RESEARCH PROJECTS
Understanding Gentrification and Livability in Buenos Aires, Argentina
January 2025 - Present
Student Team Members: Jane Zhang, Edward Lucyszyn, Hannah Tollié, Talia Cario, Sriya Gupta, and Sanay Salil Sheth
Previous Students: Peder Dingsor, and Savnee Puranik
Developing a decision-support tool to map urban livability and predict land-use transformation in Buenos Aires, integrating socioeconomic, regulatory, and spatial data. Employs operations research and machine learning to study factors driving gentrification and guide equitable urban policy.
Project Partners: Anthropology Department of City of Buenos Aires Government, Terres Real Estate, and Universidad Nacional de San Martín (UNSAM)​
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Together Organizing Data Access for Youth programs (T.O.D.A.Y.)
October 2024 - May 2025
Research Team: Drs. Geri L. Dimas, Meredith Dank, Andrea Hughes, Kayse Lee Maass, and Renata Konrad​
This project explored the potential of designing a data platform to improve service delivery for runaway and homeless youth (RHY) in NYC. Focusing on creating a unified data entry system we explored the potential of enhancing real-time responsiveness and efficiency across various RHY organizations, streamlining service provision and resource allocation.
Supported by NSF 24-534 Civic Innovation Challenge
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Project Partners: ​​NYC youth with lived experience, NY Department of Youth & Community Development, NY State Office of Family and Children Services, NYC Mayor’s Office to End Domestic Gender-Based Violence, NY Coalition for Homeless Youth, Safe Horizons Streetworks, Covenant House, and Ali Forney Center
Understanding the Needs of Youth Human Trafficking Victims in New York City
January 2022 - February 2025
Research Team: Drs. Meredith Dank, Andrea Hughes, Geri L. Dimas, Kayse Lee Maass, Renata Konrad, and Andrew Trapp​
The purpose of this study is to learn from unstably housed youth which services would be most helpful to better connect them to services that best fit their needs, thereby decreasing vulnerability to trafficking.
Supported by NSF, Operations Engineering grant CMMI-1935602
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Project Partners: ​​NYC youth with lived experience, NY Department of Youth & Community Development, NY State Office of Family and Children Services, NY Coalition for Homeless Youth, Safe Horizons Streetworks, Covenant House, and Ali Forney Center
Empowering Community-Led Well-being Measurement
September 2024 - December 2024
Student Team Members: Isaure Pilot, Jane Zhang, Adeolu Ajayi, Dafne Sarfati, and Patrick Passalacqua
Exploring the development of a community-led well-being measurement, aiming to create a localized well-being index that addresses the shortcomings of traditional economic indicators such as GDP, unemployment rates, and inflation. This initiative empowers local policymakers by providing digital tools and a comprehensive library of well-being indicators tailored to reflect the nuanced economic realities and improve communal policy decisions.
Project Partners: The U.S. Census Bureau and Harvard Business School
The Platform for Outage, Welfare, and Energy Resilience
September 2023 - May 2023
Student Team Members: Ziyu Zhao, Hao Lin, Tejas Raj, Jack Weissman, and Leo Hu
This project developed an interactive data platform to visualize and understand the impacts of electricity outages across the U.S. By integrating multiple federal datasets into a unified dashboard, N-POWER highlights how outages—driven by weather, infrastructure failures, or attacks—affect communities at national, state, and county levels. The platform surfaces key demographic and resilience indicators, helping identify populations disproportionately affected and supporting more informed, equitable policy and response strategies.
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Project Partners: The U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Energy​
Queue Routing Strategies to Improve Equitable Housing Coordination
January 2022 - July 2023
Adviser: Dr. Kayse Lee Maass
This project uses simulation modeling to explore how crisis and emergency housing for runaway and homeless youth (RHY) in NYC can be made more responsive and efficient. By modeling shelter arrivals, service times, and provider capacity, we evaluate different coordination and routing strategies to identify approaches that improve access and overall system performance.
Reducing Vulnerability to Human Trafficking: Improving Access to Housing and Support Services for Runaway and Homeless Youth in New York City
January 2021 - May 2023
Research Team: Drs. Geri Dimas, Kayse Lee Maass, Andrew Trapp, Renata Konrad, Meredith Dank, and Andrea Hughes
We develop an integer linear programming model, building on the multiple multidimensional knapsack problem, to estimate the housing and service capacity required to support runaway and homeless youth (RHY). This RHY-centered framework provides a clearer picture of the resources needed to meet the survival needs of youth, particularly those at higher risk of exploitation.
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Supported by NSF, Operations Engineering grant CMMI-1935602
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Project Partners: ​​NYC youth with lived experience, NY Department of Youth & Community Development, NY State Office of Family and Children Services, NY Coalition for Homeless Youth, Safe Horizons Streetworks, Covenant House, and Ali Forney Center
Supported by NSF, Operations Engineering grant CMMI-1935602
Improving Emergency Department Access to Computed Tomography Resources: A Multi-Step Approach
January 2021 - May 2023
Adviser: Dr. Kayse Lee Maass
We develop a queuing model and an integer linear program to optimize CT scanner scheduling at a large academic medical center. The schedule is designed to scan 90% of ED patients within 80 minutes while also accommodating inpatient and outpatient demand.
Simulation Model to Evaluate LGBTQ+ RHY Access to Housing Resources
January 2021 - May 2022
Team Members: Sophia Mantell, and Drs. Geri Dimas, Kayse Lee Maass, Renata Konrad, Andrew Trapp, Meredith Dank, and Andrea Hughes
We develop a discrete-event simulation of an LGBTQ+-focused crisis-emergency housing and drop-in program in NYC to evaluate operations and explore capacity-expansion strategies. The model supports conversations with policymakers, funders, and service providers about system needs and potential improvements.
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Project Partners: NY Coalition for Homeless Youth, Safe Horizons Streetworks, and Ali Forney Center
Modeling Hospital-Specific Bed, PPE, and Staff Surge Capacity During COVID-19
Team Members: Shane Yap, and Drs. Basma Bargal, Michael Rosenblatt, and James Benneyan
January 2020 - December 2020
We developed a hospital-level forecasting tool that projects 1- to 30-day demand for beds, ventilators, PPE, medications, and staff during the COVID-19 pandemic. The tool provides an accessible resource to support short-term operational planning for health systems worldwide.
Other Past Projects
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Boston Children's Hospital Complex Care Process Redesign
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Improving Efficiency of Trauma Screening Process for Foster Care Children
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January 2018 - December 2018​
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Statistical Monitoring of Queueing Network
January 2019 - December 2020