USF Graduate Wins Seat in United States Congress

“I’m in the Longworth Building right now,” said Simon from her phone in Washington, D.C. “I just went to see my office for the first time, and the weight feels heavy. There’s been 11,000-some members of Congress but less than 200 of those members have been African American and only a handful African American women, so I feel humbled but I also feel ready. There’s so much to do.”

Simon said her mission in the House of Representatives is to represent her constituents. “They’re worried about public safety, affordable housing, and jobs,” she said.

Simon has served the public for more than 30 years. At 19, she was named executive director of the Young Women’s Freedom Center in San Francisco. At 26, she became the youngest woman to receive a MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship. In 2005, she launched Back on Track, an anti-recidivism initiative for young adults charged with low-level offenses, under then-San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris.

In 2020, while working full-time, Simon enrolled in the master of public administration program at USF.

“I chose USF because of its values,” she said. “One of the things you learn as a USF student is you learn about government, and you learn what people of true faith have done since the beginning of this country: they’ve made a way for those who are oppressed.”

The incoming presidential administration “has promised mass deportations and the end of health care as we know it,” Simon said. “I’m going to stand against that administration. I’m going to stand against oppression. I believe in what’s written on the Statue of Liberty. I have an obligation to hold the line.”

Patrick Murphy, director of the MPA program at USF, said, “Lateefah Simon’s journey to the U.S. House of Representatives is a story of an unwavering dedication to serving others.”