Heather Ducharme ‘16 (UWiL 2015)

Alliance for Downtown New York

August 3, 2020

By Irina Costache

Heather Ducharme '16 (Legal Studies & Political Science) joined UWiL during her junior year at UMass, during a time where she still didn’t know what she wanted to do for her career long term. She describes UWiL as being the “first time [she was] exposed to a vast amount of possibilities in public service and leadership.” 

For Heather, attending UWiL’s workshop weekend was the “biggest game changer,” where she we was able to talk to many women in public service and understand what she wanted to do in her career. 

When reflecting on her time at UWiL, Heather said that she appreciated having a like minded community of peers who motivated her, even noting that she still remains connected with some of her classmates and is active on UWiL’s social media pages. She also commended UWiL’s mentorship program because it gave her someone to ask questions to, bounce ideas off of, and rely on when trying to figure out next steps in her career.

Today, Heather is the Director of Storefront Business Engagement at Alliance for Downtown New York. She is also a New York County Committee Member, part of her local neighborhood club, and a judicial delegate for the state of New York. Prior to these positions, Heather worked as a full-time mayoral aide to Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse and as an intern in Senator Elizabeth Warren’s office. She says she was able to connect with both opportunities through UWiL.

Heather encourages new UWiL students to get out of their comfort zones and “Be open to everything, do as much as you can. I don’t think any experience in the program is wasted.”