Fyzeen Ahmad 

CHAI recognizes and celebrates its Members, Community Partners, and Ambassadors monthly. This month, we feature Fyzeen Ahmad.

Fyzeen Ahmad is an undergraduate student at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, studying neuroscience and computer science. With an interest in the intersection of brain science, technology, and community health, Fyzeen’s work bridges multiple disciplines. His research at Washington University in St. Louis has focused on applying deep learning and generative AI to analyze brain connectivity in patients with depression and other psychiatric disorders. He has also worked with the UMN School of Public Health and the Central Minnesota Council on Aging, helping collect the largest-known dataset on social isolation and using statistical modeling to examine how health, geographic, and social factors covary with loneliness.

Outside of the lab, Fyzeen is the Founder and Managing Director of Project Blue Star, a nationally recognized intergenerational initiative fostering connections between young and older adults. Since its founding in 2021, it has grown to include 800+ participants and 100+ regular volunteers throughout MN. The organization won a grant from MIT AgeLab and recognition from the National Youth Leadership Council. Within CHAI, Fyzeen serves on the Community Advisory Board (CAB), is Vice Chair of the Aging Studies Interdisciplinary Group (ASIG), and is an active member of the Intergenerational Community Health Collaborative (ICHC).

Additionally, Fyzeen volunteers as a medical assistant and scribe at Rahma Heart Care, a free cardiology clinic serving under- and uninsured patients across Minnesota. He also serves on the board of the Eckblad-Williams Community Fund, which supports under-resourced string music programs in his hometown of St. Cloud.

Fyzeen is the recipient of the 2025 UMN President’s Student Leadership and Service Award, 2024 Monica Tsang and James Weatherbee Merit Scholarship in Biology, 2024 MGS Gerald Bloedow Scholarship, and was a 2025 Gates-Cambridge Scholarship Finalist. Outside of school, he’s an avid plane spotter and an avid Timberwolves fan. After graduating in Summer 2025, Fyzeen plans to get involved with neuromodulation and spinal cord stimulation research at UMN before starting medical school in Fall 2026.