Alderwoman Daniela Velázquez Selected as 2025 Eisenhower Fellow

FROM BERLIN TO BOGOTÁ

Alderwoman Daniela Velázquez Selected as 2025 Eisenhower Fellow

Velázquez has been named one of nine American leaders selected for the prestigious 2025 Eisenhower Fellowships USA Program.

This fall, Velázquez will embark on a five-week international fellowship designed to foster dialogue, build partnerships and bring home solutions to local challenges.

The Project

Learning Global, Leading Local

This fall, through her Eisenhower Fellowship, Alderwoman Velázquez will study open-government policies in Germany (Berlin, Hamburg, Stuttgart) and Colombia (Bogotá, Cartagena, Medellín) and return with tested ideas to help St. Louis join OGP Local—a global network of 150+ cities committed to transparent, accountable, and participatory government.

OGP Policy Areas

Strengthening trust and civic engagement

These are the policy areas Alderwoman Velázquez will consider while abroad.

Anti-Corruption
Using public office for private gain erodes citizens’ trust in their government and its ability to serve their interests.
Civic Space
Ensuring institutions are open, accountable and responsive is key to a free and active civil society.
Climate and Environment
Enabling governments to see the true costs of pollution, mitigate and adapt to climate change, and ensure adequate public oversight of environmental policies.
Digital Governance
Safeguarding against harms with new and emerging technologies, and advancing openness, accountability and participatory practices.
Fiscal Openness
Making budgets transparent to public input aligns government planning and spending with community priorities.
Inclusion
Achieving more equitable, representative and accountable policies that serve everyone, particularly when it comes to gender equity, LGBTQIA+, people with disabilities and youth.
Justice
Addressing barriers to justice, empowering people to understand their legal problems, and seeking fair and impartial processes in formal and informal institutions.
Public Participation
Providing opportunities for the public to give input on government decision-making, which leads to more effective governance, improved public service delivery and more equitable outcomes.
Right to Information
Giving the public access to facts and data on government decisions and spending, empowers people to demand accountability and participate fully in civic life.

6th Ward Staffing During Fellowship

The 6th Ward is fully staffed and operating, and all services and advocacy for the ward continue while Alderwoman Velázquez is abroad.

For neighborhood-related issues, contact Citizens Service Bureau (CSB) at 311 or your NIS.
For legislation and other Board of Aldermen-related activity, contact: Bree Bowen: bowenb@stlouis-mo.gov.
For constituent services, contact April Rivera: riveraa@stlouis-mo.gov or 6thward@stlouis-mo.gov.

Next Steps

Fellowship travel : Late October – Late November
Weekly updates on social media during fellowship
Town hall to share trip insights on Feb. 2, 2026 at Wild Carrot in Shaw
In 2026, identify OGP policy areas to engage St. Louis residents

Frequently Asked Questions
(FAQs)

Q: What exactly is an Eisenhower Fellowship?
A: The Eisenhower Fellowship USA Program sends 10–12 outstanding mid-career American leaders abroad each year. Over four to five weeks, Fellows travel to one or two countries to meet with leaders and experts in their fields. The program, which combines in-person and virtual components, helps participants design a project, build lasting professional relationships, and launch collaborations with their international counterparts, their cohort, and EF’s global network of more than 1,600 active Fellows across six continents.

Eisenhower Fellowships started in 1953 as a birthday gift to President Dwight D. Eisenhower. Today, it connects leaders from 115 countries and has supported more than 2,600 people across the globe who’ve gone on to make a difference in their communities and professions.

Q: Is this fellowship being paid for by City of St. Louis taxpayer dollars?
A: No. Eisenhower Fellowships is a nonprofit organization funded almost entirely through private contributions and an endowment. A small portion of its budget—less than five percent—comes from interest on a federal trust fund created by Congress in 1990 to honor President Eisenhower’s 100th birthday.

Q: Why was Alderwoman Velázquez selected?
A: She was chosen for her leadership in government, her commitment to community trust, and her innovative approach to transparency and civic engagement. This is national recognition of the work being done right here in our ward and city, as well as a chance to make it even stronger.

Fun Fact: Two of the nine people selected nationwide for the 2025 U.S. Eisenhower Fellowship are from St. Louis, and both live in the 6th Ward! That includes Shaw’s very own Ryan McClure, Executive Director of the Gateway Arch Park Foundation. Together, both fellows are representing the best of our city and will bring new ideas home to serve our community.

Q: Why does St. Louis have such big representation?
A: Through its partnership with Washington University’s McDonnell International Scholars Academy starting in 2007, the region has served as a hub for Eisenhower Fellows, sending 20+ leaders abroad—including CEOs, university presidents, and nonprofit executives.

Q: What will she be doing while she’s away?
A: During her fellowship time in Germany and Colombia, she will meet with government and civic leaders to study policies and ideas that have worked elsewhere and identify open government practices that can be implemented in St. Louis.

Q: Will she still be representing us during this time?
A: Absolutely. She’s using this fellowship to bring back new tools and ideas to benefit our neighborhoods. Her office is fully staffed and operating, and all services and advocacy for the ward continue while she’s abroad.

Q: What happens when she comes back?
A: She will produce a roadmap for how the City of St. Louis can create a successful application to OGP Local. She will also host a town hall in January 2026 to brief the ward and community on her learnings.