Charlotte Urban Institute celebrates Spring 2025 grads
by Charlotte Urban Institute Staff
Congratulations to our graduate research assistants Alish Jain and Bec De Luna, who both joined the latest class of Niner alumni on Saturday, May 10, 2025! We are proud of their academic achievements and contributions to critical urban research in the Charlotte region. We will miss having you with us in Sycamore, and we continue to be among your greatest cheerleaders as you pursue your future endeavors.
About Alish
During her time at the Charlotte Urban Institute, Alish Jain, avid traveller and pickleball aficionado, served as the dedicated Data Steward for the Institute and Charlotte Regional Data Trust’s “A Home for All” project with the United Way of Greater Charlotte. Working under the leadership of Sydney Idzikowski, associate director of the Regional Data Trust, Alish got to dive deeper into her passion: blending technology with storytelling. At the Institute, she creatively transformed data into compelling research and insightful visualizations. Jain graduated with a master’s degree in Information Technology last Saturday.
About Bec
Bec De Luna graduated this May with a master’s in social work. De Luna focused her academic and professional interests on historical trauma, complex identity formation, lifetime human development, and environmental justice, particularly within immigrant and Latin American populations. During her time at the Institute, she completed a literature review on climate change and mental health, coordinated focus groups, and developed a toolkit to help integrate individuals with lived experience into “A Home for All” committee meetings.
De Luna plans to continue her studies and pursue a doctorate in social work where she hopes to lead the charge in advancing environmental justice.
