Intrinsic Connections Consulting
Who Are We
Intrinsic Connections Consulting helps organizations and individuals achieve meaningful, sustainable growth by focusing on strengths, community insight, and practical solutions.
Meet Dr. Amada Santiago
Dr. Amada Santiago is a researcher, educator, and leadership coach whose work sits at the intersection of immigration, education, and workforce development. She brings over fifteen years of experience leading strategic initiatives across higher education, nonprofits, and the public sector—always focusing on building on the strengths that individuals and communities already possess. Her work is delivered through Intrinsic Connections Consulting, a New York State Certified Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprise (MWBE), reflecting a commitment to equity, inclusion, and high-impact results.
The Asset-Based Approach
Every engagement at Intrinsic Connections Consulting begins with the same question: What's already working?
Too often, research and professional development focus on gaps, deficits, and problems to solve. We take a different approach—one grounded in decades of research showing that individuals, teams, and communities grow most when we invest in their existing strengths. This doesn't mean ignoring challenges. It means understanding that sustainable change comes from building on solid foundations rather than constantly shoring up weaknesses.
Professional Development & Coaching
As a Certified Strengths Coach, Amada applies the same asset-based philosophy to professional development. She partners with universities, public institutions, and philanthropic foundations to help teams discover collective talents and create cultures where people flourish.
Academic & Research Expertise
As an Assistant Professor in the Latin American and Latinx Studies Department at John Jay College of Criminal Justice (CUNY), Amada teaches courses exploring how diverse Latinx communities have been shaped by migration, colonization, racialization, and integration. Her research centers on recently arrived immigrants, particularly young people navigating education and workforce systems, using testimonio and other community-engaged methodologies that honor participant voice and agency.
She also serves as a Research Scholar in Residence at the Fund for the City of New York's Center for Youth and the Future of Work, leading studies on asylum seeker integration and immigrant experiences in New York City. Her research informs policymakers, practitioners, and community organizations supporting newcomer populations.
Leadership & Impact
Before her faculty career, Amada served as Associate Director of Advising and Student Services at NYU Steinhardt, launching the department's first graduate student services unit. She also founded a nonprofit providing peer-to-peer mentoring to NYC high schools with high immigrant populations—one of the city's first models of its kind.
Background & Education
A native of the Dominican Republic and proud first-generation college student, Amada earned her B.A. from CUNY Baruch College, her M.S.W. from Columbia University with a concentration in Nonprofit Management, and her M.Phil. and Ph.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies from NYU Steinhardt. Her dissertation examined how recently arrived Latinx high school students navigate work and school in New York City.