Monica Cerezuella
OWIG Member of the Month
Hometown: North Canton, OH
Place of Work: COTA, Central Ohio Transit Authority
Tenure at Current Place of Work: 5 months
OWIG Involvement: member for 4 years
Monica’s nominator described her as a longtime role model of hers who is “already killing it” in her semi-new role at COTA. Also lauded for her strong advocacy on behalf of the Latino community, Monica was described as a “strong and proud” Latina who works to build up all women.
Despite the fact that she is still relatively early on in her career, Monica has already experienced government from a variety of angles. From working in the Statehouse in Senate minority leadership offices to jumping to the other side of the coin to do advocacy work with the Women’s Fund, Monica has now found herself at the local level working on the critical issues surrounding public transit. She feels at home at COTA, noting that mobility and transportation play a key role in many of the public policy issues facing our state. “Whether it is workforce development or access to childcare or healthcare, people have to be able to have the ability to move to where they need to go,” she says. She has found a passion in this critical service, and notes that the many forward-thinking initiatives COTA is undertaking - like microtransit and electric fleets - makes it an exciting time to work at the organization.
Monica wasn’t always planning on having a locally-oriented career in public policy though. Post-college, she had been planning to make the typical commute east to DC until a professor encouraged her to consider state and local government. “I soon realized that by working on state and local policies, you have the ability to truly make an impact on people's lives,” Monica says. “I can proudly say that I am happy that I returned back to Ohio to make Columbus my home.” (We are too, as we also might have easily lost her to the state up north where she unfortunately went to college!)
Although Monica has shifted slightly away from intense political work since she left the Statehouse, she still remains heavily involved in the political arena though leadership roles outside the office. She is on the Board of the New Leaders Council Columbus Chapter, which provides leadership development training for young progressives, and is the Chair of the Franklin County Adelante Democrats, a political organization that seeks to give voice to and advance the interests of the democratic Latino community in the area. Her work with Adelante truly aligns with her goal of always uplifting women in professional settings, especially those who have traditionally been left out of the conversation. She finds a lot of value in being able to encourage what is a fast-growing Columbus Latino community to become more involved in politics, and support candidates who understand their issues.
Although it sounds like she does it all, Monica works hard to ensure she’s not falling into the easy pattern many women find themselves in of saying “yes” too often. In her words: “As women, we have the tendency to feel like we need to be everything to everyone. Be intentional with your time. It’s okay to say ‘no.’ In fact, when you do, you’re saying ‘yes’ to something else.”