Thirty graduate students are currently completing in-depth public service projects across Arkansas, the country, and the world as the final requirement of the Clinton School’s Master of Public Service (MPS) degree program.
The students are partnering with public service organizations on projects related to education, economic development, women’s issues, and social inequality, among other areas. The projects are part of the school’s Capstone program, which requires individual students to work with community leaders to help build healthy, engaged and vibrant communities and demonstrate their ability to work effectively in public service.
Through the course, students have the opportunity to apply the knowledge and skills they have acquired during their time at the Clinton School. Students select their own Capstone projects and devote at least 250 hours of time to them.
“Field service is a major component of our program and the Capstone is the culminating project of the students’ experiences here at the Clinton School,” said Skip Rutherford, dean of the school. “Each project reflects on the individual skills and interests of our students. Capstone projects often lead students into jobs following graduation.”
The Capstone is the third public service project students complete during the two-year MPS program. A faculty advisor oversees each project and the students are required to create a final deliverable and present their results to the Clinton School community upon completion of their project.
Some of the projects include:
André Breaux (Sacramento, Ca.)
Organization: Office of Mayor Kevin Johnson (http://portal.cityofsacramento.org/mayor-council)
As part of a broader fellowship with the Office of Mayor Kevin Johnson in Sacramento, CA, Breaux is supporting a coalition of community-based organizations working to mobilize parents and community members to improve school quality. Breaux is conducting best practices research and facilitating meetings with partner organizations to build consensus on a strategic plan of action.
Kayla Brooks (Little Rock, Ark.)
Organization: Arkansas Economic Development Commission (http://www.arkansasedc.com)
Brooks is working with the Small and Minority Business Division of the Arkansas Economic Development Commission. Through a pilot study, she is assessing the progress state agencies have made in ensuring that 10% of the total amount spent each fiscal year on state-funded and state-directed public construction programs and in the purchase of goods and services for the state is paid to minority businesses, which is a state mandate. The division works to promote the growth and development of minority businesses as well as acts as an advocate for an equitable portion of state procurement contracts being awarded to minorities.
Mara D’Amico (Little Rock, Ark.)
Organization: Women’s Foundation of Arkansas, Policy and Research Committee (www.womensfoundationarkansas.org)
D’Amico is working with the Women’s Foundation of Arkansas to build the structure of their Policy and Research Committee. The Committee works to monitor local and national policies pertinent to women and girls and to produce relevant research. D’Amico is identifying best practices of nonprofit policy and research committees and adapting these to give structure to the Women’s Foundation of Arkansas Policy and Research Committee. She will also identify strategic partnerships, plan outreach activities, and develop op-eds and blog posts.
Maggie Hobbs (Little Rock, Ark.)
Organization: Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance (http://www.arhungeralliance.org)
Hobbs is working with the Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance to develop a program that would enable food banks across the state to distribute beef to hungry Arkansans. Arkansas, along with Mississippi, has the highest rate of food insecurity in the United States. The project seeks to contribute to the organization’s mission to build sustainable and nutritional sources of food for distribution.
Angela Jimenez. M.D. (Little Rock, Ark.)
Organization: Arkansas Department of Health (http://www.healthy.arkansas.gov)
Dr. Jimenez is working with the Arkansas Department of Health to identify the predictive factors of adolescent pregnancies in the Latino population in Central Arkansas. With this project, the Arkansas Department of Health will be able to develop communication strategies with the Latino population to reduce the adolescent pregnancy rate in Central Arkansas.
Immaculee Kayitare (Kayonza, Eastern Province, Rwanda)
Organization: Imbuto Foundation (http://www.imbutofoundation.org/)
Kayitare is working with the Imbuto Foundation to sustain its Early Childhood Development and Family Center. The center was born after the Rwandan government passed an early childhood policy and strategy plan in September 2011 which aims to have all children in Rwanda reach their full potential physically, mentally, socio-emotionally, and cognitively. Kayitare will develop indicators for monitoring and evaluation to improve the quality of the daily services provided at the Center, in order for it to serve as a model to be scaled out throughout the country.
Marisa Nelson (Little Rock, Ark.)
Organization: Women’s Foundation of Arkansas (WFA) (www.womensfoundationarkansas.org)
Nelson is conducting focus groups with women across the state to gauge reactions to “1973/2013: A Then & Now Report on the Status of Women in Arkansas”, published by WFA earlier this year. Focus group topics include the barriers and opportunities women face in seeking higher education, gainful employment, and positions of leadership. WFA works to promote philanthropy among women and to help women and girls achieve their full potential.
Roger Norman (London, England)
Organization: The ONE Campaign (http://www.one.org)
Norman is partnering with the ONE Campaign to conduct a study on increasing the organization’s volunteer base and developing campaign impact in Europe, specifically the United Kingdom. This will enhance the organization’s mission of advocating support for international aid to help fight poverty and preventable disease in sub-Saharan Africa.
Matt Orr (Phnom Penh, Cambodia)
Organization: Sarus (http://www.sarusprogram.org/)
Orr is working with Sarus to sustain their current peace-building exchange program, which fosters understanding between young leaders from Cambodia and Vietnam, and also to lay the groundwork for a similar program between Bangladesh and Myanmar. Sarus’s mission is to inspire and empower a generation of young leaders to build a peaceful and prosperous Southeast Asia through the implementation of exchange programs that focus on cultural immersion, leadership development, and conflict transformation.
Tyler Pearson (Little Rock, Ark.)
Organization: Arkansas Children’s Hospital Foundation (http://giving.archildrens.org)
Pearson is working with the Arkansas Children’s Hospital Foundation to conduct an internal assessment of progress made during the foundation’s Century of Possibility Campaign. The comprehensive audit will cover many areas, including major giving, planned giving, annual giving, operations, and external communication programs. The foundation consists of a professional staff of fundraisers and support service people who are passionate about raising funds to support the needs of Arkansas Children’s Hospital.
Jacob Perry (Pristina, Kosovo)
Organization: Balkan Sunflowers (www.balkansunflowers.org)
Perry is working with Balkan Sunflowers to design a health needs assessment of three minority communities in Kosovo in order to inform the creation and implementation of a national health insurance system. Balkan Sunflowers’s mission is social reconstruction with a focus on community, human dignity, and children and youth.
Lauren Remedios (Rajasthan, India)
Organization: Barefoot College (www.barefootcollege.org)
Lauren is creating a monitoring and evaluation template for Barefoot Women’s Solar Initiative, which trains rural semi-literate to unschooled women, in India and around the world, to become solar engineers. The template is aimed at measuring the quality of life, women’s empowerment, and environmental sustainability of the initiative. Barefoot College addresses issues of poverty, water, energy, education, health, and unemployment through community-driven solutions with the objective of making communities self-sufficient and sustainable.
Jenna Rhodes (North Little Rock, Ark.)
Organization: Fit 2 Live (http://nlrfit2live.org/)
Rhodes is working with several neighborhoods in North Little Rock to build strong and diverse stakeholder teams to move through a visioning process as part of Metroplan’s Imagine Central Arkansas Campaign. Each neighborhood’s plan will consider transportation, educational opportunities, economic development, quality places, pedestrian design, and other elements. Fit 2 Live is an initiative working to make the healthiest choices the easiest choices for North Little Rock residents through education, activities, community gardens, and policy changes.
Cathrine Schwader (Fayetteville, Ark.)
Organization: Feed Communities (http://www.feedcommunities.org)
Schwader is working with the non-profit organization Feed Communities to conduct a community food assessment of Benton and Washington Counties in Northwest Arkansas. This assessment seeks to discover the challenges faced by people who are food insecure and the community resources available. Feed Communities works with individuals, organizations, local governments, and foundations in Northwest Arkansas to support and expand local food systems as a means of providing durable solutions for food insecurity and increasing access to healthy foods for all.
Emily Wernsdorfer (Little Rock, Ark.)
Organization: Safe Places (www.safeplaceslr.net)
Wernsdorfer is working with Safe Places to develop and promote an online safe room for those affected by violence, abuse, and assault. This program will increase the online presence of Safe Places while providing victims with a secure, anonymous, and easily accessible support group resource. Safe Places provides resources and advocacy for children, families, and individuals who have been victims of abuse in Arkansas.
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