MPA Program - Cornell Jeb E. Brooks School of Public Policy

04/09/2025

🎓 “Cornell kept coming to the top.” 🎓

Ashlie Bryant had already spent 10 years as CEO of 3 Strands Global Foundation, a nonprofit that fights human trafficking and exploitation. But she wanted more tools to lead with impact.

Cornell’s Executive MPA gave her the strategy, economics, and systems thinking training she needed to level up, while continuing to serve her mission in real time.

📅 Final application deadline is April 15.

📚 Learn more about the Executive MPA here: https://publicpolicy.cornell.edu/masters/mpa/empa/

03/26/2025

“ I really enjoyed the in-person intensives. I was able to see my classmates. We were able to bond, which were some of my favorite memories of the entire program.”

Meet Jackson Clemens MPA ‘23, an alumnus of the Brooks School’s Executive Master of Public Administration. 👋

Jackson, a U.S. Army officer, turned to Cornell’s EMPA program to strengthen his impact as a public servant. Even while he was stationed overseas, the program’s flexibility and in-person intensives gave him the skills, connections, and confidence to lead at the next level.

The Brooks EMPA degree is an interdisciplinary program designed for professionals who want to advance their careers in the broad field of public affairs.

Ready to advance your career in public service?

You can still attend our final info session on Thursday, April 3rd, at 12:30pm ET and get your questions answered before the final application deadline on April 15th: https://publicpolicy.cornell.edu/masters/mpa/empa/connect/info-sessions/

12/05/2024

📍Pantry Collaboration Expands Mission to Fight Food Insecurity📍

Enfield Food Distribution, a vital resource serving over 600 people weekly and distributing 2 million pounds of food annually, has become a lifeline for families, seniors, and individuals in Tompkins County. But, operating out of a 1948 firehouse presents significant challenges.

To help address this, a multidisciplinary Cornell team is supporting Jean Owens, director of Enfield Food Distribution, in her vision for a safer, more welcoming facility. Experts and students from the Brooks School, Cornell, Engineering, and Cornell AAP, with generous support from the Einhorn Center for Community Engagement at Cornell, are collaborating to develop strategic plans, designs, and fundraising strategies.

Among the team members is Courtney Braun ‘25, a second-year MPA student concentrating in nonprofit and public management. Braun is helping Owens with fundraising and coordinating the university collaboration led by Laurie Miller, senior lecturer at the Brooks School and the MPA Program’s associate director for public engagement.

Together, they’re working to create a space that will not only provide food but also empower the community through resources like gardens, nutrition classes, and more.

➕ Special thanks to all current MPA students and alumni who contributed to this collaboration and Laurie Miller for her immense impact and leadership.

🎥 Watch a 5-minute video and read more about the project below.

11/15/2024

🍁Prospective MPA Students🍁
Last Chance to Register for the Fall MPA Open House!

🗓 Monday, November 18
🖥 Virtual, 11:00am-4:00pm EST

What to Expect:
-Connect with program directors and learn about the MPA curriculum
Join a live class: PUBPOL 5111: Public Administration with first-year MPA students
-Hear from current students about their experiences
-Explore career services and professional development opportunities
-Get expert advice on the application process

Whether you're passionate about climate change, education reform, economics, or countless other areas of public policy, Cornell's Master of Public Administration can help you take the next step in your career.

Seats are limited—don’t miss out! Register here: https://mpa.publicpolicy.cornell.edu/fall-open-house

10/31/2024

RSVP Now

10/31/2024

Sending a big thank you to our esteemed MPA alumni who spent a full day on campus connecting with our students! They joined PUBPOL 5009, a career management class for 1st-year MPA students, to share insights on the theme of "Careers in Private and Consulting Sectors."

The alumni also held coffee chats and participated in a networking lunch roundtable, leaving our students inspired and equipped with invaluable guidance that will have a lasting impact.

Special thanks to:
➖ Aaron Anderson, MPA ’05, Senior Partner, Cicero Group
➖ Benjamin Rene Garcia, MPA ’14, VP, People Strategy & Operational Excellence, Bank of America
➖ Rafia Zahir-Uddin, MPA ’15, Vice President, Corporate Responsibility, JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Our students deeply appreciated the wisdom and practical advice shared by these accomplished alumni.

10/12/2024

👋 Meet Executive MPA Students John Garver & Colin Birch 👋

“What this program brings is classes in accounting, finance, economics, and statistics — so you’re actually getting more business administration focused classes, mixing with public sector leadership. And that’s one thing that makes the program really unique. It’s setting up the students for success.”

John Garver and Colin Birch, MPA’ 24, have dedicated their careers to public service. Garver is an intelligence officer with the US Air Force, and Birch is an Army veteran who now works as a senior manager with the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority. While visiting campus during an in-person session for the Executive Master of Public Administration (EMPA) program, they spoke to us about the powerful impact that the program has had so far on their work and professional outlook.

The EMPA degree is an interdisciplinary program designed for professionals who want to advance their careers in the broad field of public affairs. The curriculum acknowledges the reality that solutions to complex policy problems are crafted by mission and profit-oriented professionals working together.

Learn more about the EMPA program: https://publicpolicy.cornell.edu/masters/mpa/empa/

07/20/2024

Download your copy today.

07/09/2024

📍Applying for the Cornell Brooks School MPA📍
The Essential Degree We Need to Unravel the World’s Most Wicked Problems

➖ Info Session Via Zoom
➖ Tuesday, July 23
➖ 1:00 PM EDT

An MPA provides cutting-edge, interdisciplinary tools to help find solutions to the wicked problems of our time. MPA Program Director Matt Hall leads this session, presenting an overview of the importance and the value of obtaining an MPA degree to take on some of the most complex policy challenges facing our world.

Join us to learn more about concentration opportunities, certificate programs, consulting courses, and the MPA admissions process.

Cornell's MPA Program is built for leaders like you. Let your journey begin at the Cornell Brooks School.

Register for the session here:https://hubs.li/Q02FVSJP0

05/25/2024

🎓 Commencement Weekend Is Here 🎓

Class of 2024: Need to share the Brooks School Ceremony livestream with your family & friends?

Watch the Brooks School Graduation Ceremony (1:00-3:00pm EDT) here:
https://vod.video.cornell.edu/media/Jeb+E.+Brooks+School+of+Public+Policy+Commencement+2024/1_pwszlvl1

Happy Commencement Weekend, Changemakers!

05/16/2024

Reynolds Foundation Commits $1.25M to Fund Brooks School Initiatives

The Reynolds Foundation, established by Tim MBA '94 and Caroline Reynolds, and led by Dr. Alvaro A. Salas-Castro MPA '14 as President and CEO, has committed $1.25M to fund a range of initiatives at the Brooks School. The gift includes project funding for:

📍 Cornell Brooks School Tech Policy Institute Financial Freedom Research
Led by BTPI Director Sarah Kreps and supported by funding from the Human Rights Foundation (HRF), the research on financial freedom will employ quantitative and qualitative approaches to understanding the use of Bitcoin and stablecoins by individuals living in fully or partially authoritarian countries.

📍 Unrestricted program funding for the launch of Brooks' Center on Global Democracy

📍 Underwriting for the establishment of the Reynolds Leadership Scholarships to support extraordinary students in the Master of Public Administration (MPA) program

The Reynolds Foundation is part of a family office committed to philanthropy in the areas of medical and spinal cord research and treatment, education, and democracy and freedom.

"As a graduate and lecturer of the MPA program and a believer in the role the Brooks School has to play in fostering democracy worldwide, I'm so pleased to be able to support these initiatives with enterprise funding," said Dr. Salas Castro. "The goals of these programs are aligned with The Reynolds Foundation's values, and we cannot wait to see the impact they create over time."

Learn more about the Foundation's generous gift and funded initiatives here:

The Reynolds Foundation, established by Tim MBA '94 and Caroline Reynolds, and led by Dr. Álvaro Salas Castro MPA '14 as President and CEO, has committed $1.25M to fund a range of initiatives at the Cornell Jeb E. Brooks School of Public Policy.

04/25/2024

🌐 Event Spotlight 🌐
In Defense of the Deep State with Dr. Francis Fukuyama '74

- Tomorrow, 4/26
- 4:00pm in Baker Lab 200

Francis Fukuyama '74 is the Olivier Nomellini Senior Fellow at Stanford University's Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies and Director of Stanford's Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy.

Dr. Fukuyama will explore how the United States does not have a sinister “Deep state” in the sense of certain Middle Eastern dictatorships; rather, it has a permanent civil service whose professionalism, autonomy, and non-partisan character are critical assets that need to be respected. Protected, and enhanced rather than denigrated and politicized.

Dr. Fukuyama '74 received his B.A. from Cornell University in classics, and his Ph.D. from Harvard in Political Science. He is the 2024 recipient of the Fred Riggs Award for Lifetime Achievement in Public Administration. Widely considered one of the most prestigious awards in the field of public administration, the Fred Riggs Award recognizes those who have made significant, substantial, and widely recognized contributions to the conceptual, theoretical, or operational development of international, comparative, or development administration.

View more event details here:
https://events.cornell.edu/event/in-defense-of-the-deep-state-with-dr-francis-fukuyama-74