Dear Princeton SPIA community,
As we begin a new academic year, I am prouder than ever of the roles you are playing to better the world. As alumni, faculty, students, staff, and as friends of the School, you stand as pillars of achievement, in service to the nation and humanity.
The beginning of the year is a time to look forward. In that spirit, I am excited to welcome all our new graduate and undergraduate students, as well as Crystal Yang, a professor of public and international affairs, and six new practitioners. I am also delighted to welcome Jennifer A. Daum MPA ’12, who has joined us as our new associate dean of admissions, career development, and alumni affairs.
In addition, we have several new curricular offerings this fall. These include a new course and a new policy task force on artificial intelligence, reflecting our commitment to offer rigorous and relevant coursework to educate the next generation of policymakers.
As always, the Dean’s Leadership Series will bring to campus numerous high-level speakers to give our students the chance to hear a wide variety of perspectives. The semester’s first event is a September 8 panel discussion on the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. The speakers include the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Spencer Ackerman; Colin Clarke, executive director of the security-focused thinktank the Soufan Center; and Elizabeth Richard, former coordinator for counterterrorism with the State Department and a former U.S. ambassador to Lebanon. The remainder of the semester will bring similarly accomplished guests for public talks and meetings with our students.
Furthering the School’s engagement with policymakers is one of our strategic priorities. In that spirit, I would like to call your attention to a new report summarizing the success of the Princeton SPIA DC Center over its first three years. When we launched the center in the spring of 2023, I spoke of “the undeniable importance of showing up.” Show up we have! The activities of the last three years, well detailed in the report, show how the center has benefitted our alumni, faculty, and students, as well as policymakers.
I am grateful, as always, for the many ways our alumni support our students and one another — from coffee chats and mentorship to panels and networking. Your continued engagement strengthens our entire community. I am proud of all that we accomplish together and am confident that, now and into the future, Princeton SPIA will continue its proud legacy of convening the brightest minds for the greatest good.
Best wishes for a successful and meaningful semester.
Warmly,
Amaney Jamal
Dean