PPIA Newsletter: Celebrating 35 Years of Diversity & Leadership in Public Service

Greetings,

The Public Policy & International Affairs Program summer was full of activities, and we're happy to share this update with you. On July 15, 2016, on the George Washington University Campus, PPIA celebrated 35 years of increasing the broad representation of students pursuing advanced degrees in public and international affairs, and the diversity of leaders working in the private, public, and non-pr ofit sectors. Over 200 alumni, PPIA supporters, public policy and international affairs graduate school leaders attended the Anniversary Gala. Participants heard from keynote speaker, Benjamin Jeal ous, former President of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and from Jennifer Pinckney, the widow of Reverend and State Senator Clementa Pinckney (Princeton PPIA,'94). This year, PPIA renamed our alumni achievement award after Reverend Pinckney. I would like to extend my gratitude to the PPIA Alumni Planning Committee, and the generous graduate conso rtium member schools that sponsored the Anniversary Gala. This summer, the PPIA Board of Directors welcomed to the Board three exceptional alumni who have demonstrated commitment to the PPIA mission and are leaders in their respective fields: Richard Corral, Sekou Kaalund, and Dorene Martinez.

Our Public Service Weekends have taken off successfully. Carnegie Mellon University, Heinz College hosted its first Public Service Weekend July 29 - July 31and welcomed sixty-five undergraduate students to their campus in Washington D.C. During the conference, students learned about opportunities in public service and about the graduate school admissions process. The Public Service Weekends continue into the fall with two additional weekends hosted by Indiana University Bloomington, School of Public and Environmental Affairs, and Binghamton University. The Public Service Weekends have been made possible through our partnership with the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration (NASPAA), as we work to increase the pipeline of underrepresented students in public policy and international affairs.

As we transition to the fall our focus has shifted to recruitment for our PPIA Junior Summer Institutes. Students selected for the 2017 Junior Summer Institute Fellowship cohort will study at one of our five host campuses: Carnegie Mellon University, Princeton University, University of California, Berkeley, University of Michigan, and the University of Minnesota. We hope that you will encourage high achieving juniors from diverse backgrounds to consider this opportunity. As the PPIA program celebrates 35 years, our goals are to increase the number of graduate school members in our graduate school consortium, implement strategies to measure PPIA's impact, extend our reach to more students, and identify resources that will allow PPIA to advance in our mission of increasing diversity and leadership in public service. Many thanks for your continued engagement and support of this vitally important program.

Sincerely,

Eric Schwartz
Chair, PPIA Board of Directors
Dean, Humphrey School of Public Affairs

PPIA 35th Anniversary Celebration


Pictured: Dr. Sophal Ear, PPIA 1994 (Princeton), Ola Ojewumi, PPIA, 2012 (UC Berkeley), Canaan McCaslin, PPIA, 2008 (Carnegie Mellon), and Martha Chavez, PPIA 1991 (Princeton). Not pictured: Dr. Jaira J. Harrington, PPIA 2006 (Princeton).

This summer PPIA celebrated 35 years of Diversity & Leadership in Public Service on the George Washington University campus. Over 50 public policy and international affairs graduate programs, internship programs, and public sector organizations joined PPIA for the 2015 PPIA Public Service Expo. Over 200 participants attended the Expo to learn about graduate programs in public policy or international affairs and interacted with public sector employers offering internships and career opportunities for students.

Later in the evening the PPIA 35th Anniversary Reception and Celebration Gala brought together over 200 PPIA alumni, JSI fellows, graduate consortium members, and supporters. The program featured Felicia Escobar, Special Assistant to the President for Immigration Policy (Michigan PPIA,'98), provided the remarks during the reception.

The 35th Celebration Gala featured Benjamin Jealous, Former President of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People as the program keynote. Lastly, a special video message from Darren Walker, President of the Ford Foundation was presented. During the Gala PPIA honored five alumni, three alumni were recipients of the Emerging Leader Award that celebrates and recognizes recent alumni from the 2006-2015 cohorts who have made extraordinary contributions to the public service sector. Award recipients demonstrate a significant promise in leadership, social justice and public policy. Two alumni were recipients of the Reverend Clementa C. Pinckney Achievement Award that celebrates and recognizes alumni from 1981-2005 with an established career who have made extraordinary contributions to the public service domain. This award is named after Reverend Clementa C. Pinckney (Princeton PPIA,'94). See photos from the event!

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Learn more about our

Junior Summer Institute Fellowship

and spread the word!

JSI Application Open

JSI is an intensive seven-week summer program that focuses on preparing students for graduate school programs in public service. Students are immersed in policy analysis, economics, communication and leadership skills development, all of which are designed to prepare you for graduate school in public policy.

To learn more, visit our

JSI Application Page. All application materials are due Nov. 1, 2016

Congratulations to the 2016 Junior Summer Institute Fellows!


University of Michigan - JSI 2016


	Princeton University - JSI 2016


Carnegie Mellon University - JSI 2016


	UC Berkeley - JSI 2016

This summer over 100 students from across the country successfully completed the 2016 Junior Summer Institute Fellowship Program on one of our host campus. These outstanding individuals joined a network of over 4000 alumni. We are excited to announce that in the summer of 2017 we will feature a new host campus the Humphrey School of Public Affairs .

2017 Junior Summer Institute Hosts

Public Service Weekends

Thank you to the host of this amazing conference, Carnegie Mellon University, Heinz College. The conference entitled, Let Your Voice Be Heard: A Next Generation for Undergraduates, included 65 undergraduates, and policy experts in topics such as climate change, technology, governance, and education. At the conference, undergraduates explored graduate public policy programs, and discussed ways to tackle current issues facing our societies today. The conference was an enormous success as an overwhelming majority of students expressed strong interest in acquiring a Masters degree in Public Policy and International Affairs.

This fall two PPIA Graduate School Consortium Members will host Public Service Weekends on their college.

Moving the World Forward: Turning Passion into Action

Exploring a Future in Public Service Thursday, October 27 - Sunday, October 30

Thursday, October 20 - Sunday, October 23 Binghamton, New York

Indiana University, Bloomington

The University of Minnesota Humphrey School of Public Affairs, and the University of California, San Diego School of Global Policy and Strategy will be hosting Public Service Weekends in 2017.

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