ELGL and the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) created the PAFR Fellowship Program to connect graduate students with local governments looking to create a Popular Annual Financial Report (PAFR) for submission to the GFOA award program. The fellows have all been finalized and ELGL and GFOA are excited to announce everyone over the next few weeks.
This is our third spotlight with five of our fellows. Feel free to reach out and give them a warm welcome! We are excited to see the work they do over the next few months.
John Andreu Sutterby
- School: UNC-Chapel Hill
- Program: Master of Public Administration
- Local Government Match: City of Granbury, TX and City of Brookfield, WI
Most Creative Thing I’ve Done Recently: I designed a fictional continent from scratch for my friends and I to play in a Dungeons and Dragons campaign. Building this world helped with building a new style of community with my friends in the aftermath of COVID-19.
Cheyanne A. Pincsak
School: Northern Illinois University- Program: Master of Public Administration
- Local Government Match: City of Midland, MN
Most Creative Thing I’ve Done Recently: To take advantage of my creative nature after a recent move, I began to craft two things: the first being a feasible budget incorporating monthly rent, utility costs, necessities such as food and kitchen supplies, and what I like to call fun money; and the second being a makeshift hand towel hanger consisting of a Command Hook and a plastic ring from which the towel would dangle. Though not the prettiest appliance in the world of home décor, the towel hanger servers its purpose and saves the money that, according to my budget, must be left for other, more essential expenditures. Thus far, both of my creations have been helpful and effective, making life in my new home much more efficient.
Mika Ansley
- Connect: LinkedIn
- School: Carnegie Mellon University
- Program: MS Public Policy Management
- Local Government Match: City of Independence, OR
Most Creative Thing I’ve Done Recently: Virtual Orientation for PPIA students. 30 students divided into 6 houses composed of 5 roommates to get acquainted with one another. This helps build community since everything is virtual and they cant meet face to face.
Breanna Higgins
- Connect: LinkedIn
- School: Texas State University
- Program: Master of Public Administration
- Local Government Match: City of Pearland, TX
Most Creative Thing I’ve Done Recently: Create new artwork for my bedroom. I used a combination of traditionally painting and using digital artwork. This project first began by repainting a skateboard I own. I cannot skateboard but happened to have an old one just sitting in my garage. It originally had a black and red skull on it which does not fit my desired aesthetic, but I was able to give it a 70s inspired new look. This sparked me to then paint three abstract canvases, using a combination of blues, yellows and pinks. However, when I hung them up, they were still missing some factors. I took to photoshop and made two additional pieces. These pieces also used the same color scheme but combined my love for music and highlighted lyrics that I truly love.
Joshua Fike
- Connect: LinkedIn
- School: The Evergreen State College
- Program: Master of Public Administration
- Local Government Match: City of Peachtree Corners, GA and West Linn Wilsonville School District
Most Creative Thing I’ve Done Recently:In February, I became the Chair of the Washington Stonewall Democrats, the LGBTQ+ caucus of the Washington Democrats. The organization was struggling for a few years, and I built the website from scratch, with no budget. Although we lack professional photography and graphics, it turned out well. I had to have the website up and running because we had a meeting in June and we were anticipating attracting new members. We also completed an endorsement process where I created a guide for our members to help them decide how to vote. We had approx 80 people who applied for endorsements, so there was a lot of information to sift through.