WOC Advocacy Council Member

Afsana Alam is a PhD student in Public Policy at UMass Boston’s McCormack Graduate School, where her work focuses on labor equity, the care economy, and the structural undervaluation of caregiving work. Her research is grounded in a deep commitment to justice for women, frontline workers, and marginalized communities, particularly within the long-term care sector.

Beyond the classroom, Afsana bridges scholarship and practice. She has worked at the Massachusetts State House and leads the “Listening to Heal” initiative, a restorative community space created to support and empower women students of color through mentorship, dialogue, and collective care. As a 2026 ASPA Founders’ Fellow, she continues to explore how research, policy, and community engagement can come together to create meaningful and lasting change.