Shajaya Martinez joined Health & Medicine in January 2022 – joining the Chicago Area Schweitzer Fellowship team as it wraps up its 25th anniversary and prepares to welcome a new class of Fellows. Providing administrative support and coordinating aspects of the Schweitzer Fellowship and Fellows for Life Program, Shajaya works closely with Program Director Maya Bauer to ensure a smooth experience for the graduate students of the program.

A graduate student herself, Shajaya is currently pursuing her Masters in Public Policy at the University of Chicago, acquiring analytical, financial, and quantitative skills that she plans to use throughout her career. Shajaya earned her bachelor of arts in sociology and gender studies at DePauw University. 

Shajaya is passionate about informing data-driven policies and is self-described as mission-driven, expressing that “the mission of Health & Medicine, as well the organizations’ understanding of social and historical structures that perpetuate systemic violence in communities” drew her to the organization. Prior to joining Health & Medicine, Shajaya worked in crisis intervention and legal advocacy with survivors of domestic violence. 

In her free time, Shajaya spends her time at the gym pursuing her next PR in the weight room. “I also enjoy reading a good book and spending time with my tribe,” she says. Welcome to the Health & Medicine and Schweitzer teams, Shajaya!