Monisha Gunaskera (CC'26), a Human Rights major, has been selected to participate in the New York City Urban Fellows Program. This program is a nine-month fellowship in which the fellow works at the mayoral office and city agencies and explores current urban issues affecting public policy. In addition to gaining field experience in New York City, the fellows travel to Washington, D.C., and Albany, where they can meet with policymakers and advocate for their city.
“Columbia’s Human Rights department has supported me in all my academic and professional endeavors—from providing funding for unpaid internships to pairing me with an amazing mentor through the Undergraduate Alumni Mentorship program. I’m eternally grateful to have been a part of a department that truly cares for its students and to have studied a subject that is so incredibly relevant today.”-Monisha Gunaskera
Monisha Gunasekera, CC'26, studies in Human Rights with a concentration in Public Health. On campus, she has served as a Student Conduct Navigator for the Dean’s Discipline process with the Center for Student Success and Intervention, a Peer Educator for Sexual Violence Response at Columbia Health, and a Coordinator for the One-to-One Tutoring program at Columbia Community Impact. She has also held research assistant positions in the Energy Equity, Housing and Health (E2H2) Program at the Mailman School of Public Health and the Sauti Mashinani Lab at the Columbia School of Social Work. As an NYC Urban Fellow, Monisha looks forward to gaining hands-on experience in local government and public policy prior to applying to law school. She is excited to learn from New York City leaders about city-level initiatives, work on city-level projects, and gain insight into what a long-term career in the public service sector looks like.
