A pair of recent Rutgers graduates hold two of the most important staff positions in New Jersey politics, serving as state directors for U.S. Senators Frank Lautenberg and Bob Menendez.
Steve Lenox, the state director for Senator Lautenberg, and his counterpart in Senator Menendez’ office, Michael D. Soliman, both received masters degrees from the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy.
Both say the Master of Public Affairs and Politics (MPAP) program was crucial in preparing them for their careers.
“The MPAP program taught me how to make complex decisions, and, more importantly, how to implement and communicate those decisions,” said Lenox, who earned his degree in 2002. “It also gave me the ability to analyze complex data, improved my debate skills and honed my desire to remain in public service and continue to try to make a difference.”
Soliman, who earned his MPAP in 2006, worked as district director for Congressman Steve Rothman while a student at Rutgers and managed the Congressman’s state operations for several years.
He credits former Governor Jim Florio, one of his professors at Bloustein, as a role model who influenced his desire to continue government work while pursuing graduate studies.
“The Bloustein School is tremendous in that it makes clear the interaction between public policy and politics, in that one is intertwined with the other and you need both to be successful,” he said.
Day-to-day responsibilities for the staffers include providing strategic advice on policy and political matters to their bosses, and managing more than 20 staff members in offices located across New Jersey. Staffers handle constituent casework, create opportunities for the senators to communicate directly with the public, and work to align legislative agendas developed in Washington, D.C., with the needs of New Jersey’s nine million residents.
Lenox and Soliman said their paths cross regularly and they have come to work closely together on behalf of Senators Lautenberg and Menendez.
Prior to joining Senator Lautenberg, Lenox served as a legislative affairs coordinator with the New Jersey State AFL-CIO where he used skills he had developed at the Bloustein School to lobby state and federal legislators on numerous pieces of legislation.
– Rick Remington