Suraj Patel is a lawyer, activist, and adjunct professor of business ethics at NYU Stern. He recently ran for U.S. Congress as a progressive Democrat in New York’s 12th Congressional District. He is a veteran of both Barack Obama Presidential campaigns and worked as an advance associate for the Obama White House. Born to immigrant parents, his experience as a first-generation American shaped his view of politics and policy at an early age. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa from with a BA from Stanford University, was an Allen Scholar at NYU School of Law, and was a Departmental Scholar at Cambridge University where he completed a Masters in Public Policy focused on evidence-based policy making.