News

Consul General of Ecuador in New York

On May 21, 2026 I was proud to be invited by Consul General of Ecuador in New York, Gicela Andrade Valens, as part of the delegation to present the replica vessel of Palanda to the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH). This artifact of the Mayo Chinchipe people, dating back 5,500 years, was found to contain residue of cacao. The consul general noted that this discovery changes the narrative on the first usage of cacao, whose beans are used to make chocolate and cocoa butter.


As an Ecuadorian American, I see this collaboration between the AMNH and the Ecuadorian government to permanently exhibit this vessel in New York City as apropos. The city has long been home to the largest Ecuadorian community in the United States, and the artifact will deepen understanding of our history and culture.



(Pictured with the consul general [left] is Michelle Young, AMNH Assistant Curator for South American Archaeology)

Marxe School

On May 18, 2026 I was proud to recognize MPA students Skylar Ribotsky (Team Leader), James Calicchio, Tasmiah Choudhury, and MSEd-HEA student Christine Pardo (“Team Yellow”) with the Best Project Team recognition for my Public & Nonprofit Management I course. 


They made two excellent presentations—using assigned case studies (on a hospital and a museum)—that required them to apply theories, produce analyses and recommendations, and to work collaboratively. These presentations included fielding questions from their colleagues. 


Team Leader Skylar Ribotsky said, “The challenges we faced ultimately strengthened our collaboration, deepened our understanding, and led us to success together. Through perseverance and teamwork, we were able to overcome obstacles and give two great presentations. We're proud of what we achieved as a team and grateful for the guidance of Professor Neil Hernandez throughout the semester.”



One of the team’s strengths, which they demonstrated throughout the semester, was their perseverance as they worked through Tuckman’s (1965) four stages of team development, from forming to storming and from norming to performing. This trajectory is not perfect, and they learned to give each other space to be collaborative and effective. 


Marxe School

On May 15, 2025 I was enthused to moderate the panel discussion, “Urban Governance and Policy Response,” as part of the “Asylum in the City: New York’s Past, Present, and Future” conference at the Marxe School. The audience was able to listen to and engage municipal government officials, nonprofit leaders, and policy advocates actively involved in helping newcomers to the City in 2022.



I acknowledge professors Els de Graauw and Jackie Vimo for their leadership in organizing and managing this conference. 

Best Consulting Team

On May 13, 2026, I was proud to recognize MPA students Eva Jacobs (Team Leader), Oscar Olvera, Masaki Yoshikawa, Abdul Wahab and MIA student Marcela Medina with the “Best Consulting Team” award in my Leadership and Strategy in Public Affairs course. They provided exceptional consulting services, including using strategy praxis and adaptive leadership techniques, to the Sone Yay Foundation.


The consulting team assessed their client’s fundraising efforts and offered pointed analysis and strategy recommendations to enhance these efforts for more impact.

 

Abdul Wahab said, “On behalf of my team, we are truly honored to receive this recognition. This award reflects the collective effort, commitment, and collaboration of our entire team, and I am grateful to have worked with such dedicated classmates. We are especially thankful to Professor Hernandez for giving us the opportunity to apply what we learned in class to a real consulting project and to the Sone Yay Foundation for trusting us with their important mission. This experience helped us understand how strategy, leadership, and public service can come together to support meaningful work for communities affected by human rights challenges in Myanmar.”



This outstanding work by these student-consultants, via the project-based method, aligns with Baruch College’s strategic plan to “increase opportunities for experiential and community-engaged learning.”


Zin Mar Thu

On April 27, 2026 MPA alumna Zin Mar Thu joined my students in the Public and Nonprofit Management I course for a conversation. This focused on how she established a nonprofit organization for impact, much like the Marxe School aspires to in its mission statement.


Zin Mar founded Sone Yay Foundation. Its mission is to “inspire hope and ignite change for a more just and equitable world.” This includes providing leadership education and humanitarian aid to people in Myanmar, which is under a brutal dictatorship. Indeed, the U.S. State Department reports “significant human rights issues,” “including extrajudicial killings of civilians.” 


Zin Mar explained how she is inspired to support the people, including family and friends, in Myanmar. The Foundation’s initiatives include the Project Management in Crisis Internship, which provides students, whose education has been interrupted by the regime, to gain valuable leadership and management skills. Also, the Foundation has consistently provided hygiene and dignity kits for women and men.   


Zin Mar said, “In my discussion with the students, I emphasized that whatever I do, I try to start with heart, but I believe we must focus on a proper structure and accept risk to drive change. I believe change begins with heart, but it isn’t enough, I have to move things forward through courage — especially when there are a lot of voices and noise around saying ‘no, you shouldn’t do it’ or ‘it won’t work.’”


The students were inspired by her vision and leadership.


Natzinet Ghebrenegus

On March 16, 2026 MPA alumna Natzinet Ghebrenegus joined my students in the Public and Nonprofit Management I course for an insightful conversation. This focused on studying at the Marxe School, the transition to working in a government agency, and career exploration.


Natzinet is in her first year as Program Manager at the NYC Department of Youth & Community Development. She oversees 22 community-based contracts of after-school programs in elementary and middle schools. The discussion with the students included how she applied her MPA studies to this vitally important work. 


Natzinet said, “The MPA program at the Marxe School strengthened my technical skills as a program manager through exposure to holistic program management strategies, comprehensive program evaluation tools, and budgetary practices. I was excited to reflect on my professional journey since completing the program and share insights with public-service-oriented students.”


The students were inspired by her talk, and they asked thoughtful questions as they consider career options.



Yomaira Rodriguez & Keith Geraldino

On February 11, 2026 “professors” Yomaira Rodriguez and Keith Geraldino, who are MPA and MSEd-HEA candidates at the Marxe School, made a presentation about their prior consulting project in my Public & Nonprofit Management II course from the Fall 2025 semester to students enrolled in my Leadership & Strategy in Public Affairs course this semester. In both courses, I use the project-based method.

Yomaira and Keith explained how their consulting team advised their client: the Marxe School’s MSEd-HEA Program. 

The professors shared how they analyzed the client’s need to address enrollment trends, using performance management and transformational leadership frameworks, and offered a customized solution. 
Also, Yomaira and Keith discussed the challenges of group work, including setting expectations, promoting accountability, resolving conflict, and providing emotional support. 

Yomaira said, “Navigating conflict as a team leader allowed me to operationalize my leadership style. It reinforced my belief that leadership is not about control or power, but about designing systems and cultivating an environment that fosters collaboration, clarity, trust, and empowerment to drive collective success. This experience allowed me to translate theory into practice—or, as Professor Hernandez would say, to lead as a ‘pracademic.’”

Keith said, “Looking back on my experience with this consulting project, I now have a better understanding that effective teamwork is not immediate. Rather, it is a developmental process built through trust, shared responsibility, and the collective process of growing together. Guest lecturing on this experience further deepened my reflection, allowing me to clearly articulate the lessons I now carry into my ongoing professional work.”

Their insightful presentation was appreciated by students who are serving as consultants this semester to two out-of-state organizational clients. 

In the Fall 2025 semester, Yomaira and Keith’s team earned the “Best Consulting Team” award, and Yomaira was co-recipient of the “Best Consulting Team Leader” award. 

Gabrielle Watson

On February 9, 2026 “Professor” Gabrielle (Gaby) Watson made a presentation about her research project, from the Spring 2023 semester, focused on the influence of budget and personnel management on patient enrollment in a hospital. This presentation was for students in the Public and Nonprofit Management I core course.

Gaby, who is an MPA alumna of the Marxe School, was the co-recipient of my course’s “Best Research Paper” award for her project in that semester. 

This assignment, which students are responsible for completing in the Spring 2026 semester, involves focusing on one management problem in an organization, crafting a research question, using theory to scrutinize the problem, performing research, and developing recommendations with an action plan. 

Gaby said, “I was happy to be a ‘professor’ for a class session to share my insights on a course assignment I found helpful to build my MPA competencies. More broadly, as a newly-minted Marxe alumna, this experience allowed me to reflect on my academic journey and appreciate how much I’ve learned over the last three years.”

The students appreciated her thorough and insightful talk as they are drafting their research proposals for this semester.

Best Project Team

On December 22, 2025 I was proud to recognize Bridget Turro (Team Leader), Camille Bordao, Christopher Keller, Joanna Micek, and Nhadyr Reyes-Cardenas (“Team Yellow”) with the Best Project Team recognition for my Public & Nonprofit Management I course. 

They made two exceptional presentations—using assigned case studies (on a hospital and a museum)—that required them to apply theories, produce analyses and recommendations, and to work collaboratively. These presentations included fielding questions from their colleagues. 

Team Leader Bridget Turro said, “The Yellow Team’s growth throughout the semester is something to be admired. Starting out as 5 strangers assigned to a semester long project can be intimidating. We made a list of core group values at our first meeting and stuck to them throughout the semester. As team leader I knew I had to take initiative with planning out logistics, but I couldn’t have done it without the people in my group. Everyone in the group had a vital part in creating the success we had. Joanna would go above and beyond with research to make sure we had something different from the rest of the teams. Chris was someone who you can always rely on and ask questions without judgement. Camille’s attitude and motivation made it easy to keep up with the group, always making sure everyone’s voice was heard. Nhadyr was a light of positive energy who always has a new way of looking at things to understand concepts from a more holistic perspective. I am so proud of us and all the work we have put in to making this project successful!”

What is further impressive about the team is that they represent distinct degree programs at the Weissman and Marxe schools and the team converted disciplinary differences into strengths. Nhadyr Reyes-Cardenas is a candidate in the MA in Arts Administration Program, Christopher Keller and Joanna Micek are candidates in the MSEd-HEA Program, and Bridget Turro and Camille Bordao are candidates in the MPA Program.