Institute Intelligence, August 2025: Strengthening Public and Human Services, Introducing the Civic Engagement Fellows
By Carla Sinclair, Senior Communications Associate, and Alisa Orlowsky, Communications Associate
Once again, summer comes to a close faster than you know it. We’re sending this newsletter out a couple days early to catch you before the long Labor Day weekend, which has its roots in New York City, just like us. The first American Labor Day celebration, a parade that went from City Hall to Times Square, was held in 1882, though Oregon was the first to make it an official public holiday in 1887.
With recognition and gratitude for the workers who’ve kept the country running all these years, we’re thrilled to launch our new Strengthening Public and Human Services landing page, a hub for our work focused on ensuring our public sector and adjacent fields are supported, sustainable, and effectively serving all communities. Learn more about that work—as well as our new Civic Engagement Fellows and research into college in prison across New York—below.
And in case you missed it on LinkedIn, CUNY ISLG is hiring! We’re currently reviewing applications for a Research Analyst, Punjabi-speaking Community Research Associates, and an Econometrics Research Assistant. See our Careers page for more.
Want to stay in touch? Follow us on Bluesky, LinkedIn, and Facebook for the latest on our research, policy, events, and funding announcements.
Optimizing Government & Institutions
A new hub for our work strengthening public and human services.
One of the most basic responsibilities of state and local governments is making sure its communities have access to the services, programs, and care they need to thrive. In New York, hundreds of thousands of people rely on these public services, which provide a foundation that strengthens the community as a whole.
A key part of CUNY ISLG’s purpose is to support governments and other public institutions in effectively serving their communities. As part of this, we’re working to better understand trends in the human services sector, especially in services and programs administered through state and local government funds.
We found there was limited knowledge on this intersection; notably, who provides these services, what challenges they face, and how this impacts service provision. Without these answers, it’s next to impossible for policymakers and other leaders to rethink how these systems work to make them more effective, efficient, and sustainable for all.
See our new Strengthening Public and Human Services case study page for an overview of the projects supporting this work and to see what’s next.
On our blog: With uncertainty facing the human service fields, we’ve taken a look at our data on how to fix the challenges they face—starting with making the mental health workforce better reflect the communities they serve. In our latest blog, ISLG Senior Policy Analyst Nathalie Lebron and Communications Associate Alisa Orlowsky provide an updated look at our 2024 report on the topic, and outline why culturally responsive care is critical to the safety and well-being of individuals, families, and communities as a whole.
Advancing Justice
What are the impacts of college-in-prison, both inside facilities and in the community?
Higher education opens doors to new ways of thinking, new career opportunities, and other possibilities for personal growth. For people who are incarcerated, higher education can be the key to a successful transition to the community.
Nonetheless, access to postsecondary education in prison has historically been limited, with only 9 percent of individuals who are incarcerated completing a postsecondary credential while incarcerated.
To expand access, ISLG and the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office launched the College-in-Prison Reentry Initiative (CIP) in 2017. CIP invested $7.3 million in postsecondary education in New York State correctional settings, ultimately serving 931 students through seven higher education institutions in 17 prisons statewide.
As the school year starts for people of all ages, read up on the latest analysis of outcomes—including fewer disciplinary incidents and safer prisons—and see what more work needs to be done to make sure education is a pathway for people during and after incarceration.
ICYMI: ISLG researchers conducted a multiyear process evaluation of the Initiative to assess its implementation. We found that CIP addressed many of the systemic barriers students typically face in earning degrees and reentering the community, including challenges with credit transfers and barriers to finishing degrees in colleges in the community after release. Read the evaluation here.
Promoting Opportunity
Introducing the First Cohort of the Civic Engagement Fellowship
ISLG, in partnership with the New York City Campaign Finance Board (NYC CFB), is excited to share that the first cohort of the Civic Engagement Fellowship has officially kicked off.
Over the next two years, 14 CUNY student Fellows will be embedded in Bronx community-based organizations (CBOs), where they will co-design strategies that build the power of local communities and increase knowledge, transparency, and participation in the democratic process.
Fellows will have the opportunity to support initiatives like voter registration drives, policy education campaigns, and community meetings, while also learning program design, management, and evaluation from NYC CFB and ISLG experts.
The program represents an investment in both NYC’s future leaders and the communities they serve, with the goal of increasing knowledge, transparency, and participation in local elections.
Learn more about the program and meet the Fellows and participating CBOs in the press release.
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