About Project CU

Project CU (Combatting Underrepresentation) is a discovery platform I created in order to address an issue that I've found in identifying entities, specifically in Minnesota. It's no secret that Minnesota has a bunch of innovative and exceptional things, whether those be programs, community resources, attractions, entertainment, organizations, food, you name it. The problem seems to be on the other side of the coin: those same top-notch things are actually the secrets. Far too many times have I been to a place or used a service in Minnesota and said "Wow, I had no idea this existed."

And while that sentiment can be attributed to a nice surprise, the implications of that same sentiment are quite bothersome to me. If someone is seeking a resource and they can't find it, depending on the need, the repercussions of being unable to find something that fits could be detrimental. And on the flip side, if a highly sought-after resource is unable to garner the audience it needs or deserves, that resource now runs the risk of being removed from our ecosystem. So I'd like to figure out how we can reduce the friction of finding these resources, instead of relying on "right time, right place."

About me

My name is Ishmael Efejuku. I'm currently in my senior year at the University of St. Thomas, studying computer science. I believe modern technology is massively under-utilized in community efforts, due to the perception that money isn't associated with the public sector and that people working in tech earn high pay. Whether that's true or not, technology has advanced to the point that tools and methods that used to be exclusive to massive companies with huge budgets are now extremely accessible to the average person. Knowing this, I'd like to apply those tools and methods to work on the many problems that exist in the community.

I have a cat named Olive who has anger issues. I love pastries, Liberian food and League of Legends. Nice to meet you!