Expanded Kriegel Fellowship 2025-2026 Cohort Creates Tailored Professional Development for State and Local Government Chiefs of Staff, Senior Office Leaders
By Carla Sinclair, Senior Communications Associate
Launched this fall, 43 staffers from New York City and State governmental offices will meet with their peers and field experts biweekly to sharpen their knowledge, skills, and networks
To run smoothly, an elected official’s office has a multidisciplinary team of staffers working behind the scenes. They’re serving constituents, conducting outreach, drafting legislation, responding to reporters, and much more. Despite this range, these teams are usually small, with some teams as small as three or four.
CUNY ISLG’s Kriegel Fellowship for Public Service Leaders is a professional development resource designed to give staffers from New York City Council, State Assembly, State Senate, District Attorney, Borough President, and other governmental offices a space to hone their knowledge, skills, and network to thrive in their roles and effectively support their policymakers and constituencies.
Fellows meet biweekly online and in-person. In these sessions, they participate in policy discussions led by field experts, learn about the historical precedent and current context of New York’s legislative mechanisms, and discuss best practices for managing the unique dynamics of an elected official’s office. The Fellowship also provides a space to meet, talk, and collaborate for government staff who, while often working toward the same goals, may not have the chance to connect.
The 2025-2026 cohort will have two sections: one for chiefs of staff and one for senior staff (e.g., directors within offices).
Creating separate spaces for these cohorts creates a more tailored learning and networking experience for Fellows, who often have overlapping but different priorities and responsibilities in supporting their elected official.
Since its launch in 2019, the Kriegel Fellowship has grown from its initial focus on chiefs of staff to include deputy chiefs of staff, legislative and policy directors, and other senior office staff. Now, for the first time, the 2025-2026 cohort will have two sections: one for chiefs of staff and one for senior staff (e.g., directors within offices). Creating separate spaces for these cohorts creates a more tailored learning and networking experience for Fellows, who often have overlapping but different priorities and responsibilities in supporting their elected official.
This change comes as the Fellowship expands significantly. Increased interest has led to a 2025-2026 cohort of 43 Fellows serving both Democratic and Republican elected officials—double that of the 2024-2025 cohort. The cohort kicked off this fall and will meet into spring 2026.
“Working with these rising public service leaders is an honor. Each of the Fellows brings a unique perspective and distinct skills to the table.”
- Siobhán Carney, CUNY ISLG Policy Director.
“Working with these rising public service leaders is an honor. Each of the Fellows brings a unique perspective and distinct skills to the table,” said Siobhán Carney, CUNY ISLG Policy Director. “Together with our cadre of policy experts, they’re taking the nuts and bolts of governing to build solutions to the pressing issues facing their communities.”
Chief of Staff cohort
Alex Fraser, Chief of Staff to NYS Assembly Member Grace Lee: District 65
Arlean Gillin, Chief of Staff to NYC Council Member Chi Ossé: District 36
Diana LaMattina Abdella, Chief of Staff to NYS Assembly Member Bill Magnarelli: District 129
Erica Overton, Chief of Staff to NYS Assembly Member Linda B. Rosenthal: District 67
Esperanza Diaz, Chief of Staff to NYC Council Member Oswald Feliz: District 15
Jacob Sherretts, Chief of Staff to NYS Assembly Member Pamela Hunter: District 128
Jake Eisland, Chief of Staff to NYS Assembly Member Gabriella Romero: District 109
Juvanie Piquant, Chief of Staff to NYC Council Member Rita Joseph: District 40
Kayli McTague, Chief of Staff to NYS Senator Pat Fahy: District 46
Maria Villalobos, Chief of Staff to NYC Council Member Pierina Sanchez: District 14
Ramdat Singh, Chief of Staff to NYS Assembly Member Emerita Torres: District 85
Rebecca Castaneda, Chief of Staff & Legislative Director to NYS Assembly Member Jon D. Rivera: District 149
Sarra Hale-Stern, Chief of Staff to NYS State Senator Liz Krueger: District 28
Sayief Leshaw, Chief of Staff, NYC Council Member-Elect Justin Sanchez: District 17
Stef McGraw, Chief of Staff and Legislative Director to NYS Assembly Member Claire Valdez: District 37
Taylor Kilmer, Chief of Staff to NYS Assembly Member John Lemondes: District 126
Travis Nelson, Director of Outreach, US Rep. Laura Gillen: NY-04
Tyesha Allen, Chief of Staff to NYS Assembly Member Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn: District 42
Victoria Cafarelli, Chief of Staff to NYS Assembly Member Dana Levenberg: District 95
Victoria Doody, Deputy Chief of Staff & District Director, Office of New York State Senator Pete Harckham: District 40
Cohort 2: senior legislative leaders
Alexandrae Wint, Community Director, NY State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie: District 83
Anayeli Gomez-Brittain, Deputy Director of Intergovernmental Affairs, Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez
Ari Gershengorn, Legislative Director, NY State Assembly Member Alex Bores: District 73
Becky White, Senior Policy and Legislative Director, NY State Senator Andrew Gounardes: District 26
Ben Platt, Legislative Director, NY State Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal: District 47
Benjamin Ratner, Deputy Chief of Staff, NYC Council Member Pierina Sánchez: District 14
Brian Kepple, Legislative and Communications Director, NY State Assembly Member Phara Souffrant Forrest: District 57
Briana Nasti, Budget Director, NYC Council Member Frank Morano: District 51
Christina Bottego, Deputy Chief of Staff, NYC Council Member Alexa Aviles: District 38
Darla Mariduena, Legislative Director, NY State Senator Luis Sepulveda: District 32
Evelin Vazquez, Deputy Chief of Staff, NY State Assembly Member Catalina Cruz: District 39
Frank Julca, Deputy Director of Outreach, NYC Council-initiated Charter Revision Commission
Greer Mayhew, Deputy Chief of Staff, NYC Council Member Althea Stevens: District 16
Jalissa Quigley, Deputy Chief of Staff, Policy & Budget Director, NYC Council Member Shaun Abreu: District 7
Jamey Battle, Legislative Director & Press Secretary, NY State Assembly Member Steven Raga: District 30
Jamie Kazi, Legislative Director & Senior Advisor, NYS Assembly Member Catalina Cruz: District 39
Jeannine Agard, District Director, District Director, NYS Assembly Member Khaleel M. Anderson: District 31
Julian Martin, Deputy Chief of Staff, NYC Council Majority Whip Selvena Brooks-Powers: District 31
Lacey Tauber, Legislative Director, Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso
Liya Thachil, Executive Director, Asian Pacific American Task Force
Mayra Molina, Deputy Chief of Staff, NYC Council Democratic Nominee Justin Sanchez: District 17
River Alexander, Legislative Director, NYC Council Democratic Nominee Justin Sanchez: District 17
Stephanie Herrera, Deputy Chief of Staff, NYC Council Member, Deputy Speaker Diana Ayala: District 8
ABOUT THE KRIEGEL FELLOWSHIP FOR PUBLIC SERVICE LEADERS
The Kriegel Fellowship for Public Service Leaders is a leadership and professional development program, designed for chiefs of staff of city and state legislators serving the New York City area. Since the Fellowship launched in 2020, its membership has expanded to include legislative staffers with role-adjacent positions to chiefs of staff, such as deputy chiefs of staff, district directors, and budget directors. Now, the Fellowship aims to support these leaders to excel in their current positions, network with other chiefs of staff and experts, and grow confidently into the next generation of elected officials and public service leaders.
The Kriegel Fellowship honors the legacy of Jay L. Kriegel, who served as chief of staff to New York City’s Mayor John Lindsay and was dedicated to mentoring chiefs of staff, legislators, and other public service leaders. The program was developed based on research and interviews with New York City and State legislators and chiefs of staff to understand the demands of the chief of staff position and corresponding needs for leadership development, learning community, and other support. The program builds on CUNY ISLG's experience running the Lindsay Fellowship in Government Leadership and Practice for city and state legislators.