Shaylah Nichols ’18, a human development and family science alumna of Syracuse University’s Falk College, was recently named an Alice Rowan Swanson Fellow at the School for International Training (SIT). Nichols, who studied abroad in Uganda in 2017 through SIT, will to return to Uganda in May 2020 to establish an empowerment program for girls and young women in Kisenyi, a marginalized community in Kampala.
“My interest in developing this project began during my SIT internship at an organization called Raising Up Hope for Uganda (RUHU), a childcare institution that provides alternative care to former street children through education and empowerment,” said Nichols.
“Many women who live on the streets of Uganda are more susceptible to gender-based violence, poor health conditions, and inaccessibility to education,” Nichols wrote in her fellowship application. “During this project, I will work with RUHU to identify a variety of options for the young women to pursue, such as trade schools, apprenticeships, or employment… By giving women access to knowledge and opportunity, we are assisting them in becoming the leaders of tomorrow. Lastly, by providing psychosocial support, we are creating mentally and emotionally stable women capable of caring for themselves and each other.”