M.S. Program Leads to Job as Union Representative
The ILR School’s M.S. degree program has propelled Ariana Shapiro, M.S. ’25 to a job as a program representative with the New York State Nurses Association, where she will draw on her ILR experiences, which she describes as “a crash course in academic research while being integrated into the labor movement.”
What experiences led to your time at ILR?
I became interested in studying work as an undergrad at Yale, where I wrote my senior thesis on the history of unemployment and urban renewal in New Haven. I worked for the next several years for a nonprofit organization called All Our Kin, designing curriculum and delivering trainings for home-based child care providers. I loved working with adult learners and thinking about ways to improve wages and working conditions in the care economy. Coming to ILR was a great opportunity for me to develop my thoughts about these issues into a research project, and to learn more about the labor movement’s approach. It was also serendipitous to return to my hometown of Ithaca!
What courses were especially impactful?
Andrew Wolf’s classes about the sources of union power and labor process theory helped me think more critically and develop the argument that became my master’s thesis. Rosemary Batt taught a class on the financialization of the U.S. health care system, a topic I found incredibly relevant and disturbing. Lee Adler’s class on public sector unions was great—he is a living encyclopedia on the topic.
What about the M.S. experience has been surprising?
The ILR faculty have been so generous with their time and guidance—not just my academic committee and the professors I worked for as an RA/TA, but other members of the department as well. I have felt supported not only as a student but as a person.
Where do you hope the M.S. program takes you in your career?
I am excited to start a job in Buffalo as a program representative for the New York State Nurses Association, the largest union for registered nurses in the state. I know this next step is possible because of the connections I made through the M.S. program and everything I learned, especially through Kate Bronfenbrenner’s practical and timely class on contract administration.
What are your thoughts for those considering the M.S. program?
The M.S. program provides students with a crash course in academic research while integrating students into the labor movement. The academic side is rigorous yet largely self-directed; a good way to explore the possibility of a Ph.D. while pursuing a project of personal interest. Many classes offer professional training for a career in the labor movement. Outside of coursework, you have opportunities to meet practitioners doing amazing work on the ground through guest lectures and conferences, and events like the ILR Labor Roundtable. I also recommend getting involved with the ILR extensions, like the Worker Institute or the Buffalo Co-Lab, that do applied research, training and advocacy that bridge the university and the community.
In your free time, what do you do for fun?
During my time in Ithaca, I have played on a kickball team with high school friends and gone on lots of hikes and trail runs. It was a fantastic winter to ski at Greek Peak and skate on the Cayuga Lake inlet when it froze over. I also like to cook, quilt, read and run around with dogs.