UNC MPA Student Profile: Stephanie Watkins-Cruz '18

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Stephanie Watkins-Cruz grew up in southeast Charlotte where, she said, “There were families and people of every shade, shape, and size. However, it looks much different now.” Observing these changes and how they impacted people drew her interest in community work early on.

Then in 2012, her family was evicted from their home of nine years for the first time, and in 2016 for the second. They have been living in a hotel since. Watching her hometown change drastically and living through her family’s experiences with housing insecurity sparked Stephanie’s passion for issues of affordable housing and motivated her to pursue a career in public service.

“Housing is more than a roof and four walls,” she said. “It involves your surroundings, the health of your environment, and what you have and don’t have access to. At home is where your identity takes root.”

As an undergraduate at UNC Asheville, Watkins-Cruz found a like-minded community of activists—and her voice. She was involved in campus life as a student orientation leader, president of a student organization, and as a programming supervisor. During her tenure as an MPA student, she has worked as a housing intern in Orange County as well as a collaborative home repair and modification coordinator at the Chatham County Council on Aging. Watkins-Cruz also serves as a member of the board of directors for America’s Promise Alliance, a collaboration between hundreds of national nonprofits, businesses, communities, educators, and citizens dedicated to creating the conditions for success for young people. These experiences have shaped her perspective of the program and brought the MPA classroom curriculum to life.

Watkins-Cruz has been a freelance blogger for Asheville Grit and has published several pieces on Huffington Post. She commented, “I have really gotten into writing pieces about the intersection between housing and education.” She observes that there have been silos between housing and other social policy issues and is determined to be a leader who can help tear down those silos and connect people to the various and sometimes complex resources they need.

She chose Carolina MPA and UNC because of “the enormous sense of community and UNC’s unique role in improving North Carolina.” She is the recipient of a Weiss Urban Livability Fellowship, a Nannette V. Mengel Scholarship, and the Gene Rainey Outstanding Service Award.

Watkins-Cruz said her most rewarding MPA experience has been a combination of her professional work experience at the Orange County Department of Housing, Human Rights, and Community Development and her current work with the Chatham County Council on Aging.

“Public service is a great way to extend the reach of those fighting for their communities, homes, and livelihood,” she said.

This profile was written by Dylan Russell '17 and originally appeared in the summer 2017 issue of IMPACT. To view previous issues of IMPACT, visit the UNC MPA website.