Joanna Sowa

Work Highlights

Authored a report which analyzed survey data of 90 respondents on how COVID-19 has impacted Buffalo residents' abilities to continue making payments on their payment plans.

Submitted and received a FOIL data request from the Erie County Comptroller on surplus funds from tax foreclosure auctions from the past 5 years.

Compiled property class data on tax foreclosed properties for Erie County.

Attended meetings with the City, County, and Distressed Properties Task Force.

Summer Takeaway

This summer, I learned how important it is for community members and organizations to fight for equity in whatever avenue of advocacy that they are called to. It was incredible to hear from community organizers through our Friday programming who were all making significant change in Buffalo through poetry, art, union organizing, and so many different ways.

Supervisor Quote

Joanna was an absolute pleasure to work with this summer. From the very first day she showed initiative and started asking insightful questions about the work assigned to her. I was impressed with how well she carried herself in meetings and her interactions with staff. Working in a new environment, especially with attorneys, can be intimidating but Joanna did a great job jumping right in with our group meetings to accomplish our goals. She completed every task assigned to her early and always had questions or suggestions about her next steps. We are so grateful for all she did this summer and the work that she did has already had an impact on our conversations with both the City and the County regarding tax foreclosures this year.

–Kate Lockhart