Tell us about your current role — what do you do, who do you serve, and what does a typical day look like? I serve on the Las Cruces City Council for District 4. I serve the residents of Las Cruces, working with them to solve and address the issues facing our community. I often meet with constituents and community organizations about programming and possible solutions to challenges. Some of my responsibilities include fighting for budget priorities, approving a yearly city wide budget, serving on several boards, like the Utilities Board and the South Central Solid Waste Authority, and identifying macro interventions to city wide problems.

What have you been working on lately that you're proud of or excited about? We are in the middle of budget season, I have been working to ensure our new gross receipts taxes (GRT) are invested in the areas of our city that need the most support, like street and park maintenance, our library, fire stations, municipal court and other issues relating to failing infrastructure. I am also working to secure funding that can lead to the creation of a gun violence diversion program for justice involved youth. I believe city budgets are moral documents that should reflect the values and priorities of our community.

How did your time in the NMSU Social Work program shape the practitioner you are today? It allowed me to find a career in social justice where I could both work directly with people and also work to change and disrupt systems that harm people.

What's one lesson from your career you wish you'd known as a student? It took me far too long to finally see my empathy is a strength and not a weakness and understanding that feeling deeply and feeling a lot are what will help me show up powerfully for my community, especially in the toughest of times.

Is there anything else you'd like fellow alumni or current students to know — about your work, your journey, or the field? I hope future social workers understand how deeply important it is for them to practice macro social work no matter where they end up. Our profession is inherently political and our voices can serve as ambassadors for people in pain, suffering in silence at the hands of systems that should be working for them, not against them. Our profession is powerful and we have a responsibility to show up wherever injustice exists.