Melissa Sagastume (she/her)
Melissa Sagastume (updated on July 29, 2024)
Melissa Sagastume was an undergrad at UNC Charllotte’s College of Computing and Informatics when she worked at the Phyloinformatics Lab in the Summer of 2024. Melissa helped Denis Jacob Machado and Susana Cisneros with the More Than a Train Ride project, as available from the latinxrail.com website.
More Than A Train Ride is a community-based project carried out by University of North Carolina Charlotte students, sponsored by NC Campus Engagement and in collaboration with the Levine Museum of the New South. Charlotte has a large population of Spanish speakers from different countries and regions each one with a vast diversity in traditions, customs, accents, slang, etc. It is crucial to highlight the contribution of the LatinX community in different areas such as small and mid-size businesses that promote economic development, access to legal, medical, and cultural resources as well as leadership at different levels, among others. It is just and fair to give visibility and validation to the Spanish speaker heroes who with their daily efforts support the economic and cultural development of our city. The population of UNC Charlotte has begun to mirror that of the greater Charlotte region.