Ayesha Islam

Ayesha Islam is a Master in Public Policy candidate at the Harvard Kennedy School, currently working as a Research Fellow at the Ash Center focusing on AAPI affairs and policy initiatives. She is a Bangladeshi-American Muslim researcher, writer, and former public servant from Queens, New York. Ayesha previously worked for the Urban Institute, an economic and social policy research organization dedicated to developing evidence-based insights that improve people’s lives and strengthen communities. Her projects at Urban focused on economic mobility, racial equity, workforce development, and immigration. She was also an NYC Urban Fellow for the New York City Department of Small Business Services, where she supported the creation of programs to reduce racial disparities in economic opportunity. Ayesha graduated with a BA in political science from Bryn Mawr College.