Paragon Spring Fellow Spotlights 🎙️
Yvette Vargas, Noreen Ahmed, and Catherine Schunk chat with the Paragon Organizing team about how their academic journeys and personal interests
Yvette Vargas (Project Lead with Albuquerque, NM)
Program: Master's in Information (Specializing in Data Science, Technology Law, and Policy)
My Journey with Paragon: My name is Yvette Vargas, and I am a second-year master’s student at UC Berkeley’s School of Information, specializing in Data Science, Technology Law, and Policy. I come from a nontraditional academic background, holding undergraduate degrees in Film and Media Studies and Comparative Literature, which allows me to bring a unique, interdisciplinary perspective to technology governance conversations.
I found Paragon through a professional connection on LinkedIn who spotlighted it as an ideal opportunity for early-career tech policy professionals. Immediately, Paragon’s mission to bridge the gap between students and local government policy initiatives resonated with me. As someone passionate about public service, community impact, and tech policy, I knew I had to apply.
Through Paragon, I have been fortunate to lead a team working with the City of Albuquerque on assessing and strengthening their AI governance frameworks. This experience has allowed me to dive deep into municipal AI risk assessments, policy research, and the practical challenges of implementing ethical AI guidelines at the local level. My project work has expanded my expertise in AI policy development and exposed me to the nuanced conversations happening around municipal governance, public trust, and responsible AI innovation.
Paragon has exceeded every expectation I had. Beyond providing invaluable hands-on experience, the fellowship has emphasized leadership, policy strategy, and practical framework development—areas often neglected in early-career opportunities. I am particularly grateful for the workshops, mentorship sessions, and strategic resources that Paragon provided, all of which were critical to my growth.
Thanks to Paragon, I now have the confidence, skills, and experience to advocate for responsible technology use in public service. I strongly recommend Paragon to any student seeking meaningful, hands-on experience at the intersection of technology, law, and policy. It has been a transformative and empowering part of my academic and professional journey.
Noreen Ahmed (Fellow with Georgia and Madison, WI)
Major/Minor: Biomathematics and Computer Science, Minor in Political Science
My Journey with Paragon: My name is Noreen Ahmed, and I am a senior undergraduate student at Rutgers University, majoring in Biomathematics and Computer Science, with a minor in Political Science. I discovered Paragon through Rewriting the Code, an organization supporting women of color in technology. Immediately, I was drawn to Paragon's unique intersection of technology and policy, two fields that deeply resonate with my academic and career goals.
In the Fall 2024 cohort, I worked with the Georgia team alongside the Georgia Technology Authority to help draft and update the state’s AI policies. This included researching best practices, proposing revisions, and learning firsthand about the intricacies of AI governance at the state level. I also had the privilege of attending the Georgia Emerging Technology Summit on Data and AI, an experience that gave me broader insight into how leaders are shaping responsible tech adoption.
Currently, I am working on the Madison project, where my team and I are drafting digital accessibility policy recommendations for the City of Madison, Wisconsin. Throughout both projects, Paragon has provided me not just with technical and policy knowledge, but also with a deeper understanding of how collaborative, community-centered policy development works in practice.
Paragon has been invaluable in exposing me to the real-world tech policy landscape. Through speaker panels, mentorship, research training, and peer collaboration, I have grown immensely in both my technical acumen and policy analysis skills. Paragon's commitment to supporting its fellows through every stage of the project process—from research to recommendation drafting—ensures that we feel empowered, prepared, and confident.
Most importantly, Paragon creates a strong community of fellows who are passionate about creating positive societal impact. Being a part of Paragon has confirmed my passion for tech policy and strengthened my ambition to pursue a career at the intersection of technology, law, and governance.
Catherine Schunk (Fellow with Maricopa County, AZ)
Major/Minor: History and Journalism
My Journey with Paragon: I’m Catherine Schunk, a proud Dallas native and a double-major in History and Journalism at the University of Dallas. My path to tech policy has been anything but linear. I initially explored policy through my passion for maritime history and infrastructure during a semester with Williams-Mystic, where I sailed 400 km from Antigua to Dominica studying how governance, history, and science intersect. I continued to nurture this policy curiosity by volunteering with the Red Cross and transcribing historical documents for the Smithsonian, balancing my interests in both the past and the future.
I discovered Paragon during a late-night research session—one of those moments where curiosity outweighs sleep—and quickly realized that it offered something rare: a hands-on opportunity to work at the challenging crossroads of technology and governance. After gaining experience working on hurricane infrastructure policy in Texas, I was eager for more opportunities to translate theoretical policy frameworks into community-centered action.
At Paragon, I worked on e-voting initiatives in Maricopa County, exploring the delicate balance between innovation, trust, and accessibility. Now, working on an AI deployment project with the State Department, I have experienced firsthand how deeply human concerns shape technological governance. I’ve sat across the table from international officials who initially spoke a different "language"—yet, through collaboration, we eventually found common ground in discussing AI strategies.
Paragon hasn’t just polished my skills—it has fundamentally reshaped how I view policy work. I have developed a crucial ability to advocate passionately without sacrificing nuance, to keep equity at the center of every discussion, and to navigate spaces of competing interests diplomatically. The fellowship has provided me with the rare experience of translating idealistic principles into practical community impact, and I am leaving this program more confident, prepared, and deeply committed to pursuing a career in technology policy.
Contributed by Paragon’s Operations team, directed by Sharanya Maddukuri. This article is part of our newsletter, readable here.