Charity Porotesano
Deputy Director of Public Policy and Analysis
As a first generation college graduate in her family, Charity deeply understands the connection between education and access to better opportunities. Her personal experience growing up in American Samoa inspired her to study political science and education as a policy system with the goal to improve access to opportunity in under-resourced areas whether they were insular, rural, or urban.
Charity graduated with a Master of Arts in Educational Leadership, Politics, and Advocacy from New York University and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Grinnell College as a Truman Scholar. She has worked as an educator, having taught at Matafao Elementary School in American Samoa and the New York Public Library's out-of-school program Literacy Leaders. Charity also served as a policy specialist for the National Marine Sanctuary of American Samoa and a Truman-Albright Fellow at the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy.
Charity joined Seeding Success in 2020, eager to serve the city of Memphis through research and public policy focused on strengthening K-12 education. She enjoys meeting with community partners to learn about education issues and discuss solutions. Charity has grown to appreciate the strong sense of community that she says can be felt throughout Memphis. In her spare time, she enjoys exploring the city and all its greenery with her partner. Charity is a proud cat mom of a chonky kitty named Pitty Pat, whom she adopted locally.