TRANSFORMATIVE LEARNING GRANT

TESTIMONIALS

Transformative Learning Grant Student Recipients

SUCCESS STORIES

Noelani Whittington

Major/Minor: Music and Musical Theatre
Term: January 2026

Major/Minor: Economics and Comparative Literature
Term: Spring 2026 (Junior)

Major/Minor: I am a double major in Economics and in Public Policy and Public Service. My Public Policy and Public Service Concentration is the Public Policy of Disasters and Crisis Aversion.
Term: I am currently in my sixth semester at Hofstra.

Major/Minor: Music Business (Major) and Sustainability Studies (Major) and Geology (Minor) and GIS (Minor)
Term: Fall 2025

Major/Minor: Anthropology major with minors in Sustainability Studies and Economics.

- Major / Minor: BA, Religion and Contemporary Issues; BS, Neuroscience
- Term: Summer 2025

Major/Minor: I am currently a junior Public Policy, Geography/GIS, and Political Science triple major with minors in Music, Drama, and European Studies.
Term: Summer 2024

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Nimba Mahlati

Name: Nimba Mahlati
Major/Minor: Economics and Comparative Literature
Term: Spring 2026 (Junior)
Program and Location: The Transformative Learning Grant (TLG) supported my participation in the Expanding Discovery in Economics+ Summer Research Institute at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, in partnership with the Brookings Institution. The program took place in Washington, D.C., and Chicago.
How did the TLG award support you? There was a gap between the end of the spring semester and the start of the Institute that created a logistical and financial challenge. I needed short-term summer housing before traveling to the Institute. The TLG directly supported me by covering this cost. Summer housing on campus is relatively more expensive, and it would have been difficult to absorb the costs for such a short duration. The grant allowed me to cover temporary housing during that transition period. Most importantly, it ensured that logistical barriers did not prevent me from participating in a rigorous academic program that has had a lasting impact on my academic and personal trajectory.
How and why did you choose to pursue this program/learning opportunity? I chose to pursue this program because it sat precisely at the intersection of my academic interests and my long-term goals. As an economics major interested in inequality, institutions, and public policy, I wanted rigorous quantitative training alongside exposure to how economic research informs real-world decision-making. The EDE+ program at the UChicago Booth stood out because it emphasized both technical preparation and mentorship, particularly for students from underrepresented backgrounds in economics. I saw it as an opportunity not only to strengthen my analytical skills, but also to better understand what a future in economic research and policy could look like in practice. More broadly, I chose this opportunity because it challenged me intellectually while affirming that there is space for my perspective within the field, and that combination made it deeply worthwhile.
What important lessons did you learn from your experience? One of the most important lessons I learned was the value of intellectual humility at the highest levels of academic work. I was learning in an environment led by faculty from one of the world’s strongest economics departments, where even leading scholars were explicit about the limits of current knowledge and the uncertainty that still exists in many areas of economic research. Seeing that firsthand was powerful. It reinforced that progress is not about having all the answers, but about asking precise questions, being transparent about assumptions, and remaining open to revision as new evidence emerges. That perspective reshaped how I think about my own academic development. It encouraged me to approach research not as a search for certainty, but as a disciplined process of inquiry. One that values rigor, curiosity, and humility in equal measure.
What is one of your favorite memories from your experience? One of my favorite memories was during our visit to the IMF, on Africa Day Celebration, where we were asked to participate in a live policy simulation. We were given a real-world scenario, economic data, and had to work through possible fiscal and monetary policy responses under time pressure. It forced us to translate theory into practical decision-making and was quite fun. One of the IMF economists we met was South African too, and has since become one of my mentors and inspirations. As we were leaving, we took a group photo with the chairwoman of the IMF, who pinched my cheek.
What advice do you have for future students seeking experiential learning opportunities at Hofstra? My advice to future students is to be proactive and intentional about seeking out opportunities that stretch you beyond the classroom, particularly if they feel daunting. I would encourage students to ask for support early and to be transparent about the practical barriers they face. Grants like the Transformative Learning Grant exist precisely to make high-impact experiences accessible. Finally, I’d say choose experiences that genuinely challenge how you think. Some of the most valuable opportunities are the ones that force you to reckon with yourself, your beliefs, and your attitudes, personal or intellectual.

Lily Friedman

Name: Lily Friedman
Major/Minor: I am a double major in Economics and in Public Policy and Public Service. My Public Policy and Public Service Concentration is the Public Policy of Disasters and Crisis Aversion.
Term: I am currently in my sixth semester at Hofstra.
Program and Location: Last summer, I attended The Washington Center’s Academic Internship Program, located in Washington, D.C. The program consists of a seminar class, several career-oriented workshops, and an internship. During my time in the program, I interned at RetireSafe, a nonprofit organization advocating for the rights of senior Americans, and took a research and writing class.
If you want to see some of my work from the program, you can check it out on my online portfolio I made at the end of the program, found at this link:
https://sites.google.com/pride.hofstra.edu/lily-friedman-eportfolio/home.
How did the TLG award support you? The Transformative Learning Grant supported me by offsetting the cost of attending The Washington Center’s Academic Internship Program. It made the opportunity more affordable for me.
How and why did you choose to pursue this program/learning opportunity? I wanted to gain a better understanding of what goes into making positive change, and I also had an internship requirement for my Public Policy and Public Service major. By attending The Washington Center’s Academic Internship Program, I was able to do both.
What important lessons did you learn from your experience? I learned what it was like to work at a nonprofit, and that I really enjoyed living in Washington, D.C. I also learned how important it is to reach out to people. Talking to professionals about their own experiences in informational interviews required by the program allowed me to better understand what my own career path might look like, and what I should look into for the future.
What is one of your favorite memories from your experience? I really enjoyed attending the Congressional Women’s Softball game, where a team of congresswomen played against a team of journalists. Although the game ended up being cut short due to rain, it was a very fun experience.
What advice do you have for future students seeking experiential learning opportunities at Hofstra? Utilize the resources Hofstra has available for you, such as reaching out to professors, attending info sessions advertised on Handshake or on the Hofstra Event Calendar, or applying to grants like the HCLAS Transformative Learning Grant.

Vonne Keegan Pohan

Major/Minor: Anthropology major with minors in Sustainability Studies and Economics.
Program and Location: Hofstra in Cuba Program – Cuba
How did the TLG award support you? I don’t come from a family that can easily afford the costs of a study abroad program, so I’m so grateful to have received a Transformative Learning Grant (TLG) that helped me with such an amazing opportunity. Without any financial assistance I would likely not have been able to take advantage of a study abroad program, even with the program in Cuba being one of the cheapest offered by Hofstra. And yet it is one of the most unique and most vital. Not many people in the U.S. are able to say they’ve seen the situation in Cuba firsthand. But it is such an informative experience that deals with how we talk about human rights and current political situations more intimately than most any other study abroad program. We desperately need more people to see life in Cuba with an educational and firsthand perspective, and even though the Hofstra in Cuba program is unlikely to run again anytime soon, I think it should be taken as a badge of honor for everybody behind the Transformative Learning Grant program that they allow students to embark on these kinds of truly life-changing experiences.
How and why did you choose to pursue this program/learning opportunity? The greatest learning experiences we get in our lives are not those that hold your hand and safely guide you. Learning is not a passive process where one simply allows information to flow into the head. Learning is a restructuring of the mind, involving new ways of acting upon the world. A child might put their hand on a stove’s burner and come to know what it feels like to be burned. But we don’t really see anything has been learned until that child changes how they act – until they are more careful around hot stoves – now knowing more about how the world works and what might come from their actions. With this in mind, we can see the wealth of study abroad programs, which intertwine the formalized education of a university with the life-changing experiences unobtainable in a classroom setting. There is no real substitute. And as well aware of this as we may be, we don’t always get the chance to put it into practice. But it hit me like a wave on some ordinary day when I was walking back from my classes and caught sight of a poster for the Hofstra in Cuba program. So much is said about Cuba by people who have no real experience with the country and its inhabitants, or even by people who may have been there but unfortunately have ulterior political motives. This was a subject I might never have truly understood unless I were to see it for myself, and right there was the opportunity to do such.
What important lessons did you learn from your experience? Despite the sadness of the country’s situation, it wasn’t hard to find ways to go out and enjoy life with the locals. It was a reminder that no matter what happens, life goes on. And my time in Cuba was full of little reminders like this of our shared humanity. That sounds like something obvious, but it is easy to make assumptions of the thoughts and feelings of other people, from other countries. Even if you might not be one to generalize a people by what you may think of their government, you may go in with assumptions of what they may think of their government, or how they may live. Cuba showed me even in the most unique situations, people are just the same as we think of ourselves here, with the same desires, activities, and diversity of thought. The Cuban people are not just helpless, downtrodden victims to their political and economic turmoil. They try to live their lives throughout it all just as we do – and they’re quite good at it too.
What is one of your favorite memories from your experience? The sweetest memories of my time there were at salsa clubs at night, watching and learning as everyday people whirled around each other in pairs, feet moving with pure lightning I’d never seen before.
What advice do you have for future students seeking experiential learning opportunities at Hofstra? For anybody interested in a study abroad experience, no matter where and what it is, I would say the greatest thing to do would be to speak with an open mind to anybody and everybody they can. To have conversations for their own sake, no matter where they may go. No book or documentary can give you that same insider experience of just seeing what people think about themselves and their lives. It is a beautiful and completely unique thing to come back from a study abroad experience with not just your own perspective, but that of others as well.