Baruch College Alumni Win Excelsior Service Fellowships
Graduates of the Marxe School of Public and International Affairs Head to State Government Positions for Two YearsOctober 12, 2022
Six Baruch College alumni who earned master’s degrees from the Marxe School of Public and International Affairs were chosen as 2022 Excelsior Service Fellows.
The highly competitive Excelsior Service Fellowship Program is an initiative that brings recent graduates into government service in New York State where they work full-time alongside senior members of the administration and play a policy-influencing role with the opportunity to focus on the most pressing issues of the day.
This past September, the Baruch alumni were placed within the Executive Chamber, a government agency, or authority for their two-year fellowships.
Meet the 2022 Excelsior Service Fellows
Fatima Doukoure
Fatima Doukoure (Executive MPA ’21) is thrilled to be a part of this selective group and serve her Fellowship at the Homes and Community Renewal (HCR).
“I want to learn about the financing of affordable housing and some of the similarities to the city since my experience with affordable housing stems from my participation on the board of the Mitchell-Lama building where I reside,” Doukoure says.
Doukoure is working with the Director of Preservation Initiatives to develop new policies and programs that leverage diverse financial products to address the preservation needs of HCR’s statewide affordable housing portfolio. She manages a pipeline of preservation projects in need of refinancing/repositioning, including those with distressed assets that are near the end of the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Portfolio Preservation (Year 15) Program, and other state and municipal funding sources. Additionally, she evaluates the eligibility and feasibility of proposed projects and works with staff to underwrite and originate mortgages for affordable multifamily housing.
“For a mid-level career professional like myself, the Fellowship is an excellent way to pivot to a new career path,” Doukoure states. “I will be interacting with the decision makers of the agency and participating in high-level meetings that would not have been otherwise possible. I also will learn from seasoned professionals in different capacities, as I am getting a bird’s-eye view of major project development and financing.”
Joanna Green
Joanna Green (MPA ’22) starts her career in public health by joining the NYS AIDS Institute Office of Drug User Health.
At the institute, Green is helping to coordinate projects relating to women. For example, she is developing an assessment and policy paper to address the needs, barriers and challenges faced by women, those who are pregnant, and parenting people who use drugs in New York.
“I am looking forward to learning the ins and outs of policy and programming in the public health sector, particularly through the lens of harm reduction and equitable access to healthcare,” Green explains.
Her goal is to advance equitable healthcare for women.
“I am really interested in reproductive health and mental health and believe the work I will be doing with the AIDS Institute intersects these interests in several ways.”
Giselle Guerrero
Giselle Guerrero (MPA ’22) is working at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA).
“I have been wanting my next employment to be reflective of my professional passions and use my degree and previous work experiences,” Guerrero says. “I want to work in my desired field, and now I will be learning and developing professionally within the environment which I chose.”
Guerrero is interested in learning about diversity and being with “like-minded individuals who believe and are passionate about diversity within the workforce.” She also wants to work in a place to see what programming is being developed and what works, as well as conducting surveys, and hopefully some policy too.
She continues, “I would like to work in the diversity field as an executive. I know working at the MTA would help me achieve this goal due to the size of the agency. I also attended their diversity committee board meeting, and their views coincide with mine.”
Harry Lamagna
Harry Lamagna (MPA ’22) was surprised and honored to be selected for Fellowship to work at Homes and Community Renewal.
“I am looking forward to learning more about how New York State government functions, and further developing my leadership abilities,” Lamagna says.
Lamagna believes this award will help him achieve his career goal of becoming a leader in either a government agency or nonprofit organization.
“This Fellowship provides me with the experience and the leadership development opportunities that will be necessary to take on such a role,” he adds. “My advice for future Baruch students who are interested in a career in public service is to get as much experience as possible! Your experience is what will really make you stand out when opportunities come your way.”
Anissa Martinez
Anissa Martinez (MPA ’21) said she was “overjoyed” earning this Fellowship.
Martinez is currently employed at the Office of Addiction Services and Support, where she advocates for New Yorkers living with alcohol and/or chemical dependencies. At first, Martinez is assisting the Office of the Chief Medical Officer in the Division of Addiction Treatment and Recovery with research used to produce guidance documents for providers of addiction treatment and support services.
“I want to destigmatize this population and support equitable services by promoting person-centered treatment that’s truly holistic,” Martinez says.
Throughout her childhood, Martinez saw her mother struggle with substance use, an experience that inspired her to apply for the Excelsior Fellowship.
“She lacked support and was often misjudged,” Martinez recalls. “People frequently discussed her shortfalls rather than her triumphs. She was loving, warm, formally educated, cultured, down-to-earth, and more importantly, forgiving. Her duality encourages my insight, and her plight inspires me to help people reclaim their lives.”
Robin Taylor
Robin Taylor’s (MIA ’22) Fellowship experience is at the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities.
“I am looking forward to being part of a team tasked with implementing a new agency-wide strategic plan to better align organizational operations and resources with its broader mission and goals,” Taylor explains.
Taylor, who graduated with a concentration in International Nongovernmental Organizations, is confident this Fellowship will play a defining role in her career trajectory.
“I hope to gain a better contextual understanding of how state government carries out its policy initiatives through programmatic goals and how the effectiveness of those programs are evaluated once implemented.”
Learn more about graduate programs at the Marxe School of Public and International Affairs.
# # #