Michele Paolella

Michele Paolella (she/her/hers) is the Director of Direct Services at SVR where she manages and oversees SVR's direct services and provides supervision for all aspects of survivor-focused service provision across all campuses. Additionally, Michele collaborates with divisions and schools across the university to ensure SVR's efforts are responsive to the varying needs of survivors and co-survivors of sexual violence, intimate partner violence, stalking, technology-facilitated abuse, and other forms of power-based violence.

Michele joined SVR in October 2019 as Assistant Director of SVR's Columbia University Irving Medical Center location where she supported students presenting issues of gender- and power-based violence; facilitated prevention education programming; and planned special events for the medical center community.

Prior to joining Columbia, Michele was the Director of Social Services and Training at Day One, where she delivered and oversaw prevention, awareness, and intervention services for young survivors of intimate partner and sexual violence and their communities. During her time at Day One, Michele developed and managed several new programs, trained thousands of professionals, and spearheaded key partnerships with city institutions and community partners. She also chaired multiple coalitions including the NYC Domestic Violence Task Force Youth Intervention Prevention and Education Services (YIPES) Committee and a group of culturally specific service providers called Advocates for Safe and Empowering Relationships (ASER). Before Day One, Michele worked primarily with LGBTQ+ and HIV-positive youth, as well as youth involved in the criminal justice system.​​​​​

Education:

  • Master of Social Work (Dual Concentration Social Action and Change and Individuals, Families, and Groups), San Francisco State University
  • Bachelor of Psychology (Concentration Women and Gender Studies), Ohio University

Certifications and Licensure:

  • Licensed Master of Social Work
  • Student Intern Field Instructor Certification

Professional Experience:

  • Day One
  • The Alliance for GLBTQ Youth
  • Youth Leadership Institute (YLI)
  • Fresh Lifelines for Youth (FLY)
  • The Children’s Place
  • My Sister’s Place
  • Big Brothers Big Sisters

Awards and Honors:

  • 2017 Advocate of NYC Award
  • 2018 Strell Executive Leadership Fellow