EUNICE ODURO

I have spent the past 10 years in the monitoring and evaluation field within international development, working with CARE International in Ghana where I started as a Monitoring and Evaluation Officer after earning my Master's in Monitoring and Evaluation. They recognized my skills and promoted me to project manager, but I had a deep interest in program evaluation because being able to understand the impacts of programs is very key to me, which is why I decided to delve deeper and start my PhD. Currently, I'm a PhD student in educational research methodology with a concentration in program evaluation, and I've been studying for the past 2 years. I'm very active in student leadership, serving as vice president for our Research and Evaluation Lab and as the Professional Development Chair for our Graduate Student Association. In my work at our STEM project evaluation lab, we do research, assessment, and evaluation for STEM projects, including one focused on mentorship for underrepresented minorities looking at how faculties can be supported and mentored to find success. I'm passionate about helping people develop professionally, which is why I'm researching mentorship and its influence on professional confidence among graduate students, because I see a real need to connect mentees to mentors in a way that truly helps boost their professional confidence as they enter new working environments.