When Connie Jordan first stepped into her role as Director of WIOA's Train and Earn Program and Equal Opportunity Liaison at Henry Street Settlement, she was driven by a passion for helping young people succeed and an enthusiasm for tackling the challenges of nonprofit leadership.

The Edith and Carl Marks Jewish Community House of Bensonhurst (Marks JCH), a Brooklyn-based community organization serving immigrants and young adults, sought fresh ways to strengthen its leadership capacity and better support program staff in delivering workforce services.

As a Youth & Young Adult Workforce Director at Marks JCH, Farangiza Razakova brought more than 15 years of nonprofit leadership experience, first in her home country of Uzbekistan and now in New York City. When she joined WPTI’s three-month Elevate training program, she was eager to explore how leadership approaches differ across cultures, and to adapt her management style to the U.S. workforce development context.