Cleveland, OH

 

Cleveland, OH

 

Position Title: Aging Services Administrator

Place of Employment: City of Cleveland, Department of Aging

Job Duties: The Department of Aging is committed to ensuring Cleveland is an age friendly community by enhancing the quality of life for Cleveland seniors and adults with disabilities through advocacy, planning, service coordination, and the delivery of needed services. In my current role, I serve as the human resources lead and a part of the administrative team. I also provide oversight to some of the programming within the Aging and Disability Resource Center.

 

I am a proud graduate of John F. Kennedy High School which is a Cleveland Public School. After completing my undergraduate degree at Bowling Green State University, I began a career in the nonprofit/public sector. When I decided to move back to Cleveland, I continued my career as a public servant. Upon moving back, I immediately knew I wanted to continue my education at Levin. Its reputation for being a top school in public affairs – in a city that I am proud to call home – appealed to me.

 

Levin is a very diverse college, filled with students who have a wealth of knowledge from their own personal and professional experiences. Interacting and attending classes with such a great group of individuals served as motivation for me to strive to excel in my own career path.

 

My favorite Levin memory is participating in the Levin day of service and volunteering at the City Mission. We spent an afternoon volunteering and sharing life stories and experiences with the men who resided there.

 

My advice to students currently in the program is to take advantage of every opportunity offered by the College's faculty and staff. Learn from your peers and network. Many of my colleagues and community partners that I work with on a daily basis have graduated from Levin.

 

Guest speakers during the Urban Colloquium experience provided valuable information and practical approaches to a variety of public administration topics. It was refreshing to have members of the community share their experiences. This helped me understand the relationship between public administration theories and practical experiences.

 

What inspires me most about Northeast Ohio are the residents. They are hardworking, dedicated, loyal, and driven to make this city transform into something greater than it already is.

 

There are many hidden treasures in Northeast Ohio. My favorite happens to be Edgewater Park in the summer.

 

People would be surprised to know that I have five older brothers.

 

I have a deep compassion for working with vulnerable populations – especially the elderly. My grandmother was diagnosed with dementia when I was 14 years old, and I watched my mother be her primary caregiver until she passed away. Watching her strength, patience, and compassion made me want to start my career in the field of Aging. Once I started the MPA program at Levin, I took the course “Public Administration & the Political Process” with Professor Joseph Mead. This course was designed to be a semester-long advocacy project. At the beginning of the class, he challenged us to finish by making a difference in the world. The course was challenging, yet extremely rewarding. My passion for advocacy, fair chance legislation, and social justice issues bloomed.

 

My hero is and always will be my mother. She taught me to be kind and empathetic to everyone. As a public servant, these are values important to me to this day.