Harrison Winikoff

Harrison Winikoff is ambitious, erudite, and passionately involved with local leaders in business and political circles. Since his high school journey began, he has sought to understand not only the end result but also how each sector functions independently. His experiences and interests have cultivated in his academic pursuit melding the fields of international relations, international business, and political science.

Harrison first gained real-world experience as a congressional intern for U.S. Congressman Salud Carbajal, who represents California’s 24th district. Through the internship, Harrison helped constituents advocate for their beliefs, directly witnessing the impact that each of us can make in our nation as well as globally. Additionally, he participated in a town hall and attended meetings with the Department of Defense and the Department of Education. Harrison emerged from this internship with the ability to communicate with diverse groups of people, helping their voices to be heard.

Following his congressional internship, Carbajal’s office recommended him to the Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce for a business relations internship position. There, his responsibilities include establishing key relationships between the Chamber and businesses within the community; creating social media posts for the Chamber’s marketing department; and conducting long-term research on business and economic development projects.

A key skill Harrison brings to the EMPATH team is how to collaborate professionally with people of varying backgrounds as well as generating creative resolutions to challenges within any organization. When analyzing a business, Harrison has the ability to look beyond the product or service to truly understand a company’s market strategy, mission, and its people.

Throughout his educational career, Harrison has found that working in groups has given him a sense of leadership and curiosity. He has achieved the highest honor from the Boy Scouts of America, Eagle Scout, as well as having served in the following roles within his community and school: junior counselor at Camp Reach for the Stars; delegate for Boys State; Associated Student
Body representative; instructor’s aid for AmpSurf, an organization assisting veterans in their rehabilitative efforts; and founder of Central Coast New Tech High School’s chapter of the National Honor Society.

In his limited free time, Harrison is taking advantage of the open space and trails in his community before he ventures off to the University of California, Berkeley where he will engage in Global Management studies this fall. While exploring what his soon-to-be neighborhood and the world have to offer, he’s looking forward to discovering a new favorite Korean BBQ and sushi joint.