"It's really exciting to create something that brings people together because we're thinking about the long-term public benefit of what things are going to be like in 10 to 25 years"
Elizabeth Delgado Garcia
Why was the San Fernando Valley boxed in by Los Angeles freeways, while other communities were not? And why did some schools in the city have different academic and extracurricular programs?
Questions like these led Elizabeth Delgado Garcia (MPP/MUP ‘06) to attend the Public Policy International Affairs (PPIA) Junior Summer Institute, "a public policy boot camp" for rising seniors that changed her perspective on the root causes of social problems.
After earning her undergraduate degree at UCLA, Delgado Garcia came to the University of Michigan to pursue dual master's degrees in urban planning and public policy. She wanted to understand better why her hometown was organized and governed differently from its neighboring communities. "Pursuing both degrees was a natural fit," she said, as it gave her a holistic understanding of community and economic development.
At the Ford School, Delgado Garcia studied federal housing policy but discovered her passion was at the local level. "While building my toolbox, I made sure my skills were universal and could be used in different settings," she said. She took her toolbox back to California after graduation, where she has worked with local governments ever since.
For Delgado Garcia, her work has come full circle. She is now the economic development project manager for the City of Culver City, a town of 40,000 residents with over 4,000 small businesses—just 20 minutes from her hometown. While her role is often data-centric, she finds the most fulfilling part of her job is getting to know the owners of "mom and pop" businesses and providing them with the resources they need to flourish.
Getting to know these business owners reminds her of her own mother, an entrepreneur who worked multiple jobs to support their family. "This is their livelihood and how they provide for their families," she said. "For my family, it meant helping me get to graduate school and then driving across the country to Michigan so I could attend the Ford School."
Her personal story motivates her advocacy for small businesses. "It is important for us to put a face and a narrative to the mom and pop businesses that make cities thrive," Delgado Garcia said.
One recent highlight has been her role as construction manager for the Culver Steps, an urban hub that combines commerce and culture at the heart of Culver City. "It was incredibly fulfilling to watch the project go from the drawing board to a community building center, she said. Now, Culver City and other local organizations host events that bring people together and support small businesses.
"It's really exciting to create something that brings people together because we're thinking about the long-term public benefit of what things are going to be like in 10 to 25 years," said Delgado Garcia.