Olden headshot

Leland Fellow

Rachelle C. Olden

6th Class, 2011-2013

Field Placement: World Vision International, San Salvador, El Salvador

With the Latin American & Caribbean Regional Office (LACRO) of World Vision International, Rachelle worked primarily on the adaptation and implementation of Citizen Voice Action (CVA), a global methodology to promote local level advocacy and social accountability. Its goals are to catalyze civic engagement, improve public services, and foster stronger relationships and dialogue among communities, service providers and government. Rachelle supported the CVA pilot implementation in El Salvador and other countries in the region as well as child participation initiatives within the LACRO Advocacy Unit.

Policy Placement: World Vision International, San Jose, Costa Rica

Rachelle served as a Regional Advocacy Officer with World Vision International’s Latin American & Caribbean (LAC) Regional Office. She managed the World Vision’s regional engagement with the UN-led process to establish a set of Post-2015 Millennium Development Goals (MDG) and coordinated the achievement of its strategic objectives. She led the development and implementation of a plan to engage in the MDG process at national, regional and global levels to achieve project milestones. Rachelle also provided strategy, resource acquisition and capacity building support to 14 National Offices in the LAC region to implement and scale-up Citizen Voice & Action (CVA), global social accountability/local-level advocacy methodology.

Pre-Fellowship Education/Experience:

A former Peace Corps volunteer in the Dominican Republic, Rachelle went on to manage the implementation of a Parent Teacher Association initiative for the World Food Program in Liberia. This year, Rachelle founded Global Community Ambassadors, a social venture that empowers tomorrow’s global leaders through civic engagement, social entrepreneurship and cultural exchange. Along the way, she also assisted President Clinton’s Chief of Staff at the Clinton Foundation in New York. Rachelle earned a BA in Corporate Communication and Spanish from the College of Charleston.

Publications