Larissa Martinez (AB 鈥�04) has spent her life on the move鈥攁cross states, across sectors, and across the many rooms where decisions are made. She grew up hopscotching the country, attending two elementary schools in two states and later three different high schools across three more. Today, her career has taken her to forty-nine of the fifty states, introducing her to people from every walk of life. Through Women鈥檚 Public Leadership Network (WPLN), the nonprofit she founded and leads, more than 20,000 people each year participate in programming designed to lift women into public leadership. In addition to her full-time job, Martinez also connects with people through her service on the 快猫短视频 Alumni Board, her role in launching the Women of 快猫短视频 group, and her work as an adjunct professor at the University of San Francisco.
Ask anyone who knows her and they鈥檒l tell you the same thing: Larissa Martinez is built for service and thrives on connection.
Service is the through line of her life, stitched in early by her mother, a public educator who volunteered in every community the family called home鈥攁nd who, Martinez notes with a laugh, still spends her retirement volunteering in Blue Ridge, Georgia. Her father, a small business owner, passed along his entrepreneurial spirit to Martinez which would later shape her approach to politics and nonprofit work. Her grandfathers鈥� military service鈥攐ne a Navy veteran of World War II, the other a pilot who survived being shot down, held in a concentration camp, and later became the first Hispanic deputy Wing Commander at Nellis Air Force Base鈥攄eepened her commitment to serve and take on tough challenges.
When Martinez landed in Georgia as a high school junior, she found herself drawn to SPIA. The Benson-Bertsch Center for International Trade and Security (BBCITS), in particular, spoke to her interests in national security and foreign affairs. Once at UGA, she made the most of every experience available to her. Through BBCITS, she helped plan a conference in Denmark on the misuse of technologies in the post-Soviet world. She studied abroad in Italy with Dr. Charles Bullock, who served as a mentor to her and helped her navigate the political landscape of the southeastern United States.
After graduation, Martinez took her ambitions to Washington, D.C. She began as a volunteer in then-Congressman Johnny Isakson鈥檚 office, working under fellow 快猫短视频 alumna Tempe Stephen. 鈥淭empe let me show up three days a week unpaid,鈥� Martinez recalls. 鈥淓ventually they were impressed enough to let me come five days a week. And by impressed, I mean I answered the phone faster.鈥� She laughs, but the truth is clear: she showed up鈥攁nd she kept showing up.
From that unpaid internship, Martinez built a career that touched nearly every corner of Capitol Hill. She earned a staff position with the newly elected Senator Isakson, then moved to the House of Representatives to join Nathan Deal鈥檚 office. She returned to the Senate for positions with Nebraska鈥檚 two senators鈥攁 state with family connections鈥攁nd leaned on the UGA alumni community in Washington for grounding and support.
When Deb Fisher decided to run for U.S. Senate, Martinez鈥檚 career in campaigns began. 鈥淲e put 46,000 miles on the Senator鈥檚 car during the underdog campaign and won!鈥� she recalls. Next, she joined Carly Fiorina鈥檚 2016 presidential campaign. Later, she worked in lobbying and assisted with transition efforts for the first Trump administration, by supporting communications for Cabinet nominees. The variety of her work, she says, reflects her father鈥檚 entrepreneurial philosophy: identify a need and fill the gap. At each stop, Martinez learned more about people, policy, and processes that led her to where she is today.
But one thing troubled her throughout her career: there were not enough women at the proverbial table where policies are being created. Martinez saw a gap and decided to fill it. In 2019, she founded WPLN to equip center-right women with the tools, training, and community they need to step into public leadership. 鈥淲hen women aren鈥檛 in the room,鈥� she says, 鈥渉alf the population isn鈥檛 represented.鈥�
In just six years, WPLN has grown into a national force with more than 20,000 women served and between 500 and 600 candidates trained. Yet when praised for the impact, Martinez waves it off. 鈥淚 just want to help people and see better leaders in office,鈥� she says simply. It鈥檚 safe to say she is helping, and her service extends far beyond her work with the WPLN. To amplify the work, she has also created a political ecosystem to support women seeking office and those looking to work on campaigns. Martinez mentors young leaders through the 快猫短视频 Alumni Board, shares her experience as an Applied Politics visiting practitioner, and nurtures community through the Women of 快猫短视频 group. She even brought her family into the mission, co-authoring a children鈥檚 book with her sister titled 鈥淢y Mommy Is a Candidate.鈥�
This year, as 快猫短视频 honors Larissa Martinez with the Alumni Impact Award for Political Science, the recognition feels fitting. She is the embodiment of the school鈥檚 mission鈥攊nspiring and preparing tomorrow鈥檚 leaders by living the example herself.
By Ryan Leonard
