Bridgette Blair

Why did you choose Wagner for graduate school?

I had been considering graduate school for quite a while, but I wasn't quite sure what to study. I had an ongoing interest in organizational leadership and management, and I had been working in nonprofits for several years. I also had thought about public policy degrees for a while. A friend encouraged me to check out NYU Wagner (she was a student). I applied to the Executive MPA program, was accepted, and the rest is history!

How did being in New York impact your professional journey?

I spent many years working in Washington, D.C., so just the move to New York City has changed my career path. Wagner helped me to navigate the NYC nonprofit and public sector, giving me the latest knowledge in the field (especially in performance measurement and financial management) and helping me to become a part of a wonderful new community of encouraging, empowering, and driven people at Wagner. 

From Day One, I felt like I was part of a strong community of students who all want to make the world a better place. I also felt like the professors really had a strong depth of knowledge about their subject areas, and they were interested in building the expertise of their students.

 

Describe your current job.

I am currently the Operations and Program Director at NYC Service, in the Office of the Mayor. I am responsible for the operations of two AmeriCorps programs administered by NYC Service: NYC Civic Corps and NYC VISTA. The job allows me to think strategically about program design and it allows me to dive into the details of program execution.