Ivelisse Rodriguez is a Development Associate at More in Common, bringing experience across education, nonprofit work, and journalism. Her career began in civic engagement and volunteer management during her undergraduate years at Rollins College, where she earned a B.A. in English and Secondary Education. From there, she taught high school English before moving into nonprofit development and strategy work with a local nonprofit. Throughout her work, Ivelisse has valued building the capacity of organizations to serve their missions and communities, having built out communications infrastructure, managed databases, and secured funding. At More in Common, Ivelisse enjoys grant writing as a form of storytelling, one that translates research into the kind of narrative that drives funders to invest in impact. She is currently pursuing a Master of Public Administration at the University of Central Florida.
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Favorite MiC Finding:
A sense of local community belonging—the feeling of being socially connected, accepted, and valued within one’s local group or community—is also positively associated with interest in connection. People with a high sense of belonging are about 2.5 times more willing to connect (70 percent vs. 30 percent) than those with a low sense of belonging.
Source: The Connection Opportunity
Why: As someone who found her start in volunteer work and community engagement, this finding resonates with me, as it represents something I have observed firsthand: the need for stability before one can meaningfully engage in service or connection. Time is a resource we all have, but our capacity to give it differs greatly, depending on a variety of needs that must be first met. Connecting through service, and across difference, requires meeting people where they are. I find this quote compelling because it highlights that this relationship works both ways, belonging fostering connection, and connection, in turn, deepening belonging. That reciprocity is why I believe serviceisn't just something we offer others;it's how we build our own sense of belonging too.