Ben Murphy ’25 is getting ready to spend the next ten months in Kotdwar, India, where he will work on the American India Foundation’s after being awarded a .
SAHELI works to change the lives of adolescent girls through education, health, and livelihood programming. They work to foster gender equality and promote economic mobility to prepare girls for independent futures. The Banyan Impact Fellowship, formally known as the AIF William J. Clinton Fellowship for Service in India and founded by former U.S. President Bill Clinton, is an immersive, bi-national volunteer service program with an aim of driving social change.
“The Banyan Impact Fellowship will enable me to further explore how to effectively improve and manage economic development initiatives that support vulnerable communities,” says Murphy, who graduated in May with a degree in Business, Economics, and Society. “I am incredibly grateful to have the opportunity to continue doing the work that I love. In the same way I got excited about diving into a new block at CC, I am eager to immerse myself in the communities and culture of Kotdwar, India, while learning as much as possible about the SAHELI Initiative and its beneficiaries”
“I applied to the AIF Banyan Impact Fellowship to continue doing the work that I love, building pathways for individuals and communities to thrive,” he continues. “Through this work, I’ve come to realize that economic empowerment cannot exist in isolation; when people face challenges in health or education, economic initiatives often fall short. Economic development is deeply interconnected with health, education, and other social systems. I hope this experience will deepen my understanding of how the most impactful economic empowerment efforts are those that are integrated with broader initiatives in health and education. To be accepted into a fellowship that allows me to continue the work I love feels like all the work I put into this process has paid off.”
“My work supports the implementation of an education initiative that helps teachers integrate computational thinking, digital literacy, and STEM education into their classrooms—key skills that are increasingly tied to long-term economic opportunity,” Murphy says. “The project’s goal is to equip students with the 21st-century skills they need to participate meaningfully in a rapidly evolving digital economy.”
To do this, Murphy will be designing and leading workshops for educators, developing locally relevant teaching resources, and collecting and analyzing data to evaluate and refine instructional strategies. He will also spend time in schools, offering hands-on support to teachers as they implement new methods.
“Beyond the classroom, I’ll engage with parents, community leaders, and local organizations to build shared understanding and support for these changes, recognizing that community buy-in is crucial for sustainable development,” Murphy says. “This work also includes presenting case studies and results to educational authorities like the State Council of Educational Research and Training to advocate for systemic adoption of these practices. I’ll mentor junior staff and volunteers, contribute to internal learning, and conduct research to better understand the connection between skill-building in schools and long-term economic mobility.”
Murphy says that ultimately, his project will bridge education and economic development by helping ensure that students, particularly those in under-resourced areas, are equipped with the skills that will allow them to thrive in the modern workforce and contribute to broader community growth.
Murphy is currently in Mumias, Kenya, where he spent the summer working as an intern coordinator for the . “In this role, I actively supported and learned from various livelihood initiatives, including village banking programs and poultry rearing projects,” he says. “I learned more about how economic empowerment initiatives work to support some of the poorest communities in Western Kenya. The experience has deepened my understanding of how organizations can support sustainable livelihoods and inclusive, community-led development.”
Murphy is passionate about both sustainable and inclusive community economic development and participated in several internships within this field as a student, including the Quad Innovation Alliance, a joint initiative between four institutions of higher education in Colorado Springs.
During his time with the Quad Innovation Alliance during his sophomore year, Murphy led a study on the best practices for parking garage management, which he and his team researched and then communicated to El Paso County, along with recommendations to improve the efficiency of the garages and to help solve traffic flow issues. He and his team also suggested strategies they had researched for future revenue growth for the garage. A few months later, Campus Compact named him part of the 2023 cohort of Newman Civic Fellows. He was one of 154 student civic leaders chosen that year, and he was picked because of his desire to make a difference in El Paso County. During his junior year, he spent six months working with the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment researching the challenges rural entrepreneurs face and developing recommendations to catalyze rural entrepreneurs' adoption of digital tools and technologies that can boost business growth.
During the second semester of his senior year, Murphy worked as an Africa Program Fellow for the , a nonprofit research organization aimed at developing the next generation of leaders and foreign affairs experts. He also served on the President’s Council during his junior year and the first semester of his senior year.
Additionally, Murphy worked at (XI), a startup incubator program, where he says he supported entrepreneurs ranging from tech startups to local small businesses. He worked as a Program Intern and then a Senior Program Intern from the spring of his sophomore year through this past May. Murphy says his most rewarding work so far has been with XI’s Survive and Thrive program, which provides loans and holistic programming to support small business growth and boost the economic development of economically distressed parts of Colorado Springs.
Despite graduating only a few months ago, Murphy is clearly already experienced, accomplished, and making a difference in the world.
Murphy, who graduated in three-and-a-half years, was awarded the Robert William Kaye Prize, which is presented to an outstanding Business, Economics, and Society graduating student.
“I can’t think of a better fit for the Banyan AIF Fellowship than Ben,” says his former advisor Dr. Chelsea Walter, Director of the Office of Culturally & Linguistically Diverse Education. “His academic study, professional experience, and personal motivations to better the world will make his contributions to the SAHELI initiative invaluable. I have no doubt he will make lasting change during his fellowship year in Kotdwar.”
After his year in India, Murphy plans to work with or start a social enterprise that brings together his passions for entrepreneurship, economic development, and international engagement. He is especially interested in building or supporting businesses that create meaningful impact in communities around the world.