Happy fall! We’re very pleased to have started the semester with a great turn-out at our annual pizza party. Indeed, with so many people in attendance I had nothing to take home to my boys—which is in fact a good thing, given how often they eat pizza.
CONGRATULATIONS, FIRST COLLABORATIVE GOVERNANCE CERTIFICATE COHORT!
Our initial cohort of Collaborative Governance Certificate students finished the program requirements over the summer. Dean Otis Scott, Center for Collaborative Policy Director Susan Sherry, and I all attended the last session of the summer class, PPA 296L. You can find a picture of the very distinguished group of students and their instructors (David Booher and co-instructor Laura Kappa) here.
GREETINGS FROM IRAQ
Michael Spears writes: “I am a 1993 graduate of the MPPA program currently deployed on the Iraq-Iran border as a member of an 11 man team. We embedded advisors to the Iraqi Security Forces. Living and working with our Iraqi counterparts gives us a slightly different view of Iraq then our brothers in other locations… As a father, I sometimes see my children in the children I see here. In many ways it breaks my heart, to see the little girls (and boys too, but my daughter is my youngest) as they try to run to the road to catch our vehicle hoping we can give them some water, food or candy. More often than not we cannot stop as it is not safe for us to do so, but we try to toss water and other items if we can. The border area I am in is remote and many of the houses are adobe mud construction. I know I am applying U.S. standards of living and it may not be fair to do so, but I find it difficult to understand how some can have so much in this country while so many have so little…I've learned more about patience here. Advising is a delicate art and in a way the MPPA program helped prepare me for this job. So let me thank everyone in the first class who without knowing it, taught me to listen to their perspective. Dr. Jensen had a favorite phrase, ‘tease out the subtleties.’ We use to kid her about that phrase, but here it is appropriate, for Iraq is a land of subtle differences and understanding the culture is everything.”
DEADLINES, DEADLINES, DEADLINES
Current students, please remember that: 1) census date is October 2, which means that is the last day to add a class; 2) the last day to drop classes (without getting the Dean’s approval) is October 13; and 3) November 1 is the last day to turn in a fall ’06 graduation application.
Ted Lascher
PPA Department Chair
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