MVCC alumna Taryn Rackmyer '19 has been named the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Fellow in the inaugural class of SUNY’s Student Advocate Fellowship Program, part of a student-centric commitment to policy making and leadership launched this spring by SUNY Chancellor James Malatras.

Rackmyer joins three other recent SUNY graduates as part of the executive leadership team to provide an invaluable student perspective and drive policy initiatives to address pressing issues across SUNY’s 64 campuses, including affordability, access, academic quality and success, racial and social justice, mental health services, resources for students with disabilities, and food insecurity. 

“Working for SUNY, an institution that touches the lives of millions of New Yorkers each year, has given me a unique platform to advance the social justice causes I care most about,” Rackmyer said. “The opportunities I have been granted these first three months have not only enhanced my understanding of higher education policy, but have opened my eyes to the vast potential SUNY has to build a more equitable and inclusive future for all of New York State.”

Rackmyer earned two degrees from MVCC — Public Policy in December 2018 and Accounting in May 2019. While she was a student at MVCC, Rackmyer was deeply involved in campus life. She was a peer tutor in the Learning Commons and a member of Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, Student Leadership Academy, Student Government, and other student organizations. She also was coordinator of Campus Engagement for SUNY Student Assembly and student liaison to the Faculty Council of Community Colleges. She won many awards for her achievements, including the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence in 2019.

Rackmyer went on to earn her bachelor’s degree in Public Policy & Management from the University at Albany in December 2020, and is expected to graduate with her master’s degree from UAlbany’s Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy in December 2021. Prior to this fellowship, Rackmyer was a graduate assistant to the Secretary of the SUNY Board of Trustees and a student assistant in Government Relations and Marketing.