Dear Princeton SPIA community,

As the spring semester draws to a close, I am grateful to everyone at the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs for helping make the last few months such a success. There was much to be proud of, but I want to highlight two efforts that were particularly meaningful for the School.

First, our Constructive Dialogues initiative welcomed speakers from a wide variety of backgrounds and perspectives, who engaged in respectful conversations on difficult and controversial issues. Panel discussions on antisemitism, Islamophobia, the 119th Congress, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict gave our students multiple viewpoints to consider. Syrian American violinist and speaker Mariela Shaker spoke of her inspiring journey and played beautiful music for us.

Second, with the new presidential administration’s policy shifts resulting in significant cuts to the federal workforce, we invited a diverse set of guest speakers as part of the Dean’s Leadership Series to show students the myriad pathways to public service. Analysts, journalists, thinktank heads, academics, and more shared their experiences and demonstrated that there are many ways to be in service to the nation and humanity.

An additional note of gratitude at the end of the academic year to the entire SPIA community. We could not have accomplished all we did this year without your help. Thank you! We also have much to look forward to, beginning with Reunions and Commencement later this month, and a robust series of speakers this fall. I hope to see you at some of these events.

Warm regards,

Amaney Jamal

Dean