Meet The Team
Gwendolyn Lee
MD/MPP 2020
Co-Chair
Areas of interest: health, social entrepreneurship, education
Gwendolyn Lee is an MPP2 at the Harvard Kennedy School and an MS3 at UCLA Medical School. After meeting community members who faced barriers to accessing health care and health education, she founded a health education program in local elementary schools as well as the local chapter of a 501(c)3 that builds relationships with under-resourced communities to help community members sign up for health insurance. Her vision for SPSC is to build opportunities for HKS students to step outside the classroom and use the skills HKS offers to serve our local and greater community
Email:
Andrea Ringer
MPP 2021
Co-Chair
Areas of interest: State and local government, workforce development and labor rights, economic development
Andrea Ringer is an MPP1 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, and economic and workforce development. Her vision for SPSC includes increasing involvement of HKS students with local organizations and expanding opportunities for volunteering to benefit both students and local organizations
Email:
Majd Steitieh
MPP 2021
Vice-Chair
Areas of interest: Education, health & humanitarian aid
Majd is an MPP1 at the Harvard Kennedy School. She comes from a multidisciplinary background that includes management consulting, financial services, public policy, humanitarian aid, and fashion design. Prior to HKS she spent 3 years as a management consultant at PwC in Abu Dhabi and Jeddah. Majd worked with governmental entities on issues centered around public safety. Before that, she also worked at PwC in Qatar as part of their assurance practice auditing banks and other financial institutions. Majd has always had a passion for public service and started a socially motivated women’s fashion brand specializing in a unique blend of traditional and modern wear for Middle Eastern dresses including Abayas to raise money for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) treatment for Syrian and Palestinian refugees. So far, she has secured treatment for 10 refugees suffering from PTSD. She completed my undergraduate degree at McGill University where she majored in accounting
Email:
Jeremy Jick
MPP 2021
Director, Community Partnerships
Areas of interest: International relations, city & local government, poverty & inequality, education
Jeremy Jick is a first year master’s student at Harvard Kennedy School. Originally from the Boston area, he has spent the last 3 years working in consulting in San Francisco, focusing on public sector, social impact, and healthcare. He also studied political science and economics at the University of Pennsylvania. Jeremy has a lot of experience volunteering and working with not-for-profit organizations and is deeply committed to community service. His priorities for this year include boosting student engagement in the local community through both recurring volunteer opportunities and event-based opportunities. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to Jeremy with any ideas of events or community partners!
Email:
Asheley Siewnarine
MPP 2020
Director, Community Partnerships
Areas of interest: Education, community engagement, adolescent development, juvenile justice, & increasing opportunities for immigrant communities
Asheley Siewnarine is an MPP2 at the Harvard Kennedy School. She is a native of Queens (NYC), a neighborhood that is lauded as one of the most ethnically diverse geographic regions in the world. Yet, while growing up, Asheley still noticed the disparity of opportunity present in her community adversely affecting its most marginalized members and thus her journey in public service began. Prior to HKS, she worked as an Enrollment Specialist for the New York City Department of Education’s (NYCDOE) Specialized High School Diversity Outreach Team to make some of the city’s most elite schools more accessible to low-income, minority, and other disadvantaged families. Continuing this effort of supporting educational equity, as an MPP1 she served as Co-Chair of the HKS Youth Leadership Conference, which brought approximately 100 underserved Boston-area high school students to campus for a full day of leadership workshops. Asheley hopes to use her time in SPSC to help other HKS students discover the power of public service and the necessity of proximity to populations one is intending to serve
Email:
Aissatou Diallo
MPA/MC 2020
Director, Alumni Partnerships
Areas of interest: xxxx
Aissatou is a Mid-Career MPA and a Mason Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government where she is exploring ways to make effective use of data and technology to solve the development challenges faced by her home country (Guinea) and Africa in general. She spent the last 17 years working at the World Bank Group in the areas of risk management, financial management, loan origination and administration, accounting and auditing. She earned a Master of Business Administration (MBA) at the American University (2002), a bachelor’s degree from Robert Morris University (US) in 1993, and she passed the Certified Public Accounting (CPA) examination in Pennsylvania (US) in 1996. Aissatou’s goal for this year is to increase opportunities for alumni and students to engage together while serving the local community and to form lasting relationships beyond HKS
Email:
adiallo@hks.harvard.edu
Alexander de Avila
MPP 2021
Director, Social Innovations
Areas of interest: xxxx
Alexander de Avila serves in the infantry of the Marine Corps Reserve while he pursues a master’s degree in public policy at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. Alexander is active on campus with the Center for Public Leadership where he is a Black Family Fellow. He also serves on student government as the Vice President of Internal Affairs. Alexander has worked on a number of advocacy and electoral campaigns, including on an effort that convinced Congress to compensate the American diplomats and Marines held hostage in Iran. Alexander is an advocate for public service innovation, and his work has been featured at Medium, Salon, and PolicyMic. He is currently writing a book to help future servicemembers navigate the complex process of joining the military
Email:
Kyle Yoder
MPP 2021
Co-Chair, YLC Executive Team
Areas of interest: Community organizing and advocacy
Kyle Yoder is an MPP1 at the Harvard Kennedy School who has spent the last four years working as an artist, educator, and organizer in New York City. He holds a degree in Cognitive Science from Yale University, where he completed his thesis research on the psychology and neuroscience of performance and creativity. Following the loss of his sister, Megan, he is writing a book about her life and building the Megan Marie Yoder Foundation for Sustainability to continue her work in promoting environmental and economic sustainability. Above all, he believes in the transformative power of words, of community, and of kindness
Email:
Kadijatou Diallo
MPP 2021
Co-Chair, YLC Executive Team
Areas of interest: Institutional development, international relations, global governance, civic engagement, migration, immigrant rights
Kadijatou (Kadija) Diallo is a first year Master of Public Policy student at Harvard Kennedy School of Government. Born in Guinea and claiming Senegal and New York City as her homes, Kadija is interested in how to make governments and political institutions across the world stronger, more accountable, and more effective in serving the needs of their people, especially those most marginalized. Important in that effort is empowering citizens – especially the youth – with the confidence and skills they need to serve as engaged members of their communities and within power structures. She’s excited to continue this work through SPSC and the Youth Leadership Conference
Email: