Erika Marte is a proud Summer Search New York City alumna, Class of 2011, from the Bronx. One of nine siblings and the middle child in a busy household, Erika remembers looking for opportunities to branch out and create an identity of her own. At Summer Search, she found that space through her relationship with her mentor, Megan. 

 

“I had somebody that was just listening to me, that cared about my experiences, that made me feel really valued. I just appreciated somebody actively listening” 

 

Erika remembers the feeling of having someone give her their undivided attention and show up with love and care. Erika says Megan still makes time for her today.

Check out Erika’s interview from the 2025 Alumni Summit below.

 

Erika’s first summer experience took her backpacking and whitewater rafting with Outward Bound in North Carolina, activities that were entirely new to her and her family. Erika immigrated to the United States from the Dominican Republic when she was eight, and on the trip, she began to recognize how the experiences she had already navigated had prepared her to take on new challenges. 

 

“What was surprising about that was just how resilient I was…I could adapt anywhere. I knew that, but that trip really made it known and gave me a lot of confidence.” 

 

 

At the end of the trip, Erika, her fellow participants, and the trip leaders shared reflections, and Erika remembers how great it felt to be seen as her peers and mentors shared that they saw her as a caring leader, qualities she was just beginning to recognize in herself. 

 

Her second Summer Search experience took her all the way to New Zealand, where she combined outdoor adventures with a homestay and volunteer work with children with disabilities. She discovered that she could travel across the world, work through homesickness and unfamiliar experiences, and form meaningful connections with people whose lives looked very different from her own. Those experiences changed what Erika imagined was possible. 

 

“I was surprised that I could go on a 24 hour flight to a different country and connect with people that looked so different from myself. And I could get myself through homesickness. I could get myself through different foods. It just felt really great to feel even more resilient and just to get to know so many different people, so many different parts of the world that I would never have gotten to know.” 

 

Travel became something Erika continued to seek out through college and beyond. And the confidence she developed through Summer Search helped shape her educational and professional path. 

 

As Erika later reflected at a Summer Search event, those early experiences helped her “feel like I could dream bigger.” They also became part of the story she told in her college applications and helped lead to a full-ride scholarship that supported her education from her bachelor’s degree through a master’s degree and, ultimately, a PhD in education policy from NYU. 

 

Today, Erika is a Director at JMC Family Foundation, where she actively thinks about how resources can move in ways that create opportunities for others and help shape communities. For her, that is part of Summer Search’s lasting impact: what begins with one young person can continue to ripple through families and communities. 

 

Her advice to young people beginning their own Summer Search journey is simple: embrace what is possible: “Be bold. Be adventurous. Take any and every opportunity. It is meant for you. You are so deserving of it.” 

 

Erika also encourages future Summer Searchers to trust their own ability to shape what comes next. 

 

“Design the life that you want for yourself. Don’t let anybody tell you who you can be, what you can be, and what you’re capable of.” 

 

Erika is living proof that the Summer Search journey is a lifelong one. The lives and leadership of our Alumni form a virtuous cycle of possibility that ripples far beyond our programs. Thank you to Erika and all our alumni who share their experiences with Summer Search, how they are building careers, strengthening their communities, and navigating what’s next. 

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The Summer Search journey doesn’t end with a milestone—it continues to evolve through the lives and leadership of our Alumni. We’re excited to continue our new Alumni Spotlight Series to answer the question, “Who are Summer Search Alumni?”. This series will feature conversations with Alumni across our community who share their experiences with Summer Search, how they are building careers, strengthening their communities, and navigating what’s next.