Our Story
MIT Design for America was founded in 2012 by a group of students who believed that making a difference did not have to wait until after graduation. From that thought, Design for America was born as the hub of creating social impact with design and engineering at MIT.
Our goal is to connect students with real people to build and create real solutions to real world problems. From homelessness to poor education, our members have already addressed some of the community's most pressing issues. Students are not limited by their age in the impact they can have, and we foster that by teaching new skills, providing new opportunities to work on pressing problems, and creating a community of changemakers eager to make an impact and help each other to do so.
We're passionate about helping students not only make a difference, but also develop skills that cannot be learned in the classroom. DFA students tackle unsolved problems and in the process, develop the empathy, creativity, and passion that they carry forward with them.
We're proud to make an impact in the community and welcome you to join us for the ride.
The DFA Family
President
Kelly Liu
President
Course: 6-3
Graduation Year: 2016
My Spirit Animal: golden retreiver! because they like people, are excitable, and always want to run around and catch things/frisbees
Things I Like: Ultimate Frisbee, rock climbing, traveling, hiking, walking random places
Why DFA: I want to create an environment where people are unafraid to dive into a project and make and create things to solve real problems. A lot of people at MIT don't think they know how to do this; DFA is here to show them that every one of them can.
Minister of Ministry
Connie Liu
Minister of Ministry
Course: 2A
Graduation Year: 2016
Why do mermaids wear seashells?
Because they don't fit in D-shells!
My Spirit Animal: quokka because who doesn't like smiling squirrels
Things I Like: ukulele (check out my youtube channel ;)), blogging, DFA (lawlz)
Why DFA: Because students should get the chance to make an impact even before they graduate
Project Team Director
Wen Zeng
Project Team Director
Course: 2A - Product Design
Graduation Year: 2017
I can make goat noises.
My Spirit Animal: Sea cucumber - I am a floating vegetablesque animal
Things I Like: Photography in all shapes and sizes, longboarding, reading trippy fiction, playing basketball, attempting to make things, graphic design, trying to play guitar, drinking water, listening to music.
Why DFA: Design for America is worth it.
Project Team Director
Eunice Lin
Project Team Director
Course: 6-3
Graduation Year: 2016
:D
My Spirit Animal: Whale because they're cool
Things I Like: I like playing badminton, traveling, dancing, watching movie trailers, biking, cooking, and making origami.
Why DFA: I enjoy designing and building projects that are useful and meaningful, and I want to help people realize how important their skills are and that they can accomplish any ideas they have.
Publicity Director
Jenny Liu
Publicity Director
Course: 4
Graduation Year: 2018
What do you call a bear with no teeth?
A gummy bear
My Spirit Animal: My spirit animal is a panda because they're black and white and adorable and they love food
Things I Like: I love to rock climb, sing (check out MIT Syncopasian), and dance! I'm also passionate about design and sustainability. In my free time, I drink lots of boba and mess around on Photoshop.
Why DFA: I really want to spread the love for design to MIT and give others the skills they need to be successful creative people ^__^
Finance Director
Yooni Kim
Finance Director
Course: 3A 15
Graduation Year: 2016
My Spirit Animal: Red Panda because: http://i.imgur.com/X6wWnNp.gif
Things I Like: I think it's really important to help others and to give people the opportunity to help others.
Why DFA:
-Sustainability (UA Sustain)
-Native biodiversity
-Intern at People Making a Difference
-Being a dog mom
Technical Mentor
Bibit Bianchini
Technical Mentor
Course: 2
Graduation Year: 2018
My Spirit Animal: Connie Liu because Connie Liu
Things I Like: building stuff, running, biking, swimming, food, bad dancing, bad karaoke
Why DFA: DFA is the bomb! I do DFA because I am so inspired by the care put into developing solutions to real problems. I hope I can help bring these awesome solutions to fruition and see the real impact MIT students can make on the world.
Technical Mentor
Juan Angulo
Technical Mentor
Course: 2
Graduation Year: 2018
I really really really really like Pineapple. I am pretty pro at cutting pineapple too. And did you know you can add pineapple in some form to just about any food. Think about it
My Spirit Animal: Rat, when I was little I would nibble on my food and my dad said "Que raton"
Things I Like: Pineapple, Drawing, Designing, sleeping, my dog, building, wood working. My hobbies are pretty much my passion, so there ya go. Extracurricular i am involved in include Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, my UROP, STEM Mentoring and of course Design for America
Why DFA: Cause I like designing and I have personal experience having a slightly bad time at the hospital, so i was very excited about the opportunity to improve the patient experience and it has turned out great.
Events Committee
Rachel Adenekan
Events Committee
Course: 2
Graduation Year: 2017
I have inverted T-waves in my EKGs
My Spirit Animal: Cheetah! because I love patterns (:
Things I Like: Jesus! virgin drink mixing, ice skating, playing the piano, cooking, zumba, pinteresting, watching cultural shows, and product design
Why DFA: DFA gives me the opportunity to plan and execute events that explore the intersections of design, technology, and social impact! It helps me combine my passion for design with my passion to equip more people with the technological skills necessary to better the world!
Webmaster
Kevin Wang
Publicity Committee - Webmaster
Course: 6-3
Graduation Year: 2016
My Spirit Animal: Husky because I love going outdoors and exploring
Things I Like: Tennis
Why DFA: As webmaster, I want to help DFA develop a strong forward-facing image, and I think that starts with the website, in both the design and the presentation of information.
Events Committee
Lisa Deng
Events Committee
Course: 6-3
Graduation Year: 2018
My Spirit Animal: shark. I like to swim, and I don't sleep much.
Things I Like: origami, triathlons, smash melee, league of legends, kickboxing
Why DFA: I like to meet people and get out there!
Events Committee
Krithika Swaminathan
Events Committee
Course: 2
Graduation Year: 2017
My Spirit Animal: Panda - Just because
Things I Like: I love dancing, singing, and volunteering. I am currently part of MIT Chamak.
Why DFA: It is a rewarding medium through which I can grow individually, while helping others through engineering in the true spirit of MIT.
Projects Committee
Tally Portnoi
Projects Committee
Course: 6-2
Graduation Year: 2017
"What do you get when you mix an elephant and a rhinocerous?
'ell if I know! "
My Spirit Animal: Owl, because they are cool.
Things I Like: Having adventures and trying new things! Eating, traveling, crocheting, tap dancing, radio, Assistive Technology Hackathon
Why DFA: I want to apply the technical skills I have been learning in the classroom to real problems so that I can help people!
Projects Committee
Claudia Wu
Projects Committee
Course: 6-3
Graduation Year: 2019
"What's Beethoven's favorite fruit?
-Ba-na-na-na!"
My Spirit Animal: Elephant because they are calm and mellow, yet still know how to have fun
Things I Like: Computer science, cooking, reality television, TechX
Why DFA: I Design for America because it's important!
Projects Committee
Andy Tsai
Projects Committee
Course: 18, 6
Graduation Year: 2018
Yo!!!
My Spirit Animal: Bird because how cool would it be to fly??
Things I Like: swimming, french, bhangra, project euler, sometimes reading the news, toriko, dancing (when I'm in the mood), stabilizing my orbits, sometimes running, fire, exploring new places, reading SciFi man-v-nature books, camping, hiking, smash, watching movies in my room, chilling like an ice cube, sometimes talking about social issues, checking out student life at other schools
Why DFA: I want to use my skills, engineering and others, to design a solution to a real problem.
Projects Committee
Chloe Yang
Projects Committee
Course: 20
Graduation Year: 2019
My Spirit Animal: A hedgehog because I'm cute until I curl into the fetal position.
Things I Like: Paper carving, Etsy (for my small shop, I carve rubber stamps and use them to print notebooks), photosynthesizing, writing, dark chocolate M&M's, learning about brains, stand-up comedy, fuzzy socks, and playing the ukulele, flute, and piano (at the same time, when I should be working). I am also a part of the Tech and Spokes team of 2016.
Why DFA: I Design for America because I want to make a change and show others they can, too (cue swelling orchestral music). DFA is a petri dish of innovation, and I hope to be a part of it.
Service Committee
Shivani Chauhan
Service Committee
Course: 6-3
Graduation Year: 2018
I have two lines on my palm instead of the normal three.
My Spirit Animal: Seal, because they're curious and like to swim.
Things I Like: I am also a part of Society of Women Engineers and UA Sustainability. I like to swim, watch Netflix and knit.
Why DFA: I'm passionate about bringing my love of engineering to under served communities. I'm really excited about the service projects we have planned for this semester and their potential for making an impact in areas of Boston.
Assistant Webmaster
Yolanda Zhou
Publicity Committee - Assistant Webmaster
Course: 6-3
Graduation Year: 2019
<3
My Spirit Animal: a cat because they literally don't do anything except sleep and eat all day
Things I Like: education, cute animals, dancing, chocolate
Why DFA: to work on cool projects and and meet new people c:
Publicity Committee
Hiram Moncivais
Publicity Committee
Course: 6-3
Graduation Year: 2018
"what's brown and sticky?
a stick!"
My Spirit Animal: Penguin, because I don't get cold
Things I Like: Graphic design, photography, (listening to) music, coding, smash bros melee
Why DFA: I Design for America because I love making things that will have an impact on the lives of others
By the Numbers
8
Hackshops Organized
325
Students Reached
5
Projects Developed
52
Members