Public Service Focus

Where the Work Actually Happens

Margarita Lekaj's public-sector experience spans several institutions across New York State, in roles ranging from Purchasing Agent/Coordinator to senior operations leadership. The titles have changed over fifteen-plus years, but the core of the job hasn't: manage resources responsibly, and make sure the people depending on those resources can trust how they're handled.

Budgets That Hold Up

Building a budget is the easy part. Building one that survives a full fiscal year — through enrollment shifts, state aid changes, and unexpected costs — is the harder job, and it's where Margarita spends most of her time. She develops multi-year financial plans, prepares materials for governing boards, and treats budget monitoring as an ongoing responsibility rather than a once-a-year event.

Capital Projects, Start to Finish

Margarita has overseen multi-million-dollar capital projects in a Clerk of the Works role, managing everything from bonding and competitive bidding to contractor coordination and state regulatory reporting. Construction projects run on tight timelines and tighter budgets — her job is making sure both hold, and that the paper trail is clean enough to satisfy any audit that comes later.

Grants and Fund Accounting

Federal and state grant dollars come with rules that don't bend, and Margarita's approach is to learn each funding source's requirements rather than assume they're all the same. She's managed award tracking, encumbrances, drawdown reporting, and closeout documentation for significant public funding allocations — work that leaves little room for error and rewards consistency over shortcuts.

Risk and Internal Controls

Institutions don't pass audits by accident. Margarita has served in a Risk Manager capacity, coordinating insurance programs, workers' compensation oversight, and vendor compliance, building the internal controls that catch problems before they become findings.

Professional Involvement

Margarita is a member of ASBO, ASBO International, and NYSBO, and has co-chaired both a Facilities and Operations Committee and an Audit Committee. She's also served on Safety, Policy, and Smart Bond Act committees — work she takes on because staying connected to her field matters as much as doing the job itself.

Her advice to anyone starting out in public service: build the relationships before you build the resume. The trust you earn with colleagues will carry you further than any certification.