“I actually was born with an invisible disability. In high school, transitioning from special education to general education to an honors class was a journey for me, but I made it to John Jay,” says Saaif Alam ’22, who recently earned his master’s degree in criminal justice, and his bachelor’s degrees in law and society and criminal justice management. “I changed as a person when I got to John Jay. Being involved on campus helped me find my passion for social justice. In the future, I want to go to law school and hopefully, someday, become an elected official.”
What social justice issues are you passionate about?
I think disability acceptance is very important. Sometimes disabilities can be noticed right away; sometimes it takes active listening from the community. I’m the vice chair of disability affairs at the CUNY University Student Senate. I have been a strong advocate for individuals with visible and invisible disabilities, but educating others who are not in the disability community is also very important to ensure that there is disability acceptance.
“I changed as a person when I got to John Jay. Being involved on campus helped me find my passion for social justice.” —Saaif Alam ’22
Who was your faculty mentor at John Jay?
I would probably point to Dr. King-Toler from the SEEK department. She helped change my perspective about being more engaged and finding more connections. I shared a lot of stories and insights with Dr. King-Toler and we formed a really strong connection. She encouraged me to apply to the criminal justice master’s degree program and she even wrote me a recommendation letter.
What are your plans for the future?
Over the summer, I’m doing an internship with New York State Senator Leroy Comrie. I’m hoping to gain inside experience of what it’s like working as an elected official. I’m also going to prepare to take the LSAT next spring. Then, hopefully I’ll get admitted to CUNY Law. It’s one of the most diverse law schools in the country, an affordable option, and big on career readiness.
After law school, I see myself becoming a city council official representing the 24th district of Queens, New York. I grew up in Jamaica, Queens as the child of Bengali immigrants. That’s where I formed a lot of bonds with people from many different communities, cultures, and backgrounds.
How did the master’s degree program shape your plans?
I have an intention to practice criminal law sometime in the future and I wanted to have an extensive knowledge about the criminal justice system. I can also apply this information to my law school studies. Through classes like Associate Professor Heath Grant’s policing class, I learned how we can improve policing to better serve our communities. He also has an international perspective about policing—he visited Bangladesh, which was great to talk to him about. Since I’m pursuing a career in public service, I’m excited to bring a criminal justice policing perspective to policy reforms.
“After law school, I see myself becoming a city council official representing the 24th district of Queens.” —Saaif Alam ’22
If you are elected to the City Council, what do you hope to accomplish?
I want to put in policy initiatives that improve college readiness for our youths with disabilities. My second priority would be tackling housing insecurity, which a lot of my community members face. Food insecurity is another issue that our residents are facing, along with public safety. I think raising awareness for our Asian community, and our minority communities, about public safety would be a key issue for me. We have to keep the subways safe, reduce violence, and improve community-policing relationships.
