CPAR Major Kenia Hale wins Nakanishi Prize

June 9, 2021

Yale CS congratulates recent Computing and the Arts (CPAR) graduate Kenia Hale for receiving the Nakanishi Prize, which is “awarded to two graduating seniors who, while maintaining high academic achievement, have provided exemplary leadership in enhancing race and/or ethnic relations at Yale College”

Her senior thesis is titled Algorithms of Protest: How Protests Change Cities and How Cities Change Protests, and was advised by Professor Theodore Kim. She will be joining the Princeton Center for Information Technology Policy in the Fall.

Her award citation is as follows:

“Kenia Hale graduates with Distinction in her major, Computing and the Arts. She embodies the spirit of an activist who uses her skills to help marginalized communities. She spent this year serving as a Peer Liaison in the LGBTQ+ Office and was also President of the Yale Undergraduate LGBTQ+ Cooperative.

Kenia’s senior thesis developed computational algorithms to help better understand Black Lives Matter protests. Kenia also put her data analytical skills to use in combating environmental injustice while working as a fellow for the University Network for Human Rights. 

In addition, Kenia was Racial Equity and Culinary Events Manager for the Yale Sustainable Food Project, where she coordinated collaborative events between the Project and the Afro-American Cultural Center. And as the 2020 Head Counselor of Cultural Connections, Kenia took the program virtual, building a digital platform, creating a memorable, genuine experience for first year students of color during the pandemic.

To recognize her many accomplishments and contributions, Yale College is honored to bestow the Nakanishi Prize upon Kenia Hale.”

Congratulations Kenia!