Attendance at Cities Striving for Peace event goes beyond mentee's grandest expectations

By Ashlie Benson
Graduate School mentee

In addition to working with MUAA Mentor Program mentor Jason Rae, Arts ’09 and partner at Nation Consulting in Milwaukee, I received a special invitation from another mentor from Maura Farrell, Arts ’92 and managing director at Kivvit in Chicago. When she emailed me with an opportunity to attend a client event that she thought I would be interested in, I wasn’t thinking grand enough. In my head, I would go to an intimate event and see Maura serving in her role.

When I saw a massive line and buses lined up at the entrance, I realized I was not thinking big enough. CRED, a Kivvit client, hosted Cities Striving for Peace that centered on a panel of five former mayors of major cities to discuss lowering gun violence during their tenure. It turns out this event garnered attention across the country, and I was able to be in the filled room taking vigorous notes.

From Rahm Emanuel to Arne Duncan, the facilitators of this event were names I've followed over the years. On the panel, former mayors from Philadelphia, Minneapolis, Los Angeles, New Orleans and Washington, D.C., spoke their truths and strategies to more equitable cities, including reducing gun violence and violent crimes in their cities. I not only learned about other cities, but terminology, policies and strategies that can support making cities safer and more robust. For instance, in Philadelphia, to provide more job opportunities for those with criminal records, they have three policy approaches for the public and private sector. First, for the private sector, they provide a $10,000 tax credit per year for three years for every employee they hire full-time who has a criminal record.

A criticism that came to mind was, “what happens to the employee after three years?” Thankfully, Mayor Michael Nutter read my mind and explained other partnerships and structures to support the company to continue employment and continued protection for employee. Additionally, the city is on the forefront of ‘ban the box’ initiatives and all non-sensitive public jobs. I was impressed with this approach because unemployment after incarceration – or low-wage employment – makes it more difficult for people to rebuild their livelihood and eliminating the box boosts opportunity.

After the event, Maura and I had lunch to discuss the event, goals and next steps. I learned exactly what Kivvit did to support the execution of the event, which opened my eyes to her work in a new way. One of the reasons I was thinking so small at first, I think, is due to resources. My nonprofit brain constantly thinks about budget and staying under an already small amount to put on any event. Kivvit has resources! It was interesting to break down exactly what was possible with a team and budget that could execute to scale.

I’ve been thinking a lot about what has most impact, and this event reached 1,500+ people and provided a platform for local community leaders and national leaders alike, while remaining accessible and free to the public. This experience and talking to Maura made me dream a little differently and provided a view of a pathway to getting into this space. Most of Maura’s colleagues have similar interests and backgrounds as me, and I for once didn’t think something like this was unobtainable. I want to continue building those relationships and learning more to see where I might ‘fit’ into this sector.

Due to her schedule, I was unable to go back to the office and shadow her, but we are hoping to schedule another time for me to visit and possibly meet her other colleagues. Since the event, I’ve had the opportunity to speak with one of the former mayors on the panel and talk to others who were in the audience. I’m thankful for this opportunity, and I’m glad Maura is an active Marquette alumna!

2018-19 MUAA Mentor Program Resource Guide