City Council member Mario Benavente was selected on May 16 to participate in Hunt Institute’s 2023 cohort of the State Policy Fellows program.

The program aims to provide a bipartisan group of future education policymakers and aspiring state and local elected officials in North Carolina with the resources, space, and expertise needed to develop thoughtful positions on a variety of education policy issues. To do so, The Institute has gathered leaders from across the state including county commissioners, school board members, mayors, city councilors, and other community leaders.

“The Hunt State Policy Fellows program provides local policymakers and community leaders with an introduction to current policy challenges and opportunities across the education continuum,” said Dr. Javaid Siddiqi, CEO & President of The Hunt Institute in a press release. “I’m looking forward to meeting our newest cohort and am excited to follow their journeys as policymakers in the years to come.”

Benavente is one of 22 individuals that will meet for three sessions between May through September, each focusing on a different piece of the education pipeline – early childhood, K-12 and higher education. Each meeting will offer Fellows the opportunity to learn, engage in constructive dialogue, and build relationships with one another and with policy experts across the state. In doing so, Fellows will grow their capacity to advocate for North Carolina’s students.

“I want to understand what the leading research is saying — there’s a lot of myths and rumors about what’s trending in education,” said Benavente in a press release. “Being able to talk with folks that are the experts and getting the insight that they’re sharing, arms me with the information to get out into my community and let folks know what I’ve learned.”