Student Profile: Sief Salameh, MPP Class of 2023

“There’s a widespread misperception,” said Sief Salameh, “that if you identify with a marginalized identity, such as being working class, a person of color, or immigrant, that you don’t work hard enough. That you don’t have enough passion or drive to be considered a true American. Dispelling that misperception motivates me. I want to ensure that every person has access to the political, social, and economic sectors that exist in the U.S.”

Born in Amman, Jordan, Salameh immigrated with his parents to the United States when he was four. “Coming from a generation of Palestinian refugees, it is important to me that I represent my family’s struggle and history. The America I grew up in was characterized by Islamophobia and hostility towards Arab Americans—with words like “terrorists” constantly being utilized to vilify my community. However, that form of “othering” only pushed me into public service, where I could challenge these stereotypes and create spaces that uplift everyone. It’s crucial that the next generation does not experience hardships associated with governmental or societal failure,” said Salameh.

Salameh first began pursuing these goals while an undergraduate at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC). During his first year, he was the lead intern for NextGenVest (now MoneyMentor), leading financial literacy and college readiness workshops for high school students in Chicago Public Schools. His second year, he volunteered as an outreach assistant at the Arab American Cultural Center (ARABAMCC). There, he created an Excel tool that targeted and mapped outreach strategies to attract students and faculty for the center. And in his third and fourth year, he served as the community outreach and engagement coordinator for ARABAMCC. Salameh was also active on the UIC campus, creating civic engagement programming and campus events discussing mental health, CVE surveillance programs, international conflicts, and the representation of Muslims and Arab Americans in Hollywood.

After graduating Magna Cum Laude in May 2020 with a degree in public policy, Salameh began working for Arab American Family Services and currently is an Islamic Scholarship Fund congressional intern for Congresswoman Marie Newman. He also volunteers his time with Students for Justice in Palestine and the US Palestinian Community Network.

“As a minority and disenfranchised individual from an underrepresented community, I realize I cannot be silent when I see or witness injustice occurring, and that motivates me to advocate for reform for folks who continue to face discrimination,” said Salameh.

Public policy, Salameh said, is central to this reform. “Whether it’s affordable housing, public education, healthcare or immigration, everything in our daily lives revolves around policy.”

Harris, Salameh said, provided the ideal setting for his exploration of policy. “In addition to the equitable, inclusive, and welcoming environment I’ve already experienced at Harris, the reputation of the quantitative analysis curriculum, as well as Policy Labs that do research in and for Chicago’s varying neighborhoods, was the type of setting I found groundbreaking.”

When Salameh begins his Master of Public Policy program in the fall, he also hopes to participate in the Minorities in Public Policy student group, while also pursuing student work. “As an undergraduate, when I saw a TA that looked like me, or spoke like me, I felt more comfortable engaging in that space—and I hope to do the same for others.”

Eventually, Salameh wants to run for congressional or state office and focus on community-based economics. “It’s powerful when our elected representatives are able to dismantle the political status quo by grounding themselves in equity, while equipping their decision-making processes with data—and that’s what I plan to do to improve lives.”