I attended Macalester College in St. Paul – where I studied Economics, Geography, and Portuguese. I was interested in the social sciences and wanted to understand how the government could most adequately provide services to its people. This focus led me to the NYC Department of Education where I interned for two summers to help families enroll their children in Pre-K programs. My interest in how government affects urban cities also led to an internship with the Mayor’s Office focusing on housing policy. While I was there, I connected landlords with housing voucher recipients. These experiences reaffirmed my desire to work on delivering and improving government services.

During my junior year in college, I went to São Paulo, Brazil to study Brazilian economics and history. Studying in a large metro area solidified my interest in urban geography as well as sparked a love for Latin America. The experience inspired me to embark on a Fulbright Fellowship and return to Brazil post-graduation. During the Fulbright Fellowship I served as a cultural ambassador, teaching classes on resource conservation and urban resilience as well as leading English cultural activities.

In between graduation and starting my Fulbright Fellowship, I returned to the DOE as a consultant for their Head Start department. Building off my previous experience as a DOE intern, I leveraged community resources and data to help increase Pre-K enrollment in Head Start programs in underserved neighborhoods in Brooklyn, lower Manhattan, and the Bronx. Although I enjoyed the work I was doing at DOE, I knew I also wanted to continue exploring more issue areas.

I joined Public Works because it provided the opportunity to work across multiple issues. As an analyst, I work on variety of projects that help improve the quality of life for New Yorkers. I am extremely excited by my projects, as a lot of the work ties-in directly with my interest areas including urban geography, climate adaptation, and disaster risk reduction.  And of course, it’s nice to be part of a hardworking and collaborative team.

Outside of work, you can typically find me at my favorite Barre/Pilates studio in Brooklyn, either taking classes or working at the front desk. I also enjoy trying different restaurants around New York City (let me know if you have any recommendations!). I also love to utilize my language skills by helping Brazilians apply to master’s programs in the United States. And finally, I’m a BIG cat fan! So much so that I adopted three when I was living in Brazil.