Meet The Team
Andrea Ringer
MPP 2021
Co-Chair
Areas of interest: State and local government, workforce development and labor rights, economic development
Andrea Ringer is an MPP2 at the Harvard Kennedy School. She has experience in program evaluation of nonprofit and local government programs in the U.S., and her areas of interest include state and local government, community empowerment, economic development, and affordable housing. Andrea’s vision for SPSC is to increase involvement of HKS students with organizations in their local communities and to create connections in public service across Harvard.
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Kevin Dong
MPP 2022
Co-Chair
Areas of interest: Healthcare reform, welfare strategies, and equity
Kevin Dong is an MPP1 at the Harvard Kennedy School. He is interested in reforming healthcare, improving welfare programs, and expanding student involvement within and beyond the HKS community. Kevin is experienced in overseeing and implementing federal low-income food programs at food banks, and in investigating health insurance mergers and anticompetitive hospital conduct at the U.S. Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. Kevin enjoys playing the viola, watching baseball, and received his bachelor’s degree from Middlebury College.
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Kyle Yoder
MPP 2021
Vice-Chair
Areas of interest: Community organizing and advocacy, state and local government, voting rights, housing and community development
Kyle Yoder is an MPP2 working toward a concentration in Social & Urban Policy and a certificate in Management, Leadership, & Decision Sciences. His work focuses on building systems that elevate community voices in leadership structures and policy decisions. Before returning to school, he spent the last half-decade working as a community organizer, theater artist, and educator in New York City, where he directly contributed to the success of nonprofits and campaigns centered around issues of environmental and economic sustainability, patient care, education, housing, and #MeToo. He holds a degree in cognitive science with a focus in behavioral economics from Yale University. When he's not at work in the community, you can find him hiking on trails or writing a book about his late sister, Megan.
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Anusha Thotakura
MPP 2022
Co-Chair, YLC Executive Team
Anusha Thotakura is an MPP1 at the Harvard Kennedy School. Originally from the Chicago area, she has spent the last few years working as a bilingual middle school math teacher in San Jose, California. She has experience in community organizing and electoral campaigns, most recently having managed a successful insurgent campaign for a local school board trustee race. Anusha is interested in bringing an intersectional equity lens to solving public problems. She is a part of SPSC because she believes that everyone has the ability to contribute their talents and skills to public service, and as the Chair of the Youth Leadership Conference, she hopes to inspire a new generation of young leaders to pursue public service.
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Arielle Exner
MPP 2022
Co-Chair, YLC Executive Team
Arielle is an MPP1 at the Harvard Kennedy School. Her background is in international education, most recently working at the Lycée Français French International school in Chicago. In addition to her passion for multicultural and multilingual education, she’s interested in finding intersectional and equitable solutions to social policy issues more broadly while at HKS. She earned her bachelor’s degree in sociology from Boston University, with minors in French and journalism. As a first generation college graduate herself, Arielle is dedicated to empowering the next generation of youth public service leaders from all backgrounds as Co-Chair of the Youth Leadership Conference.
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