Bob Graham Center for Public Service

This was  the second  of a four-part summertime series to prepare you for your career in public service. Connect with Gator grads who are pros in domestic and international public service, and increase your exposure to internship, fellowship and post-graduation job opportunities.

An archive of the Zoom session is located at: https://youtu.be/Dgn6ZtdihDM

Presenters were:

• Sanjay Iyer is currently a South Asia Desk Officer in the United States Agency for International Development’s Bureau for Asia. Sanjay joined USAID in 2019 through the Presidential Management Fellows program, and is a graduate from Georgetown University’s M.S. in Foreign Service (MSFS) program, where he focused on International development and global health, and spent time supporting Georgetown’s global health initiative and UNICEF’s Health Section in NYC. Sanjay served as the National Malaria Coordinator for the US Peace Corps in Zambia (2015 – 2016) and a Youth Development Volunteer with the US Peace Corps in Morocco (2013 – 2015). Before, between, and after his volunteer experiences abroad, Sanjay worked to support international exchange programs for several years with Virginia Commonwealth University’s Global Education Office, World Learning Inc., and other NGOs. Sanjay graduated with a BA in International relations and a BA in Homeland Security from VCU in 2010.
• Manuela Hernandez is a Foreign Service Officer for the Department of State, assigned to Rio de Janeiro for her first post. Originally from Florida, Manuela graduated from the University of Florida with majors in Economics and International Studies (with a focus on Europe) in May 2016. She worked in Munich for a year with Kiron Open Higher Education, a nonprofit that helps refugees access higher education. As a Charles Rangel Fellow, Manuela completed her Master of Science in Foreign Service (MSFS) from Georgetown University in May 2019 with a specialization in international development. Manuela has completed internships with the State Department in both the U.S. Consulate in Düsseldorf and the U.S. Mission to the EU. She is also an alumni of the Public Policy in International Affairs program at Princeton University and the Bob Graham Center internship program at the Florida State Capital in Tallahassee.
• Saumya Deva is currently a U.S. Foreign Service Officer working at the U.S. Embassy in Haiti. She graduated from Columbia University with a degree in Public Administration from the School of International and Public Affairs. She was a Peace Corps volunteer in Togo for two years and stayed an extra year to work on the “Plan International” initiative that promotes gender equality. Saumya has also worked for UN Women in New York City as well as with Amnesty International in Buenos Aires, Argentina.