WTS Philadelphia Scholarship: Student Spotlights: Phoebe Park

WTS Philadelphia proudly awards scholarships to outstanding students from high school through graduate school who are passionate about pursuing careers in transportation. These highly competitive awards recognize students for their academic excellence, leadership, and commitment to advancing the future of transportation. This year, we awarded a total of $25,000 in scholarships to support and celebrate the next generation of transportation leaders and innovators.

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Phoebe Park

Temple University     

WTS Philadelphia Future of Transportation Scholarship     

Phoebe Park was born and raised in Montgomery County, PA. At Princeton University, she majored in Civil and Environmental Engineering with minors in Statistics and Machine Learning
and Portuguese Language and Culture. By day, she is a Management Consultant, and by night, she is a Temple University student pursuing a Master's Degree in City and Regional Planning. Phoebe will graduate from her program later this year and dreams of dedicating her new career to increasing transportation accessibility for disabled individuals. In her free time, Phoebe volunteers with her local township, advocates for disabled individuals in the Philadelphia region, and conducts transit research to better inform accessible design recommendations. 

Questions

1. What inspired you to pursue your current field of study or career path?

While I have always been very interested in transportation, a new physical disability and transition to becoming a wheelchair user opened my eyes to the architectural barriers and policy-based challenges disabled travelers face. Around the same time, I lost one of my best friends and former college roommates to traffic violence. My personal experience inspired me to seek further education to better advocate for safe, accessible transportation for all in my downtime. The wonderful experiences and relationships gained through planning school have inspired my career pivot to advocate for underrepresented groups as a transportation planner!

2. What does receiving this scholarship mean to you?

Receiving the scholarship meant paying off my federal student loans. Although I worked full-time while attending school full-time, my income covered my living expenses and very high medical costs. I'm so grateful for the financial support WTS has provided me. I hope to give back to the WTS community as a way to express my gratitude.

3. Why do you think transportation is important to communities?

Transportation unlocks opportunities. For many people, including disabled individuals, driving is not an option. Thus, safe non-motorized transportation, accessible fixed-route transit, and quality paratransit options enable social inclusion and economic facilitation. Transportation is a Civil Rights concern because it's integral to everyone's life, and we all deserve a chance to live a fulfilling life.