A-State Student Selected for Presidential Management Fellowship
JONESBORO — Isaac White, a student at Arkansas State University, has been selected as a recipient of a Presidential Management Fellowship (PMF) for 2017. He is the first online Master of Public Administration (MPA) student at Arkansas State to receive this honor.
“We are proud of Isaac and his selection to such a prestigious program,” stated Dr. William McLean, chair of the Department of Political Science. “The PMF program is highly selective and Isaac’s selection speaks to the all of the hard work that he’s put in during his time in the MPA program. We have only had the on-line modality of the MPA program for four years and he is our first student to be selected in that period.”
The U.S. Presidential Management Fellows (PMF) program is the nation's flagship leadership development program at the entry level for advanced degree candidates. Selection as a finalist allows the recipient to complete a two-year internship with a federal agency.
“The program and the students have progressed very far in a very short time,” McLean added. “Isaac is the model student that the program seeks to produce as we prepare students for successful careers in public and non-profit management. We have no doubt that this is just the first step toward executive leadership with the federal government for Isaac.”
Upon successful completion of the internship, finalists receive a career appointment to federal service. To apply, one must be graduating in the year or have been awarded their degree within the past two years.
Applicants who complete the program are then available for placement as a federal civilian employee and perform valuable service to the American people.
“I truly appreciate all of the efforts the faculty in the Department of Political Science put into my education through the online MPA program,” said White, who currently resides in Washington, D.C. “I’m looking forward to my last semester and all the future holds.”
White, of Cambridge Springs, Pa., is currently working on track to complete his online Master of Public Administration degree. He expects to graduate in May.
In addition to pursuing his degree, White has over 10 years of federal service, including having served in the U.S. Army, worked for the Social Security Administration, and is presently working for the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
About the PMF program
The Presidential Management Fellowship program was established in 1977. It is designed to attract scholars from academic disciplines interested in Federal service in leadership and management. The program guidelines were amended in 2010 by executive order for the PMF program to stand as one of three student pathways to federal employment and public service.
