Clinton School students have now completed more than 100000 hours of public service since the beginning of the school’s Master of Public Service degree program in 2005. The milestone was part of a landmark year for the nation’s seventh presidential school.
A significant portion of the school’s curriculum is field service projects completed throughout Arkansas, the country and the world. This work has translated to more than $1.6 million in direct community impact, according to calculations that measure the impact of volunteer service.
Students complete three for-credit public service projects during the two-year program. The Practicum projects require them to work in teams to assist an Arkansas-based public service organization; the International Public Service Projects take them abroad to work with governments, nonprofits and NGOs; and the final Capstone
projects challenge them to complete in-depth individual projects as the culmination of their Clinton School experience.
Through six years, Clinton School students have performed more than 325 public service projects. More than 150 of these projects were completed in 53 countries and over 125 took place in Arkansas.
“The field service work at the Clinton School is what makes our school unique from other professional master programs,” said Marie Lindquist, director of field service education at the Clinton School. “We look for projects that will allow our students to have a quality learning experience and have a positive impact on the communities where they serve.”
From creating an educational and promotional film about the Our House shelter for the working homeless in Little Rock, to securing funding for a well to provide water for a village in Tanzania, the impact of the student projects extend well into the future, said Clinton School Dean Skip Rutherford.
“The over $1.6 million community impact includes hours served but does not count the numerous short-term and long-term results the projects have generated,” Rutherford said.
Clinton School students are currently completing over 40 field service projects, including 10 Practicum projects with organizations such as the Arkansas Women’s Foundation, Arkansas Children’s Hospital, Governor Mike Beebe’s No Kid Hungry Campaign and the Sustainable Business Network of Central Arkansas, among others.
Examples of final Capstone projects being completed by Clinton School students include designing a business start-up competition for the Newport Economic Development Commission, reviewing new project development for Heifer International and obtaining stakeholder input about the state’s comprehensive water plan with the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission.
Some past projects have led students into jobs following graduation from the Clinton School. David Watterson (’11) was hired by Music National Service, a San Francisco-based nonprofit that supports music programs for social good, after he partnered with the organization to create a day of service on MLK Day for his final Capstone Project. Watterson is now a senior manager of community programs for the organization.
“My Clinton School experience has made me think much more critically about what it means to serve the public and the decisions I can make to reap the greatest impact,” Watterson said. “As a professional, I believe I will be able to provide mindful, reasoned leadership that places high priority on civic engagement and utilizing community based assets.”