On June 13, 2019, the 2019 Work First Research Symposium took place at the Crosby Street Hotel in SoHo, New York. There, the 2018-2019 cohort of Work First Fellows presented their research findings to an audience of government leaders, policy experts, and staff members from the Work First Foundation and America Works. The research projects that the Fellows chose to pursue were informed and inspired by their experiences serving low-income individuals and public welfare recipients at their respective sites.
2018-2019 Fellows Trip to Washington
In March, the fellows were able to experience Washington D.C. behind the scenes. They had the opportunity to have one on one conversations with some D.C.’s notorious think tanks. This included resident fellow, Matt Weidinger from American Enterprise Institute (AEI) and senior fellow, Elaine C. Kamarck Brooking Institution. An intriguing discussion was held regarding welfare reform and how different perspectives and historical events had impacted their work in politics.
Inspiration at Nationswell
On Thursday, November 15, the New York Fellows attended the NationSwell summit in Chelsea. The Summit featured this question for America: “Where do we go from here?” Fellows heard speakers introduce products designed to mitigate the effects of climate change, the idea of a Constitutional amendment to regulate campaign contributions, and the push to convince companies to relax their requirements that applicants have a college degree.
Applications for New Fellowship Class are Now Open
Applications for the new Work First fellowship class opened up on September 5th! We are excited to hear from students of diverse backgrounds on why you want to be a fellow with the Work First Foundation. We understand the process of applying for a job can be quite nerve wrecking and can leave a lot of unanswered questions. We have compiled a list of FAQs from previous fellows to help future fellows navigate the process with a little more ease.
"Where are they now?" An Update from Work First Alumni
Recently, 2018-2019 Fellows Tabitha Krondorfer (Washington DC) and Ramsey Daniels (Brooklyn) caught up with some previous Work First fellows to find out what they were up to as well as how their time at Work First and America Works was both rewarding and preparatory in their current lives. Here’s what they had to say.