First student to earn Global Option distinction graduates

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Chelsea Dailey stands on top of a volcano in Nicaragua. During her visit to the Central American country, Dailey worked with El Porvenir, an international nonprofit organization that partners with rural Nicaraguans on clean water, sanitation and reforestation projects.
By stepping outside of her comfort zone and following her love of the Spanish language and culture, graduating senior Chelsea Dailey found her calling in life.

“There was one moment that changed everything, and it was during one of my classes while abroad in Guanajuato, Mexico,” said Dailey. “We were watching a video about life in Guatemala, seeing people suffer and struggle to survive simply from not having the basic necessities of life. Over half of the world’s hospital beds are filled with people suffering from diseases due to the lack of clean water. It just broke my heart and I started crying during class.”

After watching that video, Dailey knew she had to use her engineering background to do something about it.

Dailey switched majors from mechanical engineering to food, agricultural and biological engineering after discussing her goals with professors and other professionals. She decided to specialize in ecological engineering, which focuses on the design and restoration of natural ecosystems for societal and environmental benefits.

The avid traveler found a way to combine her interest in Spanish with her overarching goals when she stumbled upon the Global Option in Engineering program.

“I ran across the Global Option program online,” said Dailey. “I had already done most of the items on the checklist, so I met with Don Hempson, who oversees the program. I wanted something that acknowledges all I’ve done. This is a way for Ohio State to give its stamp of approval, giving me more credibility.”

Launched in 2013 following extensive feedback from companies and alumni, the Global Option in Engineering program (GO ENGR) infuses international perspectives into Ohio State’s engineering curriculum. The first academic program of its kind at the university, GO ENGR has become a model for similar programs in other colleges.

“This program gets engineering students outside of the normal box,” said Don Hempson, director of international initiatives for the College of Engineering.

“People can get so caught up in the curriculum that it becomes limiting, whereas this gives students another opportunity to broaden their horizons without adding time to graduate.”

Dailey will be the first student to complete the program requirements and graduate with the Global Option distinction on her transcript.

“Chelsea has taken advantage of her experiences and built upon each of them,” said Hempson. “She brought everything together in exactly the way we hope students do, by taking a curriculum and making it as robust as she could and creating something in a thoughtful manner.”

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During her work with El Porvenir, Dailey helped staff survey a rural community in San Lorenzo, Nicaragua as part of a project to design a drinking water system.
The last piece of the puzzle is Dailey’s capstone assignment, a project she will implement in Nicaragua after graduation. Most families in rural Nicaragua cook over open fires and breathing those harmful emissions is a leading cause of respiratory diseases. Open-fire cooking also requires more wood, which contributes to deforestation. Inspired by her time working in-country with international nonprofit El Porvenir, Dailey designed a more-efficient cookstove that uses less wood and vents the smoke through a chimney.

Dailey credits traveling the world and joining the Global Option in Engineering program with helping her find her passion and future career. After graduation she’ll work full-time in the water resources division of EMH&T, the largest Ohio-based firm of civil engineers, surveyors, planners and scientists. 

“Traveling abroad and experiencing different cultures has completely changed my perspective,” said Dailey. “It has influenced how I view things because I can see things from different cultural viewpoints. It has made a huge impact on my life.”

Written by Jenn Shafer

Category: Students