Joyce Hwang

Joyce Hwang supports ESG’s work on pathways and career readiness. Previously, she worked for several years at New America and the Center on Education and Labor, where she supported the Partnership to Advance Youth Apprenticeship (PAYA) initiative since its launch. In this role, she managed a network of youth apprenticeship practitioners and contributed to research related to best practices in youth apprenticeship.

In graduate school, she served as a graduate student researcher at the Berkeley Institute for Young Americans, where she conducted research on California’s school district parcel taxes. She has also served in research and consulting roles for the San Francisco Parent Coalition, the International Transport Workers’ Federation, American Institutes for Research, and First 5 California while in graduate school.

Joyce holds a B.S. in Child Development and Spanish from Vanderbilt University, as well as a Master of Public Policy (MPP) from UC Berkeley’s Goldman School of Public Policy.

Why are you in this work?

I would not be here if not for a scholarship that funded my first professional internship in education policy, which opened doors for me and remains the single most formative experience in shaping my career path. I had always wished that those in the community from which I come had access to similar opportunities. Since I grew up witnessing these disparities in education quality and access, I have committed myself to working towards educational equity for students of color, low-income students, and immigrant students all over the country.

Why ESG?

Having worked on the other side as a partner of ESG on another project, I knew that ESG was a growing leader in the field that has proven to produce high-quality work while centering equity. Moreover, I was excited to work with a team filled with committed and capable people from whom I can learn and grow.