If you have questions about the Municipal Forum’s Annual Awards & ULF Fundraising Dinner, please contact the Chair of the Annual Dinner Committee
As you know, The Municipal Forum of New York’s Annual Awards and Urban Leadership Fellows Fundraising Dinner previously scheduled for Thursday, May 7, 2020 was cancelled due to COVID-19. The plans for the dinner included the presentation of The Forum’s 2020 Annual Awards and the presentation of the 2020 recipient of the Carey Gabay Education Fund Excellence Award. The purpose of the dinner was to raise funds to cover the cost of the summer Urban Leadership Fellows internship program and also the cost of the scholarships awarded to former ULF interns based upon academic achievement.
Despite the cancelation of the Annual Awards and Fundraising Dinner and while we will not have ULF Summer Interns placed with sponsors in 2020, the Forum is in process of taking applications from former ULF interns for the scholarship awards and expects a similar number of awards as last year at a total cost of $100,000. If any members would like to apply the amount budgeted or otherwise expected to be paid for the dinner or any other amount to help defray the cost of the ongoing scholarships, any donations can be made through the Forum’s website.
The Municipal Forum of New York’s 2020 Public Service Award, Lifetime Achievement Award, and Austin Koenen Career Achievement Award
While we are not able to get together in person on Thursday evening to celebrate the contributions and achievement of the recipients of The Municipal Forum of New York’s 2020 Public Service Award, Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Austin Koenen Career Achievement Award, the Board of Governors congratulates this year’s honorees and salutes the significant contributions each honoree has made to our industry. We plan to present the 2020 awards in person at the 2021 Annual Awards dinner which is scheduled for May 6, 2021. Until then, our congratulations and thank you go to:
The Honorable Scott M. Stringer
New York City Comptroller
Public Service Award,
Alan L. Anders, Former Deputy Director for Finance
New York City Office of Management and Budget
Lifetime Achievement Award,
and
Kym S. Arnone, Managing Director, Joint Head of Municipal Finance
Jefferies, LLC
Austin Koenen Career Achievement Award.
The Municipal Forum of New York’s 2020 Carey Gabay Education Fund Excellence Award
The first recipient of the Carey Gabay Education Fund Excellence Award was announced at the Annual Dinner in 2017. The Carey Gabay Excellence Award is a scholarship in the amount of $2,500 awarded annually to a former ULF intern. This year, 24 former ULF interns applied through a competitive process that includes a long format essay. Three finalists were selected from the 24 applicants by the review committee (Portia Lee and Caroline Cruise) with the 2020 winner selected from the final three by Trenelle Gabay. The 2020 winner is Kyle Morgan, a senior at Cornell University and a ULF intern during the Summer of 2017 at Jefferies. Kyle is an Applied Economics and Management major and is interested in pursuing a career in finance. Because Kyle will not have the opportunity to thank the membership in person due to the cancelation of the Annual Dinner this year, Kyle has sent the following thank you letter to the membership.
“I am sincerely honored to have been selected as the recipient of the 2020 Carey Gabay Education Fund Excellence Award. Thank you for your generous scholarship.
The Urban Leadership Fellows program completely changed my life and career trajectory. The organization provided me with an early introduction into finance and provided me many tools for success. The various training sessions, such as bond school at SIFMA, were incredibly helpful and taught me a lot at an early age. I interned at Jefferies Financial Group, doing investment banking during my summer with Urban Leadership Fellows, and that was an amazing experience. That summer, I learned a lot about the day to day life of an investment banker. I learned how to use Bloomberg and network with professionals. I spent the majority of the summer assisting on the construction of a deal with a power and light company by researching the name under consideration as well as comparable names across its industry, covering management structure, financial condition and economic trends. I created a public information book on a counterparty comprised of rating reports, an executive summary, relevant legislation and articles. The experience was especially helpful when I began recruiting.
Since working at Jefferies, I have continued to pursue a career in business. The following summer I interned at ALICE, a technology startup, doing sales and marketing. This was a very rewarding experience that taught me how to navigate a small business and a lot about sales. This past summer, I interned at J.P. Morgan in the markets division. There, I worked on the equities cash sales trading desk and the research sales desk. Over the past few years, I have also participated in many introductory training and networking programs, including TD Securities Early Access Program, Federal Reserve Bank of New York Discovery Day, and Rise into Success at Deutsche Bank. I am also a member of SEO and Inroads which have provided me a huge network and a lot of industry training. This summer, I am proud to say that I am returning to J.P. Morgan and will be working in the structuring and originations group.
I am currently a senior at Cornell University, majoring in Applied Economics and Management with concentrations in Finance and Strategy. I am going to graduate this May, a year early, and complete a Masters of Professional Studies in Information Sciences at Cornell University next year. After I complete my master’s program, I would like to return to work at J.P. Morgan. Down the line, I would like to either work for a hedge fund, move into private equity, or start my own company.
For several years I have been tutoring students in art, math and in preparation for standardized exams for free. Inequitable access to test preparation for students has a negative impact on lower income, multicultural communities. Many young people, particularly from disadvantaged backgrounds, do not get a fair shot at economic opportunity as a result. Tutoring has made me a better student, improved my ability to communicate knowledge and opened my eyes to broader issues. It combined two of my passions: business and helping people. It has been an amazing experience to see what I teach help someone. We live in a diverse society. If we are able to provide more individuals with what they need to reach their potential, it will not only benefit them, but society as a whole.
Thank you again for helping to support my education.”
The Municipal Forum of New York Annual Scholarship Program
In addition to the opportunity to apply for the Carey Gabay Excellence Award scholarship, the ULF Program offers former ULF interns the opportunity to apply for scholarships that are awarded based on the achievement of high grade point averages. Former ULF interns who achieve a grand point average of 3.25 are eligible to receive a $1,000 scholarship while those with 3.50 or higher grade point averages are eligible to receive $1,250. In 2019, 84 former ULF interns were granted scholarships with a total cost of approximately $100,000.
If you have any questions please contact me or any of the other members of The MFNY’s Board of Governors.
Thank you, and best to all during this difficult period.
Geoff