Susan Camoroda

MPA Fellows, Class of 2026

US Army, Retired

Susan’s most significant qualification for being accepted into the MPA Fellows program is her 30-year career in the U.S. Army/Active National Guard and Reserve. Susan was commissioned as an Officer into the Army via the Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) program at California State University Fresno in the last century, 1985. The Army provided her the opportunity to travel and gain leadership and management experience in various and numerous assignments in Germany (before and after “The Wall’ came down), South Korea, Saudi Arabia, and the Northern Virginia/DC area which included assignments at the Army National Guard Headquarters, the Joint Chiefs of Staff J6 (Communications) Directorate in the Pentagon, the U.S. Army War College Fellowship at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, PA, and the United States Cyber Command.

She retired from Active service in 2015 and has explored various opportunities: Store Manager with Starbucks Corporation in Boston, MA and Washington DC; Management and Program Analyst with The United States Treasury Department in Washington DC; and as a Fulfillment and Back Office Associate with The Home Depot in Florida. Since relocating to Connecticut in 2021, Susan has become involved in various Veterans organizations to include the American Legion Post 197 in Marlborough (appointed Adjutant), the Colchester Honor Guard, and appointed as the Municipal Veterans Representative for the Town of Andover. She also serves as a Senior Transportation Driver for the Town of Andover, and as a Special Transportation Driver for the Andover Elementary School.

My goals in the pursuit of the MPA Fellows degree are numerous: 1) to meet and learn from the other Fellows experience and background (and of course the professors and other instructors), 2) apply this learning to complement my pursuit of a Masters in Social Work, Policy track at UCONN (concurrent), and 3) to take this knowledge, experience, and increased motivation to the numerous Veterans organizations I am associated with and try to leave my little piece of the world, as we say in Girl Scouts, “cleaner than I found it”.