Posted
by
Lisa Jervey Lennox, Assistant Director for Communications
In Cornell Institute for Public Affairs

CIPA Director Maria Fitzpatrick will be chairing a featured panel at the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management (APPAM) 2019 Spring Conference in Washington, DC, being held May 14 to 15.  Entitled “Crossing the Line: Innovations in Alumni Shaping Public Policy Curricula,” the panel will explore innovative ways in which some graduate policy programs are inviting their alumni to contribute and shape their alma mater’s public policy curricula.

CIPA Director Maria Fitzpatrick

CIPA Director Maria Fitzpatrick

"We’ve been working with CIPA alumni for several years now to design innovative programming for our students through our certificate programs,” says Fitzpatrick.  “These graduate certificates are novel because of the ways in which they create unique learning environments for students that build on our fantastically engaged alumni base and our experiential learning goals.  These programs are unlike any others that we've been seeing from other programs and the students who have participated have done really well after graduation.  We're excited to keep building in this area."

In addition to discussing graduate certificate programs, Fitzpatrick expects to discuss other innovative alumni engagement initiatives including:

  • alumni-led engaged learning projects. 
  • alumni as instructors in professional graduate programs.
  • alumni participation in curriculum discussions beyond conventional practices.  

The session will address challenges to incorporating alumni perspectives in curriculum design, including managing expectations for alumni engagement, working with alumni to identify practical learning objectives, and ensuring bi-directional relationships between research and practice.