The Clinton School will graduate 36 students from the unique Master of Public Service degree program on Saturday at 2:00 p.m. at the Statehouse Convention Center in downtown Little Rock.
In his first major speech in his new position, the Heifer International CEO will give the commencement address. Ferrari is responsible for directing Heifer International as it pursues and delivers on its mission to end poverty and hunger and care for the Earth. Previously, Ferrari served as a board member and chair of Ben & Jerry’s Homemade Ice Cream.
The Clinton School graduates entered the program two years ago from across Arkansas, the country and the world. They represent 17 states and four countries including Indonesia, Pakistan, South Africa and Thailand.
As part of the Clinton School curriculum, they each completed three public service projects in Arkansas communities and in 25 countries around the world. The projects include:
The Practicum (group) Project takes student teams into Arkansas communities, including the impoverished Mississippi River Delta, to foster community development and social change in the areas of economic development, environmental awareness, public education, youth leadership development and healthcare.
The International Public Service Project places students with organizations all over the world combating global hunger, fostering educational opportunities for children, promoting corporate responsibility and expanding healthcare in the third world.
The Capstone (final) Project challenges students to put their learned skills into action and complete an in-depth public service project to benefit a government or nonprofit agency and ultimately lead the student into a career upon graduation.
On the jump are capsules on each of the graduates and the projects they completed.
Patrick Banks (St. Louis, Mo.) – A graduate of Wabash College and former participant in Teach for America, Banks assisted with an effort to design a network of St. Louis charter schools for his final Capstone project. For his international project, he traveled to Essaba Village, Kenya, to help re-design the science curriculum for Western Kenyan Schools in partnership with an educational empowerment initiative.
Cory Biggs (Paragould, Ark.) – A concurrent JD/MPS student, Biggs worked with the Arkansas Attorney General’s Office to research the feasibility of a holistic defense organization to assist indigent citizens in Central Arkansas for his final Capstone Project. He completed his international project in Kigali, Rwanda, where he worked with the Rwandan Judiciary to find ways to reduce corruption among public officials.
LaTrenia Byrd (Tuscaloosa, Ala.) – A graduate of the University of Alabama, Bryd is completing the concurrent JD/MPS program. For her Capstone Project, she is evaluating student retention programs for Phillips Community College in Helena-West Helena, Ark. She completed her international project in Shanghai, China, where she worked on a corporate social responsibility project for Bayer China.
Kim Caldwell (Austin, Texas) – A graduate of the University of Texas, Caldwell worked with the Office of Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe to study efforts to address childhood hunger for her final Capstone Project. She completed her international project in Western Cape, South Africa, where she helped two local foundations find ways to collaborate on community development projects.
Ratnasari Dewi (Banda Aceh, Indonesia) – A former communication assistant for the World Bank in post-tsunami Indonesia, Dewi partnered with a conservation project in Arlington, Va., to develop a training program for staff members for her final Capstone project. She completed her international project with the Nature Conservancy in San Antonio, Texas, where she redesigned an orientation program for new employees working in the Asia Pacific and North Asia regions.
Elrina Frost (Pretoria, South Africa) – A graduate of the University of Minnesota and the University of Pretoria, South Africa, Frost partnered with Winrock International to evaluate community development projects in Uganda for her final Capstone project. She completed her international project in Johannesburg, South Africa, where she partnered with a local volunteer organization to the evaluate the impact of international voluntary service learning programs.
Valerie Hendrix (Antoine, Ark.) – A graduate of Harding University, Hendrix worked with the Arkansas Office of Health Information Technology to inform consumers about the benefits of a statewide health information exchange for her final Capstone project. For her international project, she partnered with the Bureau of Gender and Community Affairs in Roseau, Dominica to conduct a series of public forums on gender equity.
William Jeter (Wabbaseka, Ark.) – A graduate of the University of Mississippi, Jeter worked with the Delta Regional Authority, a federally-funded development organization in Clarksdale, Miss., to create a new media strategy to engage partner organizations for his final Capstone project. For his international project, he worked with Arkansas-based Riceland Foods to develop a Haitian agricultural capacities assessment aimed at stimulating the country’s struggling agriculture sector.
Gralon Johnson (St. Louis, Mo.) – A graduate of the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, Johnson partnered with a Boys and Girls Club in St. Louis to develop a program to increase academic success among African American males for his final Capstone project. He completed his international project in Accra, Ghana, where he created an information database for a program that works to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV/AIDS.
Lindsey Johnson (Memphis, Tenn.) – A graduate of Wheaton College, Johnson partnered with the Arkansas Center for Health Improvement to help develop an all-payer state health insurance database for her final Capstone project. She completed her international project in Jilin City, China, where she worked with a rural hospital to develop strategies for public health education.
Ben Kaufman (Milwaukee, Wis.) – A graduate of Drake University, Kaufman partnered with Timberland Corporation to research a means of calculating return on investment for the company’s social change projects in its factories across the world. For his international project, Kaufman worked with TOMS Shoes in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to create a distribution plan for providing shoes to local children.
Mircha C. King (Boston, Mass.) – A concurrent JD/MPS student, King worked the Arkansas Land and Farm Development Corporation to identify ways that the African American agriculture community in Arkansas can create sustainable market driven businesses for his Capstone project. For his international project, King traveled to Shanghai, China, to help a labor law center become an independent, self-sustaining NGO.
Sarah Leer (Fort Smith, Ark.) – A graduate of Wake Forest University, Leer helped a new Central Arkansas community theater to engage diverse theater groups from around Arkansas for her final Capstone project. She completed her international project in Castries, St. Lucia, where she worked with a media outreach nonprofit to teach children about health improvement and human rights.
Mark Lienhart (North Little Rock, Ark.) – A graduate of the University of Arkansas, Lienhart partnered with the Little Rock Convention and Visitors Bureau to research new programs and community involvement activities for the city’s River Market District for his final Capstone project. He completed his internationl project in Addis Ababa and Sodo, Ethiopia, where he gathered information for an organization that works to treat and prevent Mossy Foot disease among the local population.
Jack Lofton (Hughes, Ark.) – A graduate of Lyon College who serves as director of the Little Rock Film Festival, Lofton created a short documentary to raise awareness about a local homeless shelter for his final Capstone Project. For his international project, he partnered with the Arkansas Economic Development Commission to recruit international film productions to the state.
Mahmoud Mahmoud (Morris Plains, New Jersey) – Born in Cairo, Egypt, and raised in the United States, Mahmoud, completed his international project in Cairo where he helped link the work of two organizations that promote youth development in the city. He did his international project in Rahallah, Palestine, where he helped develop a volunteer and intern program for the Palestinian News Network.
Heather Malveaux (Marrero, La.) – A graduate of Loyola University in New Orleans, Malveaux is completing coursework for the concurrent MPH/MPS program and will begin her Capstone project soon. For her international project, she traveled to Johannesburg, South Africa, where she evaluated a program that works to educate people about sexual behavior related to the transmission of HIV/AIDS.
Julie Meyer (Appleton Wis.) – A graduate of Washington University in St. Louis, Meyer partnered with the Arkansas Department of Human Services to evaluate the practices and outcomes of state drug courts for her final Capstone Project. She completed her international project in Uganda where she worked with the African Prisons Project to study prospects of expansion into Kenya and Sierra Leone.
David Monteith (San Antonio, Texas) – A former high school teacher, Monteith completed his final Capstone project in Toronto, Canada, where he partnered with a nonprofit program that works to reduce levels of aggression among schoolchildren. He completed his international project in Be’er Sheva, Israel, where he provided English-language services and teaching expertise to a nonprofit that promotes democracy in the country.
Adam Moreland (Morgantown, W.V.) – A graduate of Randolph-Macon College, Moreland completed his Capstone project in Atlanta where he partnered with the Georgia Center for Nonprofits to evaluate the impact of an annual nonprofit summit. He completed his international project in Uganda where he developed a construction program to improve the living conditions of children at a school that caters to children who have been orphaned by the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
Rebecca Morrison (Fairview, Tenn.) – A graduate of the University of Mississippi, Morrison has worked to evaluate the use of space shared by two nonprofits in Little Rock for her final Capstone project. For her international project, Morrison traveled to Melbourne, Australia, where she researched program evaluation approaches for HIPPY Australia, which works with families to prepare children for school and increase literacy rates.
Jeerawat Na Thalang (Thailand) – A former journalist, Na Thalang partnered with the Arkansas Coalition for Excellence to design a media strategy guide for nonprofit organizations in Arkansas for her final Capstone project. She completed her international project in Kathmandu, Nepal, where she helped determine appropriate curriculum and content for literacy development training programs for an educational development initiative.
Ivanley Noisette (Philadelphia, Pa.) – A recently named Mitchell Scholar, Noisette worked with Catholic Relief Services to research water, sanitation and hygiene interventions for urban disaster settings in Haiti for his Capstone project. He completed his international project in Kigali, Rwanda, where he studied the sustainability of a presidential scholars program.
Erin O’Leary (Ferndale, Mich.) – A law graduate from the University of Michigan, O’Leary worked with the Office of Little Rock Mayor Mark Stodola to help develop a service plan for local volunteers for her final Capstone project. She completed her international project in Ahmedabad, India, where she worked with Indicorps, an Indian service organization modeled after AmeriCorps and the Peace Corps.
Ryan Ubuntu Olson (Spokane, Wash.) – A graduate of Gonzaga University, Olson worked with the Unitarian Universalist office of the United Nations to assess the LGBTI human rights advocacy of faith-based NGOs for his final Capstone project. He completed his international project in Nairobi, Kenya, where he helped develop a training program for applying international human rights law to sexual orientation.
Nathaniel Owen (Sherwood, Ark.) – A graduate of Southwestern Assemblies of God University, Owen worked with the Arkansas World Trade Center to establish stronger relationships with the Arkansas business community for his final Capstone project. He completed his international project in Nyakishenyi, Uganda, where he worked with the Nyaka AIDS Foundation to develop a fair-trade system for women to sell handmade goods.
Chanley Painter (Conway, Ark.) – A concurrent JD/MPS student, Painter is working with the Arkansas Access to Justice Commission to examine the outcomes of self-representation in Arkansas courts for her Capstone project. For her international project, she traveled to Kigali, Rwanda, where she helped complete a study on preparing Rwandan students to earn scholarships to American universities.
Katherine Raum (Joplin, Mo.) – A concurrent JD/MPS student, Raum conducted research for her Capstone project on refugee resettlement integration for Welcoming America, which helps immigrants integrate into the social fabric of the United States. She completed her international project in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, where did legal protection work for Asylum Access, a refugee advocacy organization.
Sophia Said (Lahore, Pakistan) – A graduate of the University of Utah, Said completed her Capstone project with the Arkansas Economic Development Commission, for which she conducted comparative research related to regional economic development. She completed her international project in Lahore, Pakistan, where she completed an impact study on a microfinance program for women entrepreneurs.
Debbie Sellnow (Fargo, N.D.) – A graduate of the University of Minnesota, Sellnow worked to determine ways to incorporate STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) education into entertainment focused on American Indians in the United States for her Capstone project. She completed her international project in Las Minas, Panama, where she worked for a nonprofit to help educate Panamanian sex workers about the about the signs and preventions for sexually transmitted diseases.
Hallie Shoffner (Newport, Ark.) A graduate of Vanderbilt University, Shoffner completed her Capstone in Lima, Peru, where she planned the involvement of Arkansas college students in an initiative to help educate them on social change, women’s rights and the indigenous culture of Peru’s Amazonian region. She completed her international project in Lima with a nonprofit that works to promote gender equality, empower women and eliminate gender-based discrimination.
Anna Strong (Searcy, Ark.) – A graduate of Hendrix College, Strong worked to improve a school-based health initiative for Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families for her Capstone project. She completed her international project in Jamkhed, India, where she worked with an organization focused on improving access to healthcare and freedom from poverty, hunger and violence.
Becca Swearingen (Rogers, Ark.) – A graduate of Hendrix College, Swearingen worked for the Walmart Foundation to research ways to maximize the impact of grants related to hunger relief for her final Capstone project. She completed her international project in Shanghai, China, where she partnered with an art gallery to plan a community art event.
David Watterson (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.) – A graduate of Berklee College of Music, Watterson partnered with Music National Service in San Francisco, where helped engage musicians in a service program for his final Capstone project. He completed his international project in Bunyore, Kenya, where he worked with an educational nonprofit to develop a comprehensive plan for a new Model UN program to engage Kenyan and American students in cross-cultural dialogue.
Judy Watts (Longview, Texas) – A graduate of the University of Texas, Watts collaborated with the City of Little Rock Public Works Department to conduct research on current trends in curbside recycling programs for her Capstone. She completed her international project in Castries, St. Lucia where she worked with a radio project focused on raising community awareness about the affects of climate change.
Latonya Wilson (Marianna, Ark.) – A graduate of Hendrix College, Wilson worked with the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation to conduct research on ways to measure outcomes related to the foundation’s grant funding for her Capstone project. She completed her international project in Johannesburg, South Africa, where she designed a questionnaire and conducted interviews with the public regarding a socio-economic rights program.