Summer Bridge Spotlight: Paapa Nkrumah-Ababio
Meet Paapa Nkrumah-Ababio, one of five participants selected for the 2025 Summer Bridge program. He is a Ph.D. student in education policy, organization, and leadership, concentrating in global studies in education and evaluation. Nkrumah-Ababio worked with DREAAM.
How have you applied your humanistic training to advance the mission of the community organization?
I’ve been working with DREAAM this summer in two main ways: supporting an oral history project and helping the organization build a partnership with a group in Malawi. The oral history project, In Their Own Words, celebrates the strength, pride, and resilience of Black residents in Champaign County by sharing powerful, intergenerational stories that are often left out of public conversations. At the same time, I’ve been using my background in international development to help DREAAM explore a mutually beneficial relationship with an organization in Malawi. Across both efforts, I’ve drawn on my research and evaluation skills to sift through complex information, shape proposals, build logic models and theories of change, and make clear, strategic recommendations. I’ve also put my marketing experience to work by designing infographics that help promote our initiatives. This experience has been a meaningful way to apply what I’ve learned academically to real-world, community-based work while deepening my understanding of asset-driven research and international collaboration.
How has this experience contributed to your career development? What skills have you gained or developed?
This experience has helped me grow professionally. I’ve gotten better at juggling multiple projects and working across cultures, primarily through collaboration with partners in Malawi. It’s also boosted my confidence in proposal writing, project evaluation, and communicating ideas clearly to different audiences.
What have you learned from working with this community organization?
One major takeaway has been drafting a grant proposal for DREAAM, something I hadn’t expected but appreciated. It gave me firsthand experience with grant writing, which is a valuable skill as I consider working in the nonprofit space. I’ve also gained a deeper appreciation for how asset-based research empowers communities by building on their strengths.
Is there anything else you’d like to share about your Summer Bridge program experience?
This program has been a great way to put what I’ve learned in the classroom into practice. It’s made me even more excited to keep using my skills to support meaningful work and be part of projects that create real change.