UNC Charlotte Alumna Making Most Of Her Phi Kappa Phi Award
One summer morning, Claire Patrick ’22 and her mentor, urban geographer Colleen Hammelman, settled in at a Colombian bakery on Atlanta’s Buford Highway. A bell over the door chimed an alert to people’s comings-and-goings, while the aroma of oranges scented the air in the bustling, inviting neighborhood spot.
Patrick and Hammelman were there to talk with people about how development is affecting the foodscapes and other community features for longer-term immigrants who live and work in the neighborhood. What she saw and heard shaped Patrick’s thinking about how spaces and places affect lives — while confirming her future career path.
supported in part by a national Phi Kappa Phi Graduate Fellowship, Patrick is studying urban planning in the master’s program at Georgia Tech’s School of City and Regional Planning. The Charlotte Phi Kappa Phi chapter nominated her for the fellowship.
“My Phi Kappa Phi award is helping give me opportunities to work toward making our spaces and places healthy and sustainable,” Patrick said. “Ultimately, I hope to pursue work as an urban planner specializing in climate change mitigation for a large metropolis, and this award has generously helped me get closer to my goal.”