Meet the Frontier Fellows

What is the Frontier Fellowship?

The Frontier Fellowship seeks to assist Montserrat students in expanding their experience in areas outside of their major or educational aspirations. Students who are interested in research or an unpaid internship in a co-curricular area should apply for the Frontier Fellowship. The Frontier Fellowship will provide the successful recipients up to $3500 towards related expenses.  

Eligibility Requirements

  • Applicants must be full-time, undergraduate students at Boston College. Graduating seniors are ineligible to apply for the Summer 2024 Frontier Fellowship.
  • Research/projects and unpaid internships can be in-person or hybrid/remote. 
  • All approved research/projects, unpaid internships, and incurred expenses must occur in the Summer 2024.
  • Repeated research/projects and unpaid internships from a past semester or summer are ineligible.

Frontier Fellows

Lamar Duncan

Lamar Duncan

MCAS '24



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Lamar Duncan

Lamar Duncan

MCAS '24

For my unpaid internship, I will pursue joining Delaware College Scholars, a seven-year tuition-free college preparation and college persistence program in the State of Delaware “to academically and socially prepare high-achieving, under-resourced Delaware public high school students for successfully applying to, succeeding in, and graduating from four-year colleges and universities.” DCS is one of the state’s most academically rigorous college-level curriculum, where you spend three consecutive summers living with peers in a dorm-like setting before college begins and receive year-round personal counseling during your college years. To date, 94% of Delaware College Scholars, often the first in their family to attend college, have gone on to four-year institutions of higher learning. 93% have persisted to or beyond their sophomore year. As a first-generation student myself, I will assist DCS in advocacy, project management, and consulting, while also creating content/marketing as an intern for Spring 2024.
Melanie Paredes

Melanie Paredes

MCAS '25



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Melanie Paredes

Melanie Paredes

MCAS '25

In an era where media significantly shapes societal perceptions, the underrepresentation of Afro-Latinx communities in US media is critical to understand. My research, titled "Representation of Afro-Latinx Communities in US Media: How Representation Affects Ideals of Latinx Beauty," delves into the profound impact of this absence on the ideals of beauty within the Latinx demographic, particularly among Afro-Latinos. By conducting comprehensive interviews with students in both Boston and Puerto Rico, I aim to understand different perspectives and experiences regarding this topic. The ultimate goal of this research is to propel progress towards a more inclusive and diverse representation within the Latino community.
Athala Salcedo

Athala Salcedo

MCAS '25



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Athala Salcedo

Athala Salcedo

MCAS '25

As part of my role at the United States Embassy in Paris within the Department of Commerce, I'll focus on collecting and analyzing information for market research reports. Using federal databases, trade journals, and online resources, I aim to provide valuable insights to U.S. companies looking to navigate the French market.

I'll be representing our agency at international trade events, working to strengthen global trade relations. Additionally, I'll play a key role in the Embassy's matchmaking services, facilitating connections between U.S. companies and partners in France. This involves not only identifying potential collaborators but also participating in negotiations to foster mutually beneficial collaborations.

Through these efforts, I look forward to contributing to the growth and success of American businesses in the international market and promoting stronger economic ties between the United States and France.
Ayuko Yamakawa

Ayuko Yamakawa

LSOE '26



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Ayuko Yamakawa

Ayuko Yamakawa

LSOE '26

Ryugaku Fellowship, known as Ryufellow, encourages Japanese students to critically engage in their own learning methods and design a proactive learning approach. One way they do this is by presenting studying abroad during university as an option for their academic careers, through educational programs targeted at high school students. I will be a spring intern in the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) department of Ryufellow. It will entail the assistance of developing and implementing DEI initiatives, facilitation of reflection and training workshops for all community members through creating meaningful connections between different Ryufellow programs, and the hosting of wellness drop-in sessions for college-aged mentors and high school students who participate in Ryufellow’s educational programs. Through this internship, I hope to learn how to make the DEI department and its services more emotionally accessible for all mentors, students, and Ryufellow community members. Moreover, I want to create more opportunities for mentors of various Ryufellow programs to build relationships and develop a tight-knit community where they can give each other mentoring advice. I am confident that this experience will be the perfect opportunity for me to explore how to develop mentoring and counseling support systems that could be implemented in not only the Ryufellow community but also in the educational institutions and fields that I hope to be involved with in the future.
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