Chepchumba Choge, a Kenyan native, joined Harvard University in the United States in the fall of 2018 and was subjected to a rapid culture shock.
At first, she was interested in pursuing Computer Science at Harvard but the challenges she encountered at the institution compelled her to pursue social justice issues on top of her original course.
As a freshman at Harvard, Choge remembered being mistaken for someone else in her class even though they never looked similar. The situation was exacerbated by the then-phone facial recognition technology that confused the features of African American individuals with their colleagues.
Her problem kept on recurring and affecting other students within the institution.
The crisis prompted her to pursue joint degrees in computer science as well as African and African American Studies – a rare combination at Harvard, both of which she is set to graduate with.
She also spent her senior year as an undergraduate fellow in the Office of Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DIB), driven by the belief that one way to overcome racial bias in technology is to diversify the workforce creating it.
"We started learning about a mobile phone, and how, within the Black Community, there was a recurring issue where either you’d try to get into your phone, and it wouldn’t recognise you, or it would recognise someone else’s face as yours," she stated.
"This was a culmination of my interest in increasing fairness and equality in data and technology by increasing diversity and representation," Choge stated.
Following her decision, Harvard celebrated her on Tuesday, May 16. In a pioneer feature, the university indicated that Choge had crafted a niche where she was able to foster a community of belonging for people who felt like they did not belong there.
Besides graduating with the combination of a rare degree, Choge also managed to join campus affinity and diversity groups, including the African Students Association, Women in Computer Science, Harvard Society of Black Scientists and Engineers, and Society of Women Engineers.
Following her stellar performance at Harvard, Choge is expected to join a multinational company based in Seattle.
"I really value the opportunity to attend a liberal arts college which would allow me to explore my varying intellectual interests with extreme rigour," she stated.
