Yezenia Sandoval is originally from the Northwest side of Chicago and joined Urban Alliance as a High School Internship Program Lead in August 2021. Prior to joining Urban Alliance, Yezenia worked for the University of Michigan’s Center for Educational Design, Evaluation, and Research (CEDER) as a Program Associate on the pilot of a youth sustainability fellowship, aimed at providing high school students in Midland, Michigan exposure to academic and professional opportunities to become sustainability leaders within their communities. At Michigan, Yezenia was also involved in several organizations aimed at providing academic support and professional development to
students from diverse backgrounds, including the Comprehensive Studies Program (CSP) as a Peer Academic Coach and Assisting Latinos to Maximize Achievement (ALMA) as a Coordinator.

Yezenia holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and History and a master’s degree in Educational Leadership and Policy from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor. Yezenia is particularly interested in leveraging community engagement strategies to increase access to higher education for underrepresented communities and improve student outcomes.