The Center for Social Innovation is pleased to welcome Marlenee Blas as its new Associate Director. Marlenee brings a wealth of experience from her prior roles as a counselor in the UC Riverside Career Center, where she led the university’s work study engagement with employers both on and off campus. She helped found the Butterfly Project, which provides internship experiences and professional development to undocumented students, as well as UCR Career Closet, which provides professional attire to students trying to gain a foothold in the job market. In 2015, Marlenee completed a Fulbright Fellowship in Brazil, where she studied affirmative action policies, affordability and access to higher education. Raised in the Inland Empire, Marlenee is eager to build strong, thriving partnerships in the region and serves as an elected Board member of the Greater Riverside Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. Marlenee received her B.A. in Global Studies from the University of California Santa Barbara and her M.Ed. in Higher Education and Student Affairs from the University of Vermont.