Alumni Stories

Born and raised in Manhattan, Cassidy Drummond completed her bachelor’s degree in Minnesota and then returned to New York City to join the MA Economics program at the Colin Powell School. Sparked by her experience advocating for a minimum wage hike for on-campus workers at the University of Minnesota, Drummond discovered her passion for labor rights and chose CCNY's program because of its public economics concentration. In her first semester as a graduate student, she found a community and a support system in her peers and professors, excelled in the foundational courses that she… Read More »


Robert Feder’s first semester at CCNY was spring 1947. He met Marjorie Feder in the fall of 1948, while she was a senior at Bronx Science (he was also a Science graduate — they are, in fact, the first Bronx Science couple ever to marry!). This letter was from fall of 1949, when Marjorie (17) went to Bard. Bob would turn 19 at the end of November. In one letter, he described the schedule that he was planning to take: Registration is close and I’m quite worried about it. I’ll be carrying 19-1/2 credits which is way over par and taking Art, English, History, Latin, Public… Read More »


  “It's Okay to Not Have Your Life Planned Out” — Former Colin Powell Graduate Fellow Christopher Rick on his Circuitous Path to Academia   CCNY was “the place that put big ideas into my head,” says Christopher Rick, a graduate of the MA Program in Economics who is now finishing a PhD at Syracuse and will soon begin a post-doctoral fellowship at Harvard. A self-described “boring, suburban kid from Maryland,” Rick was drawn by the rush of city life and the beautiful architecture of CCNY and Harlem. In the Colin Powell School, he found his passion for learning to use… Read More »


  Fulvio Dobrich, Class of 1971 Alumnus, Leaves a Lasting Legacy with New Americans Scholars Program    “I only met Fulvio for a brief moment; however, in that moment I saw the kindness in him, and that he truly cared about the students he was supporting. I will always remember him for giving me this opportunity to work towards my goals, but above all, for being an amazing person.” — Alexander Pichol, Colin Powell Undergraduate Fellow 2021-2022 “Meeting Mr. Dobrich, along with some other students from my fellowship cohort, was one of the most memorable… Read More »


  Serigne Cheikh Kara Cisse, Colin Powell School Alumnus and Staff Member, Selected to Become Military Intelligence Officer The Colin Powell School extends our warmest congratulations to Serigne Cheikh Kara Cisse for being selected to serve as a Military Intelligence Officer in the US Army. Cisse has been a dedicated administrator in the Dean’s Office since 2017. A native of Senegal, Cisse joined the Colin Powell School community as a student, earning his bachelor’s degree in international relations and economics and his master’s degree in international affairs. He also… Read More »


  “Never Forget Your Roots” — Student Government President Andrew Salmieri Reflects on His Path as a Student Leader    Andrew Salmieri, a third-generation Italian-American from Brooklyn and current senior at the Colin Powell School, rose from senator to vice president to president of the student government at CCNY. In this interview, he recalls the tightly-knit family relations, the gifted and talented programs, and the Catholic school teachings that laid the foundation of his worldview, which is oriented toward service and social justice. Specifically,… Read More »


  “Do Internships!” - South Bronx Native Michael Cruz Tells His Story of Returning to College and Building a Career in the Foreign Service       “You are unique, and you are the only one who can tell your own story,” says Michael Cruz, a Colin Powell School alum who recently won the Charles B. Rangel Fellowship in International Affairs, a prestigious award for aspiring foreign service officers at the US State Department. A native of the South Bronx and child of Puerto Rican parents, Cruz developed a keen interest in international affairs and aspired to serve… Read More »


  Alejandro Espinosa on Overcoming Autism and Finding a Path into Public Service at the Colin Powell School Alejandro Espinosa first visited the City College campus as a five-year-old learning to ride a bike with his uncle. Little did he know that he would later become a Climate Policy Fellow in the Colin Powell School and be featured on the Today Show reflecting about General Powell’s impact on students like him. As a child and adolescent, Espinosa faced the challenge of being on the autism spectrum. As the child of Mexican immigrants, he also needed ESL support.… Read More »


  Senior Aryanna Khan’s Journey from the Front Lines of the Climate Crisis to the COP26 in Glasgow As a child growing up in Bangladesh, Aryanna Khan often had to miss weeks of school due to flooding exacerbated by the climate crisis. With an intuitive understanding that climate change is both an environmental and a social issue, she chose to study both biology and sociology at CCNY. She was selected to join the inaugural cohort of Climate Policy Fellows at the Colin Powell School and recently participated in the Conference of Parties (COP26) in Glasgow, Scotland, where she… Read More »


  Exploring the Other Side of Economics: How Lesly Calle Discovered the Solidarity Economy as a Path to Reduce Social Inequality  Senior Lesly Calle started at CCNY as a Chemistry major. As Calle’s awareness of social inequality grew, she switched her major to economics and international studies. She has dedicated herself to studying economic democracy, worker ownership, and community wealth-building as methods of eradicating inequality by deeply transforming our social and economic institutions. This led her to become both a Climate Policy Fellow and Racial Justice… Read More »


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Last Updated: 08/26/2020 16:36