This past weekend, undergraduates and post-graduates traveled to The LBJ School of Public Affairs to participate in the Public Policy and International Affairs (PPIA)'s Public Service Weekend. The attendees of this weekend attend panels, network with one another, and complete a project by the end of the weekend. The theme of the weekend was Emerging Public Policy Issues in Texas and the American South.
PPIA attracts students and recent grads from all over the country who are interested in public policy. Attendee Reyna Stovall is a rising senior at Fordham University at the Lincoln Center in New York City. Stovall originally became interested in public policy, specifically for human rights and genocide awareness, after working as a docent at The Holocaust Memorial Museum in San Antonio.
“I am most interested in global conflict policy because I believe that how well a society manages to maintain peace in spite of conflict is a true marker of its effectiveness,” Stovall said.
Another student attendee, Taniajit Kaur, is a first-generation student seeking to learn about international affairs, justice, and transnational issues.
“I grew up in my family's restaurant, so I have always been surrounded by people. As I am also often the only English speaker present, I often get put on customer service duty. When I learned more about what government officials do, it is similar to what I have grown up doing at my family's restaurant, but still vastly diverse. A career in public policy aligns seamlessly with my customer service experience and combines the interest that I have always had for politics,” Kaur said.
Kaur applied to PPIA because of its reputation and impact.
“PPIA has a long history of empowering diverse changemakers,” Kaur said. “With that in mind and prior experience of receiving the most impactful mentorship from diverse leaders, I knew almost immediately that PPIA was right for me.”
After traveling to Austin, checking in, and attending a policy briefing on Thursday, attendees began the weekend with a welcome breakfast and openings remarks from LBJ School Dean JR DeShazo and PPIA Executive Director Estevan Delgado. This was followed by a day of trainings and panels with civic leaders from all over Texas.
Participants attended a lunch panel with Pflugerville City Councilman and President of the Texas Black Caucus Foundation, Rudy Metayer, and Founder and Strategy Leader of Morris StratCom/Crowd Kinetics, J. Clint Morris. Metayer and Morris highlighted the need for bipartisanship and seeking to understand differing viewpoints. Later, attendees heard from Amy Kroll, founder of the LBJ Women’s Campaign School. She trained them on turning passion into action and instructed everyone in a goal setting group activity.
On Saturday, attendees got a real feel for public policy school by hearing directly from LBJ and UT professors on subjects like race, democracy and public policy and the neglected middle class. The keynote lecture of the day was on Latino Identity and Border Policy Impact, taught by Dr. Sergio Garcia-Rios, LBJ Assistant Professor and Assistant Director of the LBJ Center for the Study of Race and Democracy, and Anna Oaxaca-Carasco, a UT Provost Early Career Fellow.
In the evening, participants attended a special dinner and reception with PPIA and LBJ alumni. They had opportunities to network with alumni and learn more about public policy school and potential careers. The evening's featured speakers included Emily Bhandari, Executive Director for The Patman Center for Civic and Political Engagement, LBJ School Dean JR DeShazo, PPIA Executive Director Estevan Delgado and Travis County Commissioner Jeff Travillion.
On Sunday morning, it was time for attendees to present their policy recommendation projects to judges. Attendees had been working on these projects all weekend in teams using skills they had learned from different speakers. Afterwards, they attended a brunch with State Representative Gina Hinojosa and received weekend superlatives.
Interested in attending a PPIA Public Service Weekend? These weekends occur throughout the year and are continuously taking applicants. Check their website for a full list of weekend dates and application deadlines! https://www.ppiaprogram.org/public-service-weekends