Posted by BEN BEAUMONT – The following is a question and answer conducted by the Clinton School Blog with Clinton School Dean Skip Rutherford.
Clinton School Blog: What makes the Clinton School unique?
Dean Skip Rutherford: We’re the first in the country to offer a Master of Public Service (MPS) degree. Our “academics for the real world” curriculum includes three major public service projects at the group, international and individual levels. The academic curriculum is then enhanced by an outstanding and diverse speaker series which also includes conferences, community conversations and documentary films.
CSB: How does the Clinton School get so many speakers and public programs?
DSR: We work very hard at it. Patrick Kennedy, our director of public programs coordinates the series and does a terrific job. But many students and staff members pitch in with suggestions and help recruit speakers. We just announced our April schedule, and we’re already working on the fall programming.
CSB: Can you tell us anything about your new class which will be begin this fall?
DSR: We’re currently in the middle of the admission process for our fourth class, and we hopefully will have it completed in mid April. I can tell you that we’re going to have some exceptional students from Arkansas, the nation and the world. Our two-year program opened with 16 students in 2005, expanded to 22 in 2006 and grew to 30 in 2007. We’re anticipating 30-32 new students this fall which would increase our enrollment to at least 60. With that number, we’re already larger than the average size graduate program in Arkansas.
CSB: So how would you describe a Clinton School student?
DSR: Our students come from a variety of colleges and universities: From UCA to UCLA; From the University of Arkansas to the University of Notre Dame; From Hendrix to Harvard; They also come from Brazil, China, Jordan, South Africa and Vietnam. One of our students (who just turned 25) served with Americorps in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina and also built a day care center in Ecuador; worked in a soup kitchen in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam; helped restore medieval castles in France and ran with the bulls in Spain. He’s going to Tanzania this summer for his international public service project. The youngest student in our class (who just turned 22) is fluent in four languages and is learning a fifth. The talent our students have is extraordinary.
CSB: What kind of jobs do they get when they graduate?
DSR: Here are some examples:
*World Bank–Washington D.C.
*University of Mississippi–Oxford, Miss.
*Clinton Foundation–Little Rock, Ark.
*Clinton Climate Change Initiative–Bogota, Columbia
*Wal-Mart Foundation–Bentonville, Ark.
*University of Arkansas Medical Sciences–Little Rock, Ark.
*Habitat for Humanity–New Orleans, La.
*Clinton School of Public Service–Little Rock, Ark.
*Bridges (non profit)–Memphis, Tenn.
*Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy–South Africa
In addition, some of our graduates are pursuing law and other advanced degrees.