马克。帕尔默 ’20 was speechless when he received a call from President Dennis Murray asking him to serve as Marist’s Presidential Fellow.

The Los Angeles native was quarantining at home with his family when the offer came. “我怎么能拒绝这么好的机会呢? Very few people have held this position and I knew I would have big shoes to fill, but the challenges currently facing higher education with COVID-19 drew me to the opportunity.”

帕尔默是bet亚洲365欢迎投注的第四位总统研究员. He follows Tina Opie, Edward Summers ‘04/’06M, and Freddimir Garcia ‘09/’14MBA. Opie is an Associate Professor at Babson College; Summers is the founder and CEO of the nonprofit The Thinkubator; and Garcia is the Regional Director of Diversity, 包容, and Community Engagement for Westchester Medical Center Health Network. “It is an honor to be a Presidential Fellow,帕尔默说。. “My predecessors have gone on to great success and I hope to continue that trend.”

领导

Palmer started his new job in early July and he’s deeply impressed with his colleagues in Greystone. “总统办公室总是很忙. There are not a lot of moments to pause; it’s a very fast pace here,” he noted. “Anything that arrives in the Office of the President is taken seriously. The level of detail the staff deals with is incredible. I appreciate having colleagues who are so detail-oriented.”

这种钦佩是双向的. “马克是我荣誉研讨班的学生, and I was immediately impressed with his intellect and leadership qualities,默里校长说。. 出于这个原因, I thought he’d be a great fit for the Presidential Fellow program, which I started in the Office of the President almost two decades ago. This program allows talented young professionals of color to serve on Marist’s Cabinet and learn about higher education administration and policy-making at the highest levels. I’m very proud that previous Presidential Fellows have gone on to senior leadership roles at Marist and other organizations, 我相信马克也不例外.”

为 Palmer, President Murray’s leadership seminar was a high point of his time at Marist. “In the seminar, we reviewed case briefs and discussed types of leadership. Students in the class were exploring leadership in different ways—both in the Marist community and in the Poughkeepsie community,帕尔默说。. “为 me, now it’s about practicing some of those principles in my new role here at Marist. I feel like I have a strong grasp of President Murray’s perspective on leadership.”

第一代大学生

Palmer credits his mother for instilling ambition in him from an early age. 当时他还是Verbum Dei高中的学生, Palmer was a member of Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti’s Youth Council. 他知道大学也是他人生计划的一部分. “在我父亲去世之前, one of his last words to me was to ‘pursue a college degree and be more successful than I was.’ My mom made sure I stayed the course and she is extremely proud that I have a BA, and she is looking forward to me earning a Master’s degree.”

“作为一名来自南洛杉矶的非洲裔美国男性, I understood the importance of a college degree at a young age,帕尔默说。. “Being a first generation college graduate is part of re-setting my family’s trajectory,他解释道.

As a student, Palmer took advantage of all Marist had to offer. 他在课外很活跃, serving as the Vice President of the Marist Democrats and as an advisory board member for the 多元文化事务中心, and also being involved with both the Student Government Association and the Greek Council. He also—somehow—found time to be a member of the Zeta Psi fraternity.

大四前的那个夏天, Palmer was selected for the College’s prestigious Tarver Internship Program. Tarver Interns live on campus for the summer but work with regional nonprofit organizations. Palmer interned with Marist’s Upward Bound Program, which serves low-income high school students.

这段经历对他来说意义重大. “I enjoyed working with Upward Bound Program students because I faced some of the challenges they were going through. Those students wanted to succeed and they taught me a lot throughout the summer program,他解释道. 以实习生的身份, 帕尔默指导学生, 专注于培养领导技能, 并邀请了演讲嘉宾.

Palmer giving a presentation about his Tarver Internship experience in 2019.

解决问题的人

Graduating with a degree in political science (with a minor in criminal justice), 帕尔默有着远大的抱负. “I’d like to be involved in politics and education policy. 最终，我想竞选公职. I feel it’s my calling to help others and to help people who do not have a voice in society. One of the ways to effect change is to participate politically—civic engagement is critically important.”

Palmer recalled one of his Marist professors saying that political science majors enjoy problem-solving and he sees that as a key element of his new position. “I know I’ll be able to be a problem solver in my role as Presidential Fellow,” he said. “Every day at Marist people are working to solve problems. 在2019冠状病毒病期间，bet亚洲365欢迎投注重新开放, I have the opportunity to grow and learn under a stellar President and staff.”