St. Albans School of Public Service

08/14/2020

Happy to see the Tax Reform group is still going strong on Zoom! 3 weeks out from the Congressional Debate...

07/24/2020

SPS 2020 is in the books! In keeping with tradition, it is time to retire the 2019 class photo and put the class of 2020 front and center for the next year. This is a special group - we will be excited to say we knew them back when.

07/24/2020

St. Albans School of Public Service's cover photo

07/24/2020

Last day of SPS 2020! Wrapping up the program with our traditional Congressional debate followed by our closing ceremony. Students are in the process of writing their thank you notes to our speakers and they are a joy to read. It definitely feels like a window into the next generation of leaders. #theSPSkidsarealright

07/22/2020

Right now, students are hearing from former Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg. Here is a screenshot from his opening remarks. Mr. Buttigieg says he is eager to hear from the students so Q&A to begin shortly.

07/21/2020

Fiona Hill Opening Statement

This afternoon, students had the opportunity to hear from Fiona Hill, the former deputy assistant to the president and senior director for European and Russian affairs on the National Security Council from 2017 to 2019 who testified before Congress during the 2019 impeachment proceedings of President Donald J. Trump (a recording of her opening statement is available below).

From 2006 to 2009, she served as national intelligence officer for Russia and Eurasia at The National Intelligence Council. Ms. Hill is a senior fellow in the Center on the United States and Europe in the Foreign Policy program at the Brookings Institution.

https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4832408/fiona-hill-opening-statement

In her opening statement before the House Intelligence Committee impeachment hearing, Fiona Hill, the former senior director for Europe and Russia on the National Security Council, speaks first about her personal biography growing up poor in northeast England, earning a scholarship in the U.S., and....

07/21/2020

Shared Studios

With the help of Shared Studios, our students were able to connect live with four environmental activists across East Africa to hear what it is like to be on the front lines combating environmental problems that face the region. Students joined in small group discussions with these activists after a moderated conversation with the guest speakers. In a continued collaboration with Shared Studios, a video will be produced documenting today's event. We look forward to sharing that with you at a later date!

https://www.facebook.com/sharedstudios/

We connect people separated by distance and difference through immersive portals across the globe. Enter one of our spaces and come face-to-face with someone in a distant site, live and full body, as if in the same room.

07/20/2020

This morning, cybersecurity expert Niloofar Razi Howe spoke with SPS students. Ms. Howe has been an investor, executive and entrepreneur in the technology industry for the past 25 years, with a focus on Cybersecurity for the past ten. She is a senior fellow at the New America Foundation's Cybersecurity Initiative. https://www.newamerica.org/cybersecurity-initiative/

07/20/2020

Today and tomorrow, members of the SPS Congress are squaring off against the Fourth Estate in their press conferences as part of the Congressional Bill Project. Students take turns presenting their bills and serving as members of the media. Students are assigned to groups charged with writing legislation on one of six topics: Gun Reform, Education Reform, Immigration, Healthcare, Climate Change and Tax Reform. Below is a screenshot of some of the media outlets students represented today.

07/18/2020

In 2018, a group of SPS students had a chance encounter with civil rights icon John Lewis while on Capitol Hill. Mr. Lewis was known as the “conscience of Congress” and encouraged young people to get into “good trouble.” Rest In Peace, Mr. Lewis.

07/17/2020

Mentor Spotlight: Julia Barton-Biegelsen (SPS ‘18)
especially loved arguing a Supreme Court case to the “justices” in her class. She graduated from Bethesda-Chevy Chase high school in Maryland in 2019, where she was the captain of the beloved debate team. She is now studying Russian and anthropology at Wellesley College in Massachusetts. She sings a capella with the Wellesley College Blue Notes and is not a big fan of the two-party system.

Below, Julia (pictured left) on the first day of the 2018 program.

07/16/2020

Mentor Spotlight: We have two mentors from last year’s class: Henry D’Amico and Carlos Cruz. We even found a photo of them together at last year’s mock press conference!

A favorite memory for Carlos from SPS was seeing the participants reactions to seeing D.C. He graduated from Gonzaga College High school in D.C in 2020, where he was a boatman for the crew team. He will attend Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in the fall, where he will study Biomedical Engineering. He hopes to be able to use his knowledge in his field to come back and help the underserved communities in D.C.

Henry is from Pasadena, California and just graduated from Polytechnic School. In high school, Henry participated in debate, musicals, and ethics bowl, played football and basketball. Henry is attending Davidson College where he wants to study political science and is specifically interested in data analytics and polling. Some of his favorite memories from his time at SPS include hearing the other perspectives of his peers and the speaker program.

07/15/2020

This morning, we heard from Josh Bolten, former White House Chief of Staff for President George W. Bush. Mr. Bolten spent twenty years in government service and is currently the President and CEO of the Business Roundtable.

https://www.businessroundtable.org/about-us/staff/joshua-bolten-president-ceo

07/14/2020

This past Sunday, SPS ‘19 alum Clifford McKinney reported to the United States Military Academy (West Point) for cadet basic training. As a new cadet, he will undergo four weeks of basic training in advance of the start of the academic year.

SPS is so proud of Clifford for his appointment to West Point. The next few weeks will be extremely challenging (even with the training being cut two weeks short due to the pandemic). Cards and letters of support are much appreciated during this time. If you were a classmate of Clifford’s in 2019 or would otherwise like to send him a note with a favorite SPS memory, we are sure it will be enjoyed.

Those interested in writing can send us a private message for the mailing address.

Below, a picture of Clifford from the first night of the 2019 program.

07/13/2020

Tonight, mentors Nina Hazra (SPS '16) and Gabriella Lewis (SPS '18) are hosting game night for our 2020 class. We plan on hosting several more informal gatherings to give our 2020 cohort a chance to meet outside of the classroom as their schedule allows. Here is a little bit about each of these mentors:

Nina attended SPS in the summer of 2016 and has worked at SPS every summer since! One of her favorite SPS memories is meeting Politico reporter Daniel Lippman, as she is an avid reader of the Politico Playbook column. She attends Cornell University, where she studies Chemistry and Chemical Biology, with minors in Mathematics and Spanish. She hopes to be a physician one day. At Cornell, she serves as the Vice President of the Cornell Democrats, works with an organization called YOURS to mentor local-area youth, and is a member of both the sorority Pi Beta Phi and the pre-medical fraternity Phi Delta Epsilon.

At SPS, Gabriella loved creating and advocating for legislation during the Congressional Bill Project. She is originally from the San Francisco Bay Area and currently attends Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, where she majors in political science and women, gender, and sexuality studies. At Emory, she is involved with the student newspaper the Emory Wheel, the Residence Hall Association, and getting involved with politics and social justice.

07/13/2020

This afternoon, Valerie Jarrett, former senior advisor to President Barack Obama, spoke to SPS. She kicks off a week full of exciting speakers: four-star U.S. Navy Admiral (Ret.) William McRaven; former White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten; Acting U.S. Solicitor General Jeffrey Wall; and Michael Curtin of DC Central Kitchen. Our speaker program is a cornerstone of the SPS experience and we are thrilled to connect students with these leaders in public service.

07/13/2020

The Fields of Immokalee (Swing State Florida, Episode 1)

This morning, students watched one of Samuel George’s short films from his three-part series, “Swing State: Florida.” Afterwards, the students participated in a Q&A with Mr. George, who is a documentary filmmaker and analyst for the Bertelsmann Foundation focusing on the intersection of economics, politics, the digital revolution, and daily life. You can watch Episode One and the rest of the series on YouTube.

Winner of the Impact Docs Award of Excellence The fields of Immokalee lie two hours’ drive due west of Miami, down a sparse state highway that cuts through t...

07/10/2020

Mentor Spotlight: Tommy Schacht (SPS '16)

Tommy is from Indianapolis, Indiana, and a graduate of Culver Military Academy. He currently studies Medieval History at Yale University, and is particularly interested in the development of doctrine and papal power during the High Middle Ages. Outside of the classroom, Tommy is involved in the Yale Conservative Party, which is a constituent debate club of the Yale Political Union, the largest collegiate debating society in the country. He has served as Chairman and Speaker of the Conservative Party and YPU respectively. He has also served as a board member of the Episcopal Church at Yale.

Below: Tommy holds court at the final banquet in 2016.

07/09/2020

Today's speaker was David Frum, former speechwriter and special assistant to President George W. Bush. Mr. Frum is a senior editor at The Atlantic and the author of ten books, most recently TRUMPOCALYPSE: Restoring American Democracy. His biggest claim to fame, however, is being dad to SPS '19 alum, Bea.

07/09/2020

To support our students this summer, we have asked seven SPS alums to serve as mentors. Typically, we hire alums as interns and RAs when we meet in person and they are always a great resource. This year, each student is assigned a mentor who can be their to-go expert on all things SPS. We are thrilled they are a part of the program and will highlight each of them in a "Mentor Spotlight" over the next few days. First up, Maya Riddles (SPS '15).

Maya is a native of Atlanta, Georgia, and a 2016 graduate of The Piney Woods School in Mississippi, one of the one of four remaining historically African-American boarding schools in the United States. She recently received her B.A. in Public Health from the first interacial and coeducational college in the south, Berea College.

She credits SPS for her decision to study public health: her favorite SPS memory was hearing Dr. Anthony Fauci speak about his path to public service and his thoughts on key public health steps for prevention of pandemics. Since that moment, Maya wanted to be involved in epidemiology and health disparities.

Currently, Maya is studying to be a Physician Assistant and plans to work in underserved communities in Atlanta.

07/08/2020

Today, our students heard from Mary Bissell, an attorney, child and family policy expert and founding partner of ChildFocus. Ms. Bissell, who is also an Adjunct Professor at the Georgetown University Law Center, taught a class on advocacy today, which she also teaches at GU to public interest attorneys.

07/07/2020

After yesterday's orientation, we are jumping in this morning with our first speaker, Clara Brillembourg, an international lawyer specializes in counseling sovereign States in international disputes against other States, foreign investors and U.S. plaintiffs. You can read more about Ms. Brillemourg's work here:
https://foleyhoag.com/people/brillembourg-clara

06/26/2020

Binders have been replaced with boxes for this year‘s online SPS – – a care package of bios, case studies, group project materials, and – – new this year – – SPS swag with the new logo!

04/03/2020

SPS 2015: Public Service Through Public Health

Over the years, quite a few then-students at the St. Albans School of Public Service were fortunate enough to hear from Dr. Anthony Fauci of NIH about his career in public service. We know that all of those alumni are grateful, as are we at SPS, that this giant of public health is helping guide the nation through the COVID-19 crisis.
See below for a link back to our SPS blog post about a visit by Dr. Fauci to SPS in 2015. And here's a link to an interesting current New York Times interview with Dr. Fauci on the New York Times's podcast, "The Daily:" https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/02/podcasts/the-daily/coronavirus-fauci.html

Dr, Fauci at SPS Yesterday the St. Albans School of Public Service was fortunate enough to hear from one of the giants of American publ...

01/21/2020

You don't have to wait for summer or SPS to visit the inspiring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial in Washington, D.C. (photo: SPS 2018).

12/28/2019

Set your alarm to snooze for six months from today . . . June 28 is the St.Albans School of Public Service 2020 Arrival Day!

12/24/2019

The St. Albans School of Public Service and Bert, the Official St. Albans School Dog, wish you a peaceful and joyful holiday season! (Photo credit: Dr. C.G. Friend.)

12/20/2019

Winter or summer, in the States or abroad, St. Albans School of Public Service alums maintain the friendships formed at SPS (here: SPS alums/RAs Alexa P. and Camilla D. discussing key points of public policy on the Cliffs of Moher in Ireland).

12/17/2019

Helena City Commission candidates: Emily Dean

The St. Albans School of Public Service congratulates SPS alum Emily Dean, SPS '09, on her recent election to the City Commission for Helena, Montana -- congratulations, Emily! We know you will make a difference for the city of Helena.

Emily Dean says the city of Helena is at a “crossroads,” and she wants to serve on the Helena City Commission to help address the challenges that are coming.

12/01/2019

Are you a rising high school senior ready to explore Washington DC in summer 2020 with the premier high school politics and public service program? Apply to the St. Albans School of Public Service Summer program: www.schoolofpublicservice.org Applications for the 2020 program, available online, open TODAY!

11/30/2019

Ready to take flight this summer at the top Washington, DC politics and public policy program for high school seniors? Applications for the St. Albans School of Public Service 2020 program open tomorrow (available online at www.schoolofpublicservice.org)

11/24/2019

Are you a current high school junior looking for an incomparable view of Washington DC in summer 2020? Applications for the St. Albans School of Public Service 2020 program are open in one week on the SPS website: www.schoolofpublicservice.org

11/23/2019

Video shows wild turkey chasing away Wisconsin mailman

Despite narratives that this wild turkey chasing the mail truck is related to Thanksgiving, we think it's very possible that he just wants to make sure his application for the 2020 St. Albans School of Public Service program arrives on December 1, the first day of the SPS 2020 admissions cycle. (Somebody tell him that he can just go online at www.schoolofpublicservice.org to fill out his application!)

It’s safe to say this mailman has had his fill of turkey this Thanksgiving season.

11/17/2019

Two week count down until applications for the 2020 St. Albans School of Public Service Program go live on December 1!

11/01/2019

Spread the news! Applications for the St. Albans School of Public Service go live in one month! Mark your calendar for December 1 — applications available online on the SPS website: www.schoolofpublicservice.org