Community Learning Research Fellows Present Fall 2024 Findings
The Center for Hartford Engagement and Research is pleased to share the final research posters from the Fall 2024 Community Learning Research Fellows! The Community Learning Research Fellowship program is highly selective and allows students who have experience in community engagement to tap into their skills on a research and creative basis. This is done by creating projects that are of mutual benefit to the students and community partners by expanding their knowledge of community engagement and working with community partners to achieve their goals in Hartford.
With guidance from Colloquium Instructor Fionnuala J. Darby-Hudgens and Director of Community Learning Erica Crowley, peers, and community partners, fellows develop critical skills in research and learn more about community-based research. They develop their presentation and discussion skills and express with one another their challenges and successes. To further support and structure the projects for success, the program incorporates a shared expectations document that community partners, fellows, and faculty advisors contribute to at the start of the semester and fellows submit regular progress memos that are viewable by their instructor, faculty advisor, community partner, and peers.
During the fall 2024 semester fellows attended weekly seminars covering a series of topics related to community-based research: identifying a question and designing a research project, communicating a research plan, developing good interviewing skills, analyzing and visualizing data, designing research posters and other products, and addressing challenges in collaborative projects. They were further supported through regular large group colloquium sessions where faculty advisors, peers, and key staff from across campus provided feedback on projects before the final poster conference.
We congratulate the fellows, faculty sponsors, and community partners for their work together this semester and we extend a special thank you to our instructor Fionnuala Darby-Hudgens, guest evaluator Kate Bittinger Eikel, Head of Digital Learning & Scholarship Dave Tatem, Digital Scholarship Strategist Mary Mahoney, Ilda Ramos, Erna Alić, Trinity’s Institutional Review Board, and the entire Center for Hartford Engagement & Research (CHER) team. None of this work would be possible without the support and contributions of many across the Trinity and Hartford communities.
Connecticut’s Worker Cooperative Ecosystem: Needs and Opportunities
Makayla Cervantes ‘26 with community partner Varun Sharma, Cooperate CT, and faculty sponsor Ibrahim Shikaki, Assistant Professor of Economics
Cooperatives represent a unique business model with significant economic and social benefits, yet there is limited academic literature on their presence and functionality in Connecticut. This study aims to explore the locations, operations, and support systems of cooperatives within the state, providing a comprehensive understanding of their landscape. The research focuses on evaluating the health and effectiveness of cooperatives as a business model in Connecticut. Data were collected through surveys administered to a diverse range of cooperatives across Connecticut. The surveys gathered information on various aspects of cooperative operations, including funding, resources, industry type, and technical assistance received. This study seeks to identify the operational dynamics of cooperatives in Connecticut and offer insights to strengthen their support systems. By investigating these elements, the research aims to contribute to the broader discourse on cooperative business models and their potential for fostering sustainable economic development.
She Speaks, We Act: Advancing Women’s Voices into Legislative Action
Breanna Pitta ‘27 and Charlotte Murphree ‘27 with community partner Janée Woods Weber, She Leads Justice and faculty sponsor Elda Sinai Associate Professor of the Practice in Public Policy
Our research seeks to discover what challenges marginalized and under-resourced women are experiencing in their communities, aiming to create a policy agenda that addresses these critical issues. We partnered with She Leads Justice, an organization that advocates for women in Connecticut by promoting feminist policies to state legislation. We conducted a two-month survey of women across Connecticut to identify the most pressing issues they face in their lives and understand if women feel respected and represented by their state government. Our data suggests that women are largely aware of the operations of Connecticut’s state government, yet feel widely unrepresented by it. Furthermore, women suggested they are struggling most with economic insecurity, issues in the workplace, and the cost of childcare. These results provide She Leads Justice with valuable insights to inform their upcoming legislative agenda, ensuring it reflects the real needs and voices of women across the state.
A History of Connecticut’s Prison Newspapers
Caitlin Doherty ‘26 and Rajsi Rana ’26 with community partner Harriet Jones and faculty sponsor Catina Bacote, Assistant Professor of English
At least seventeen newspapers were published from Connecticut prisons between 1897 and the 1980s. Written, edited, designed, and illustrated by the individuals incarcerated at those prisons, the publications create an incredibly rich, moving account of the experience of incarceration in our state. Through a partnership with Trinity Assistant Professor of English Catina Bacote and Harriet Jones of the CT Public Radio, we have documented the broader history of prison publications in Connecticut and designed a website that highlights writing and artwork within these seventeen publications. This is an area of our state’s history that has been very little researched, and because information on these past publications in Connecticut is so limited, the goal of this project is to raise awareness and engagement with this important aspect of our state’s history.
A Comparative Analysis of Fresh Food Availability in Hartford’s Bodegas
Kentaro Lee ‘27 with community partner Jocelyn Cerda, Mercado Popular, and faculty sponsor Gerardo Ruiz Sanchez, Associate Professor of Economics
The present study aims to investigate the stocking behavior of Hartford’s independent grocery stores, more commonly known as “bodegas”. The study aims to achieve this by accomplishing the following objectives: (i) comparing fresh food availability across independent grocers, (ii) analyzing bodega owners’ stocking strategies of fresh produce, and (iii) examining agricultural cost variability in Hartford.
Sex Matters: Understanding Youth Disconnection in Connecticut
Antonina Rousskikh ’25 with community partner Tom Cooke, A Better Connecticut Institute, and faculty sponsors Brianna Halladay, Assistant Professor of Economics, and Mark Stater, Professor of Economics
While extensive research has addressed youth disconnection from school and work both globally and in the U.S., few studies have examined the complex roles of sex and gender in shaping these outcomes. Previous research highlights that young men, particularly young Black men, and those in male-dominated fields like manufacturing, are disproportionately at risk of disconnection. This study seeks to fill this gap by exploring how biological sex influences the likelihood of youth being at risk for disconnection or being disconnected from school or work. Using ACS 1% data (2017-2022) from IPUMS, the analysis is conducted on a sample of young adults (ages 14-26) in Connecticut. A combination of descriptive statistics and a multinomial logit model is applied to assess the effects of sex in combination with race, industry, parenthood, and English-speaking ability.
