Shantel Palacio is the Chief of Staff of the Brooklyn South NYCDOE Borough Office, where she supports Brooklyn South’s Executive Superintendent, Executive Director and 5 Superintendencies with significant discretion and decision-making authority to ensure the adequate provision of coordinated support services to nearly 200 schools. With a Masters in Public Policy from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Palacio has worked on policy for the NYC Department of Education for over seven years. She has executed several Mayoral and Chancellor's projects including the realignment of 40 million in lease assistance payments to charter schools, spearheading the launch of the mayors Renewal School initiative, partaking in the Mayor's 100 Days in Brownsville Economic Development program, streamlining the citywide hiring process for school leaders, superintendents and assistant superintendents, and working with the press office for the roll-out of the City's Equity and Access diversity programs.

At a more personal level, community activism is an imperative in Palacio’s life. Without question, she identifies with the defiance and pride of the distinctly Brownsville motto, “Never Ran, Never Will.” When building her own success story she felt there was no option: it is too important for local kids to see themselves in members of the community; they need to know they can amount to something more than the low-expectation stereotypes reinforced by outsiders, something that must be reinforced throughout the community.

Palacio founded Brownsvillain LLC, a platform that she uses to capture and preserve local stories and empower residents of her community. Her childhood desire was to become a journalist, and she earned her undergraduate degree in Communication at Bryant University. With few technical skills but feeling compelled to tell the crucial story of her neighborhood, she rallied friends, volunteers and whatever resources were available to launch her website Brownsvillain.

She is also working on a PhD in Education Policy with the goal of improving opportunities for communities like Brownsville. Through her research, she hopes to continue to explore intersections between politics, social capital in low-income communities and policies that successfully reduce both achievement and opportunity gaps in education.