The trip is organized by the American Council of Young Political Leaders
EWING -- Ewing Councilwoman Sarah Steward is visiting Israel and the Palestinian territories next month as part of a political exchange and hopes to return with new insights and perspectives.
Ewing Councilwoman Sarah Steward The 12-day program is organized by the Washington-based American Council of Young Political Leaders.
Steward, 33, first learned about the organization when she was working as the deputy chief of staff and district director for former U.S. Rep. Rush Holt (D-12th Dist.), who nominated her in December 2014.
The trip's benefits, she said, are two-fold. She will not only have an opportunity to learn from the host country about how they confront policy challenges and how their political processes work, but also gain different perspectives from the other delegates traveling with her.
PLUS: 16 N.J. lawmakers traveling to Israel
The delegation, she said, is deliberately chosen and evenly split between Democrats and Republicans.
She will be joined by Ellen Kamei, a policy aide for Santa Clara County Supervisor Joseph Simitian; Sara Kurovski, mayor of Pleasant Hill, Iowa; Jason Lunderman, manager of government and regulatory affairs for Comcast; Adam Miller, director of corporate government strategy for Astellas Pharma US; Delegate Andrew Platt (D-Maryland); and attorney Matt Sanderson.
"I really hope that it's going to broaden my perspective about the role and function of government," said Steward, who was first appointed to a vacant council seat in November 2013 and elected the following year. "I'm not solving world peace in Ewing Township, but there's something to be said about thinking in a new way how to solve a problem and gain new insight to come back and become a better councilperson."
Steward recently joined HomeFront as the nonprofit's chief operating officer and said she hopes to learn about how they provide social services differently there and whether there's anything she can bring back to her new job.
"I'm really excited about it," she said.
Cristina Rojas may be reached at crojas@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @CristinaRojasTT. Find The Times of Trenton on Facebook.