of medications. Andrew also worked with the Mission Arlington educational sector to pack and deliver school supplies to local schools.

Ezequiel Baltierra (Corpus Christi, TX)

Organization: South Texas Botanical Gardens and Nature Center

This summer, Ezequiel volunteered at the South Texas Botanical Gardens, a non-profit focused on conservation of native ecosystems in the South Texas area. Ezequiel’s work focused on the technical needs of the botanical gardens where he migrated outdated databases, compiled member information, and navigated the creation of a plant identification software. By working towards increasing accessibility Ezequiel hopes to bring in additional members and lessen the technical bottleneck of conservation efforts.

Sophia Becraft (College Park, MD)

Organization: Imagine an Answer to Kids’ Brain Cancer (IAA)

This summer, Sophia interned at Imagine An Answer (IAA) helping to bring awareness to children’s brain cancer, specifically pediatric low-grade gliomas (pLGGs). Some of her duties included exploring top/novel approaches being used in labs toward improving pLGG treatment options, compiling a current list of research studies being published towards pLGG treatment, and exploring the gap for funding promising projects. She also promoted their yearly Clay Bear fundraiser for stuffed bears that she helped deliver to kids on the oncology floor at Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, DC.

Noa Bremen (Chicago, IL)

Organization: City Year Chicago

This summer, Noa worked with City Year Chicago, which places AmeriCorps members as student success coaches in systematically under-resourced schools. She assisted their recruitment and operations teams in organizing, planning, and welcoming incoming members, increasing the efficiency of behind-the-scenes processes.

Sarah Campbell Brown (Columbia, SC)

Organization: Historic Columbia

This summer, Sarah Campbell worked with Historic Columbia to contribute to preservation and advocacy initiatives. She conducted archival research for, and architectural survey work within, two early 20th-century working-class neighborhoods in Columbia, South Carolina. This work created a body of information that assisted staff in informing property additions to the National Register of Historic Places and resulted in content for publication online and in brochures for public use.

Chloe-ann Detwiler (Cary, NC)

Organization: Volunteers of America Maple Court

This summer, Chloe-ann partnered with Volunteers of America working with veterans at risk of homelessness. Her project is about promoting well-being through an interdisciplinary holistic health approach. Her goal was to equip the veterans with tools facilitating healthy reintegration into civilian life. She worked with Maple Court supportive housing and implemented a series of educational and skill building sessions and activities over the course of five weeks. Weekly sessions were carried out addressing mental health, social engagement, healthy eating, access to health, and preventative health. Substance abuse and death by overdose emerged as a recurring topic among the veterans, presenting the opportunity to introduce and educate about Naloxone as a means of prevention of death by overdose.

Clark Easley (Baltimore, MD)

Organization: Johns Hopkins University Public Safety

This summer, Clark collaborated with the Deputy Chief of Staff for Public Safety at Johns Hopkins University and Johns Hopkins Medicine, as well as the Johns Hopkins University Police Accountability Board in Baltimore, MD, to organize the first-ever Community Engagement Symposium. This symposium aims to address the local community’s concerns about the future operations of the Johns Hopkins Police Department (JHPD) surrounding the university and the hospital. Additionally, Clark is preparing a comprehensive report for the Vice President of Public Safety and the Chair of the Police Accountability Board, outlining opportunities and strategies to enhance the relationship between the City of Baltimore and the newly formed Johns Hopkins Police Force.

Nathaniel George (Phoenix, AZ)

Organization: Arizona Council on Economic Education

This summer, Nathaniel worked with the Arizona Council on Economic Education, a non-profit organization focused on promoting economic education and financial literacy skills for Arizona residents. In particular, Nathaniel helped research and analyze data on the accessibility of economic education in Arizona, which was used to help create targeted approaches to reducing barriers to economic and financial education. Additionally, Nathaniel was able to have a further impact by helping the ACEE with promotional videos and refining virtual personal finance flashcards.

Mary Ho (Houston, TX)

Organization: Patient Care Intervention Center

This summer, Mary worked with Patient Care Intervention Center (PCIC), a nonprofit that aims to connect patients with the best-fit social services and medical resources by gathering data and looking at the impacts of various social determinants of health on patients’ medical histories. In addition to attending community events and meetings for the organization, she worked on database reorganization on the Community Resource eXchange (CRX) to ensure a more efficient and well-analyzed approach for clients and case managers as they determine their next steps.

Kaleigh Holtzman (Baltimore, MD)

Organization: St. Vincent de Paul of Baltimore

This summer, Kaleigh worked with St. Vincent de Paul of Baltimore to develop and implement a strategic social media campaign focused on their homeless services, hunger relief, and family and children’s programs. Kaleigh was responsible for creating engaging content, researching relevant social media trends and tools, monitoring performance metrics, and assisting with developing and promoting fundraising campaigns. This increase in St. Vincent de Paul’s brand awareness will increase online donations and volunteer recruitment.

Chuying Huo (Ontario, Canada)

Organization: Harvard STRIPED

This summer Chuying worked with Harvard STRIPED as a research intern to create an app that displays inequities in the geographic accessibility of eating disorder treatment centers across North America. This app shows the varying supply and demand based on the number of treatment centers in an area and the population density based on block group levels. Chuying wanted this app to highlight a barrier to disorder treatment to policymakers, researchers, and patients.

 

Mia Jantac (Cary, NC)

Organization: AFS Intercultural Programs

This summer, Mia worked with AFS Intercultural Programs to promote study abroad experiences and recruit host families in eastern North Carolina. By managing social media accounts for the AFS Eastern Carolinas Team and promoting AFS’s programs by attending local events and corresponding with community leaders, she helped work toward the organization’s goal of developing active global citizens and fostering better intercultural understanding.

Natalie Jones (Fayetteville, NC)

Organization: Agape Achievement Academy

This summer Natalie worked with the Agape Achievement Academy, a soon-to-open local charter school for elementary students in Cumberland County. The school’s mission is to use education as a means to expose students to potential future careers and develop interpersonal skills. Natalie designed a tutoring program with a high-quality interactive curriculum for first- and second-grade students struggling in reading, writing, and mathematics. Additionally, she developed educational materials and assembled a tutoring staff made up of aspiring educators in the Cumberland County area.

Shawn Kairu (Nyeri, Kenya)

Organization: Differently Talented Society of Kenya (DTSK)

This summer, Shawn will be working with the Differently Talented Society of Kenya (DTSK) to assist underprivileged caregivers of autistic children in establishing and developing sustainable micro-enterprises by providing them with seed money, entrepreneurial advice, and any form of laborious assistance to ensure that they can provide for their families.

Sonya Lasser (Hastings-on-Hudson, NY)

Organization: Hastings Rainbow Families

This summer, Sonya worked with Hastings Rainbow Families, an LGBTQ+ pride organization in her hometown. Her goals included increasing the group’s visibility in the community by creating logo design ideas, beginning the process of designing a web page for the group, and brainstorming ideas with board members. Additionally, she created a guide for future student interns for the group, detailing the process of organizing a community Pride event.

 

Olivia Liu (McLean, VA)

Organization: The Manufacturing Institute

This summer, Olivia worked with The Manufacturing Institute (MI), a non-profit that connects youth to careers in America’s reviving manufacturing sector. In line with MI’s mission, Olivia hopes to alleviate labor shortages in high-skill manufacturing jobs by helping local educators and manufacturers inspire Gen Z to pursue high-tech and well-paying careers in manufacturing. Olivia creates youth-catered educational content about manufacturing, identifies case studies of impactful community-based student engagement to share with partner organizations, and arranges webinars that advise employers on hosting impactful career events.

Daud Malik (Cincinnati, OH)

Organization: University of Cincinnati Cancer Center

This summer, Daud worked alongside the University of Cincinnati in educating and navigating healthcare and oncology for underserved communities. By renovating educational resources, creating volunteer guides, and working in local outreach events, Daud hopes to bridge the gap of healthcare inequities in his hometown through instruction, conversation, and optimism. With the help of his community advisors, Daud is also furthering the support for those aiding cancer service and research.

Amogh Manral (Stavanger, Rogaland, Norway)

Organization: United Nations Association of Norway

This summer, Amogh worked with the United Nations Association of Norway, which raises awareness about the work of the UN and international issues at large. Amogh’s work focused on the ongoing conflict in Sudan and the Darfur region. He analysed official UN reports and meeting records, and identified policies of key countries with regards to the Sudan crisis. He also created summaries, translations, and fact sheets, which will be used in the organization’s mission to help shed light on this largely unacknowledged conflict.

Grace Marquez (Dallas, TX)

Organization: Parkland Hospital

This summer, Grace volunteered at Parkland Hospital. She will be helping throughout the hospital in many ways to get a better idea of how a hospital runs. Some of the roles include helping visitors find their way around the hospital and helping staff maintain treatment and exam areas in the Emergency Department. She will make sure rooms are fully stocked, prepare discharge packs that include items such as diapers, a toy, blankets and other material to help new parents after delivering their child.

Lane Miller (Jefferson, NC)

Organization: Ashe Food Pantry

This summer, Lane collaborated with Ashe Food Pantry, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping rural community members overcome food insecurity through various programs. Lane worked closely with the Executive Director to expand the Academic Backpack Program by enrolling families, ordering school supplies, and organizing the backpacks for delivery.

Ella Moore (Poolesville, MD)

Organization: Western Upper Montgomery County Organization (WUMCO)

This summer, Ella worked with WUMCO to research the hidden health care and food assistance needs of residents living within the Montgomery County Agricultural Reserve and create accessible publications for Western Montgomery County residents to learn about these inequities. These articles will create a centralized information access point for those who wish to advocate on behalf of WUMCO to Montgomery County and will continue to encourage Montgomery County to increase funding for the organization’s health outreach programs.

Lena Nguyen (Tucson, AZ)

Organization: Pima Council on Aging (PCOA)

This summer, Lena worked with Pima Council on Aging (PCOA), a nonprofit that supports Pima County’s aging community through advocacy and integrated services. She piloted volunteer experiences in different departments such as In-Home Support, Administration, Aging Well, and more to create opportunities for high school students to be involved in the future.

Alexander Rodriguez (Yadkinville, NC)

Organization: Yadkin County Human Services Welfare Division

This summer, Alexander worked with the Yadkin County Human Services Department of Foster Care to boost interest in foster parenting and increase local applicant numbers. His responsibilities included preparing essential information for prospective parents enrolling in MAPP classes, translating applications and forms into Spanish, and organizing logistics to ensure prospective parents fully understood the responsibilities and rewards of fostering.

Tanya Sachdev (Durham, NC)

Organization: Church World Service Durham

This summer, Tanya worked with Church World Service (CWS) Durham, a local refugee resettlement agency. She worked with the employment and housing, assisting on-site to help clients through English classes, resume building, and tutoring. Alongside, she worked with the refugee wellness team to provide care in helping refugees access the healthcare system. She conducted an independent research project on the healthcare access barriers for Durham refugees. In addition, she also worked with community engagement to plan a Youth Empowerment Event, focused on creating upward mobility for refugees through education and occupation.

Sophia Sang (Matthews, NC)

Organization: Cabarrus County VEX Robotics Program

This summer, Sophia worked with her home county’s VEX Robotics Program, where she primarily worked on a project that would help digitally organize the thousands of program materials that were distributed around the district. In addition, she also worked on creating promotional materials for the summer and school programs.

Garrett Simons (Hilton Head, SC)

Organization: Pockets Full of Sunshine

This summer, Garrett worked with the special needs adults, or Rays, of Pockets Full of Sunshine to pack birthday boxes (with everything a family needs to celebrate a birthday – cake mix, a cake box, sprinkles, candles, a birthday card, a birthday banner, icing and a can of lemon lime soda to replace eggs and oil). To date Garrett has packaged over 500 birthday boxes and donated them to over a dozen food banks across Beaufort, Jasper and Hampton counties.

Myat Theingi (Maesot, Thailand)

Organization: Social Action for Women & Children (SAW) Foundation

This summer, Myat worked with SAW Foundation, a notable refugee school in Maesot, the Thailand border town with Burma, to assist Refugee students with their higher education in the States. Myat conducted comprehensive and intensive training and knowledge sharing sessions for adult refugee students from Burma to help them explore, apply and secure admission and scholarship opportunities in the US colleges & universities. Reflecting meaningful relationships and trust she has already built as a volunteer English teacher there, Myat empowered those refugee students with dreams, hopes and feasible realities with her mentorship.

 

Alperen Tupurtu (Gonen, Balikesir, Turkey)

Organization: Inzva

This summer, Alperen worked with Inzva to ignite a passion for competitive programming and foster a vibrant collaborative community for students in Turkey. He served as a coach at their one-week summer camp, which included students from across the country. During this camp, he organized contests for participants and conducted problem analysis sessions. Following the camp, he prepared an online contest featuring problems that he believes everyone should solve and learn from and assisted Inzva with updating their learning materials.

 

Stone Yan (Buffalo Grove, IL)

Organization: Healthcare Foundation of Northern Lake County

This summer, Stone partnered with the Healthcare Foundation of Northern Lake County (HFNLC) in its summer community listening campaigns in an effort to reduce existing disparities in accessing healthcare. As part of his role, Stone has engaged in literature reviews, grant reviews, logistical support, and community outreach to the 300,000 plus residents of HFNLC’s service area. Discerning the need to address all social determinants influencing health outcomes, from food insecurity to transportation inaccessibility, Stone seeks to support this campaign’s goal of sparking change in local nonprofits’ impact and health policy.