City of Newport News Welcomes Bloomberg Harvard City Hall Fellow Michelle Cruz

Newport News, VA - The City of Newport News is proud to welcome Michelle Cruz, one of fifteen recent Harvard University graduates selected for the prestigious Bloomberg Harvard City Hall Fellowship. Through this two-year, fully funded program, Cruz will work alongside City Manager Alan K. Archer and the City's leadership team to strengthen local government capacity and support the City's ongoing efforts to revitalize downtown and enhance the quality of life for residents.

Cruz, a policy strategist, arts and veterans' advocate, and award-winning jazz vocalist, blends creativity with civic impact. At the Harvard Kennedy School, she served as co-chair of the Arts & Culture Policy Design Council, co-director of content and strategy for the Black Policy Conference. She was selected for the Harvard to Oval Office program, which prepares women for leadership in public service.

Prior to Harvard, Cruz helped implement the PACT Act, the largest expansion of veterans' health care and benefits in U.S. history, and served as Director of Community Engagement at Trinity Repertory Company in Providence, Rhode Island, where she helped bring thousands of visitors to the city's downtown through innovative programming.

In Newport News, Cruz will help further develop and refine a pathway and actionable strategy to support downtown revitalization in close partnership with public, private, and community stakeholders.

"Michelle's selection as a Bloomberg Harvard City Hall Fellow is a tremendous opportunity for the City of Newport News," said City Manager Alan K. Archer. "Her diverse background and innovative approach will help us strengthen partnerships, attract investment, and build upon our ongoing efforts to create a vibrant, thriving downtown for residents and visitors alike."

Cruz shared her enthusiasm for joining the city: "I'm honored to serve the City of Newport News-a community with a rich history of shipbuilding and the birthplace of my music idol, Ella Fitzgerald. I'm eager to contribute to the city's economic development and creative revitalization."

Now in its fourth year, the Bloomberg Harvard City Hall Fellowship places emerging leaders in selected city halls across the United States to help advance mayoral priorities and address pressing municipal challenges. Fellows bring expertise in fields such as public health, education, urban planning, policy development, and public administration-applying data-driven decision-making, human-centered design, and cross-sector collaboration to drive meaningful community outcomes.

The Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative-a program of the Bloomberg Center for Cities at Harvard University-is a collaboration between Harvard Kennedy School, Harvard Business School, and Bloomberg Philanthropies. The Initiative equips mayors and senior city officials with the leadership and management skills to tackle complex challenges and improve residents' lives.

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