Next week will mark the end of my year-long journey as a FUSE Fellow working at the City of Los Angeles addressing homelessness. Circling back one year, there is no way I would have ever guessed this fellowship could change me as much as it has. Prior to becoming a Fellow, I had worked on the cusp of city government, but never quite in it.
My advocacy work around public space and better urban planning policy meant that I was deeply involved in the civic life of Philadelphia. This included meeting prospective and active Councilmen and women and staff to the Mayor. It also meant meeting with like-minded advocates and representing the organization I led on a public stage. These experiences helped prepare me for my work in Los Angeles, but there's no value like actually working on the inside. For one year that's what I've been able to do and it has meant all the difference for me going forward.
FUSE has exposed me to so many dedicated civil servants working in LA to reform and improve city government in their own way. Miguel Santana is at the top of that list and is the driving force behind my work in Los Angeles. Mr. Santana cares deeply about homelessness and through his actions and the incredible team he's assembled at the Office of the CAO, for a year I was able to carry the baton in my own way to forward an important issue affecting Los Angeles for too long. Miguel gave me the creative space to put my own mark on this issue. He included me in high-profile meetings with City Council and Mayor Garcetti, also committed to this addressing this issue, and has supported my efforts to not only build policy, but reform the way city government works by supporting my idea to use web-based project management software for the implementation of the Comprehensive Homeless Strategy.
FUSE also built a family of Fellows I will keep in contact with as we move on to our next roles, wherever they may be. The FUSE family grows with each year. My class had 16 fellows across California, five in Los Angeles alone. Next year's class will have 13 in the LA region, 10 in the City of Los Angeles. Beyond California, FUSE fellows will serve in three new cities in three new states with 30 new fellows in all. Most promising about FUSE is its commitment to local governance in an era when our federal politics are often steeped in dysfunction. There's a lot working inside our city governments. I feel honored and privileged to have experienced this and given the opportunity to contribute in my own way.
