Ethnography With Hyde Park Small Businesses
Project Description
University of Chicago students have the great opportunity to live in the rich and diverse community of Hyde Park. This project aims to learn from the stories of Hyde Park small business owners, particularly those operating on 53rd St, through a series of interviews, surveys, and literature reviews. As an incredibly hands-on project, students will seek mentorship from community leaders and professors, conducting and sifting through interviews to create a documentary portraying the essential role small businesses play in Hyde Park.
Project Lead: Lisa Raj Singh
Majors: Data Science & Global Studies
Lisa Raj Singh is a second-year majoring in Data Science and Global Studies. An avid traveler, Lisa believes in having insightful conversations with strangers she meets wherever she goes: whether it’s abroad in Singapore or in her own backyard of Chicago. It is this passion that led her to observe the opportunity for greater connection between University of Chicago students and the surrounding community of business owners, driving her to pitch a project with PDI calling for hands-on interaction between the two groups. Having been born in India, and lived in Taiwan and the US, Lisa holds a strong interest in understanding global communities through a sociological analysis. In addition to speaking English, Lisa is fluent in Hindi and Mandarin, and hopes to learn Arabic next! Aside from drowning in readings and labs, Lisa spends her free time dancing freestyle, bachata, and bhangra!
