Introducing (and saying goodbye to) the 2022 summer interns
At the AgeLab, there are few scenes more representative of people’s personal and professional triumphs and transitions than a group lunch. For us, the group lunch represents celebration, sunny hellos and bittersweet goodbyes – a moment to bring together all of our researchers, staff and students and an unabashed opportunity to try out a new food establishment in town. Group lunches come every season, often attached to cohorts of students and interns. I can remember who I worked with and when based on what we ate at certain group lunches.
In August, we marked the end of summer and the beginning of fall with a group lunch bidding farewell to our 2022 interns. This was our largest cohort of summer interns yet, and for the first time since 2019, we welcomed many of them to in-person work at the MIT AgeLab in Cambridge.
Six months ago, as we were preparing to onboard and welcome these students, I remember the frenzied energy in the room as we collected dates of birth and outlined extensive project plans ensuring every student would have a project, supervisor, and task get started with. We were excited, they were excited, and now here we are, many months later, wishing our best and brightest well over dumplings and sushi as they transition to the beginning of the academic year. With so many students joining us for the first time and several others returning to work with us in-person this summer, I was reminded of the spark, the creativity and the imagination that comes with convening people together around work that they are passionate about.
I think you will see that passion and vision reflected in our collection of blog entries from our 2022 MIT AgeLab summer internship program participants. As they learn and grow from us, we in turn learned and grew with them. Their contributions will linger far beyond a group lunch or a single summer, as they helped us to push the envelope on our existing research, from developing personas of caregiving to how we collect data in our autonomous vehicles.
So, I’d like to invite you to grab a lunch, do some reading and be prepared to meet a fantastic group of students. Enjoy!
Cameron Owens: Overcoming imposter syndrome and improving the sim room
Samantha Gitlin: Interviewing the Lifestyle Leaders
Grace Turner: Preparing for extreme weather
Talia Chait: Life lessons from the Lifestyle Leaders
Ritu Belani: Bringing AgeLab lessons back to California
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