Vision

The Chance to Change Lives foundation (CCL-US), a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization based in Pittsburgh, PA, was founded with a mission to support high impact experiential learning experiences for undergraduate students, especially from under-represented groups, to prepare them for twenty-first century research and development careers in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields. Our organization is committed to empowering faculty, researchers and mentors in STEM disciplines who provide invaluable learning experiences for students to become future leaders in those fields.

Mission

Our organization was founded with a mission to support high impact experiential learning experiences for undergraduate students, especially from under-represented groups, to prepare them for twenty-first century research and development careers STEM disciplines.

The demands of 21st century jobs will be multi-disciplinary, multi-modal, and multi-dimensional, and a diverse workforce is vital to meet those demands. According to a 2021 report by the American Institute of Physics (AIP) on “Building America’s Workforce”, the development of an inclusive and diverse workforce in STEM fields is cited as not only important to “boost the innovation and productivity of science and technology” but is crucial to maintain America’s global power. We strongly believe that diversity is the strength of this nation, and our vision is to empower researchers committed to providing invaluable training and learning experiences for students to become future leaders in STEM fields

Our Team

Dr. Rama Balasubramanian – President and CEO

Jay Bala – Technical Director

Ariel Barreiro – Grants Co-ordinator and Communications Specialist