Maria Maldonado Lewis is now in place of the newly-created position in the City Department of Neighborhood and Business Development where she Lewis will focus on diversity, inclusion, and financial empowerment. Lewis will be Program Manager for the Mayor’s Office of Inclusion Diversity Equity and Accountability (IDEA) and the Syracuse Financial Empowerment Center.
Mayor Walsh created the IDEA office in 2020 to improve inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility in city government.
“Maria is uniformly trusted and respected in city government and throughout the Syracuse community. Her caring and empathetic approach has made a positive impact on the lives of city residents during the past four years as our constituent services advocate,” said Mayor Ben Walsh.
Lewis has served as an advocate for the city’s constituent services since 2018. Helped guide city residents to the services and programs they need and solve challenges with local government as the constituent services advocate.
Prior to joining City Hall, Lewis was a program coordinator with Molina Healthcare, a Home Headquarters housing counselor, and the Founder of “I know I can Radio” in 2016 to help residents with resources and information on mental, physical, financial and spiritual health.