By Julia Renner

Ten students in the College of Computer and Information Science have been selected as winners of the Huntington 100, annually awarded to students who “truly embody the mission, ideals, and values of Northeastern.”

This year saw a record number of nominations for the award, says Aileen Kent Yates, co-op faculty for CCIS. The Huntington 100 is awarded to students based on their commitment to a wide range of campus ideals, including impact on the community; service; global engagement; commitment to leadership; and demonstrated innovative spirit. “We’re looking for somebody who has demonstrated, through their experience at Northeastern, that they’ve just had this really interesting story to tell,” says Kent Yates, “someone who you can tell has grown and contributed in an impactful way…the kind of individual that you know is going to represent the university well going forward.”

This year’s College of Computer and Information Science honorees include Kaila Corrington ’17, Grace Kampa ’17, Kurt Marcinkiewicz ’17, Erika McVey ’17, Julie Nergararian ’17, Tevin Otieno ’17, Ray O’Connor ’17, Brian Desnoyers ’17, Elliot Horen ’18, and Shivanjali Singh ’17.

Kaila Corrington, a computer science major, has demonstrated an extraordinary commitment to service both within the Northeastern community and beyond. She has served as a CCIS Ambassador, a CCIS Peer-to-Peer Mentor, and a CCIS Overview 1 Fellow, and became what her academic assistant director Wendy Gordon-Hewick calls “a go-to person in CCIS” and “an exemplary role model to her peers.” She also served outside the Northeastern community, volunteering in Selma, Alabama as part of a University Scholars Program Alternative Spring Break; participating in Circle K; and serving as a Democracy Coach for Generation Citizen. Kaila completed co-ops at Dell, Basis Technology, and InsightSquared as well as an internship at Kofax. She has already accepted a full-time position at InsightSquared following graduation, and her manager says that “we are looking forward to her return.” Her former manager at Dell summed up Corrington’s commitment and tenacity, saying that she “sets a high standard which makes my other senior members sweat. Kaila is absolutely one of a kind.”

Grace Kampa, an information science major with a concentration in human computer interaction and minor in interactive design, has stood out as a leader with a passion for exploring diverse interests. “Grace is one of those students that stood out to me from day one,” says Melissa Peikin, her co-op coordinator. She came to college with no programming experience, but embraced the opportunity to learn and to engage with other new CS and IT students, serving as an Orientation Leader and an Intro to Co-op Fellow. “I’ve turned my fears and doubts into hope and aid for others going through the same emotions I’ve had before,” Kampa says. She completed co-ops at Johnson & Johnson and BNL Consulting, showing remarkable tenacity in developing her own co-op at BNL. “It has been such a joy seeing Kampa grow throughout her entire Northeastern experience,” Peikin says. “As CCIS continues to encourage students with limited CS experience to explore the field, Grace is a wonderful role model to remind those that the risk can pay off.”

Kurt Marcinkiewicz, a computer science major, “has taken full advantage of all Northeastern has to offer,” says Melissa Peikin, his co-op advisor.  He has served as a role model for peers at and outside of Northeastern. He currently serves as an Intro to Co-op Fellow, has volunteered on panels for the Intro to Co-op Course, and served as a CCIS Peer-to-Peer Mentor.

Marcinkiewicz actively sought out opportunities to challenge himself and grow his skills, pursuing an internship at Confer after his freshman year even with little work experience. He completed co-ops at clypd, Amazon, and Catalant, and is now working with Catalant’s data team . He has displayed the entrepreneurial spirit that defines Northeastern, completing three work experiences at Boston-based startups as well as participating in the Husky Startup Challenge, hackathons, and the IDEA program, Northeastern’s venture accelerator. “One of my favorite parts of my job is seeing a student grow,” Peikin. “Seeing him in a mentorship role as a Fellow, it’s a ‘full circle’ moment where I can see what all of that drive and ambition has led to.”

Erika McVey, a combined major in computer science and communication studies, took every opportunity to explore a broad range of interests over the course of her Northeastern career. Coming from a rural South Carolina town, Boston was a new experience for McVey, and she enthusiastically took to hear what Karyn Rosen, Assistant Dean of Cooperative Education, calls Northeastern’s “’experience the world’ message.” McVey credits an Honors Dialogue of Civilizations in Rome with broadening her views about her country and the world—what Rosen calls “exactly what we hope for when our students leave their comfort zones.” She stayed engaged in the Boston community as well, completing over 350 hours of service through the Civic Engagement Program and taking opportunities for service during both of her co-ops, participating in the annual Tech Gives Back day and assisting with cleaning up the Berkeley Community Gardens. McVey completed two co-ops at clypd and SnapApp, both startups, and will begin working at SnapApp full-time after graduation. “She has become a more open-minded a globally aware citizen,” says Rosen. “What more can we hope for from our students?”

Julie Nergararian stood out as a particularly impressive student in three co-op placements, consistently dedicated to outstanding performance and taking every opportunity to build her skills. She came into her first co-op at Intuit with little computer science expertise, and left having mastered JavaScript, Backbone.js, Marionette, jQuery, Require.js, HTML5, CSS3, Groovy, and NoSQL—what co-op coordinator Aileen Kent Yates calls “an incredible amount of knowledge gained in a short time.” She demonstrated her outstanding work ethic at two more co-ops, a second at Intuit and a third at HubSpot, leading her supervisor to say she had set the bar incredibly high for future co-ops. She has accepted a full-time position at HubSpot following graduation. Julie excelled on campus as well as part of the Armenian Student Association, Husky Ambassadors, the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, and the Association for Computing Machinery.

Tevin Otieno demonstrated an outstanding commitment to being an engaged citizen within and beyond CCIS. He serves as a CCIS Co-op Prep Fellow, and his co-op coordinator comments that he has a unique ability to reflect on his own successes and challenges. He serves as Technical Director for the HackBeanpot organizing board, a hackathon that brings together students from 24 Boston universities. Otieno has volunteered at Husky Hacks as well as with Husky Ambassadors, and serves Northeastern as a tour guide and Housing and Safety Proctor. He expanded his commitment to community engagement with his third co-op at a startup in Beijing, China, which he called “one of the most exciting, enlightening, and gratifying experiences you can have.” His co-op coordinator Jennifer Shire comments that he possesses not only a strong growth mindset, but “a global and a giving mindset that will serve him and Northeastern well in the years ahead.”

Assistant Dean of Cooperative Education Karyn Rosen says that “service is in Ray O’Connor’s DNA.” He has reliably demonstrated his commitment to service and engagement within and beyond the CCIS community. Beginning in his freshman year he served as a mentor for DREAM, participated in the Hour of Code program at Boston Public Schools, and joined the service-focused fraternity Sigma Pi Epsilon. This year he organized Sigma Pi Epsilon’s Relay for Life initiative and Shave to Save fundraiser. He served students within CCIS as a co-op preparation Fellow, a peer tutor, a Brush Up Your Skills volunteer, and a volunteer presenter at prospective student events and co-op fairs. His commitment to community contribution showed in his co-ops as well, with his manager at HubSpot commenting that O’Connor “showed an eagerness to make an impact within the community beyond just writing code.” His former co-op advisor Katie Hughes agrees, saying that “Ray’s level of maturity is certainly beyond his years…he is destined for great things.”

Brian Desnoyers, a combined major in computer science and biology, embraced every aspect of his Northeastern experience, diving into a demanding combined major program and extensive involvement on campus. He completed co-ops in both the medical and computer science fields, both at highly coveted companies—his first as a technician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital Sleep Laboratory, and his second at Apple. Desnoyers has served as a founding member of Amphibious Achievement, a Resident Assistant, member of the Swim Club, consultant for the JCC Snappers and Tymor Park swim teams, American Red Cross volunteer, Northeastern Pre-Med AMSA member, Bioengineering Department researcher, and peer tutor. He has received multiple honors, including the Dean’s Scholarship, Intrepid Former Crew Members’ Association Scholarship, Best Buy Scholarship Program, Arlington Teacher’s Association Scholarship, and the Dean’s List. “Brian is one of the unique students who fully embraced his combined program of study, making significant contributions in both computer science and the medical field,” says his co-op advisor Aileen Kent Yates. “We have no doubt that he will be a noteworthy alumnus.”

When Elliot Horen was a freshman in Melissa Peikin’s Overview 1 co-op class, “he immediately stood out to me as a leader,” she says. An information science and business combined major, “Elliot was always looking for roles that blended his love for technology, innovation, and consulting.” Horen has served a number of leadership roles in the Northeastern community, foremost as Student Body President for the Student Government Association. “As the advisor to the SGA I have watched as Elliot has grown in the role and become a leader and a true professional,” Marine Macomber, Assistant Vice President of Student and Administrative Services, notes. Horen has also served as a Social Change Facilitator for the LEAD 360 Program; Vice President of West Village C Council; a member of the Civic Engagement Program; and an active member of the Northeastern University Scholars Program. “Elliot cares about achieving justice for those to whom it has long been denied,” Macomber says, “and about using his privilege for good and for empowering others. He is one of the most driven and motivated students I have worked with over the years.” He completed co-ops at Johnson & Johnson and in the Innovation Lab at John Hancock. “Elliot has been a joy to work with,” Peikin says, “and I truly look forward to seeing the impact he is bound to make.”

Academic advisor Jessica Speece calls Shivanjali Singh a “true leader” who “embodies many of the valued traits of a Northeastern student.” A combined computer science and business administration major, Singh has excelled far beyond the classroom. Singh completed two co-ops, the first at Goldman Sachs as a Technology Assistant, where she combined her business and computer science skills. Her second co-op, as a Software Engineer at Intuit Quickbase, allowed her to develop a project from scratch and sparked an interest in project management. “The CS co-op positions that Shivanjali earned and excelled in are particularly competitive,” Speece notes. She served as a CCIS Fellow and has given back to Northeastern community outside of the classroom as well, serving as a Resident Assistant, and was awarded RA of the Year in 2015. She has also served as a programming teacher for middle-schoolers through the Bootstrap program and volunteered with AmeriCorps as a Software Engineer in the Mayor’s Office of Civil Engagement, designing a system that connected volunteers with opportunities. “It’s hard to believe that she would have any extra time with all she was involved in at Northeastern, but she’s the type of person who believes in giving back to her community,” Speece says. “It has been an honor to get to know her and be a part of her Northeastern journey.”

As a member of the Huntington 100 selection committee, Kent Yates comments that “there’s so many really talented students in the university. That’s one of the things I see firsthand in being a part of this. It’s inspiring, it really is.”