Hampden-Sydney College (H-SC) and the college’s Wilson Center for Leadership in the Public Interest have announced a new partnership with the Cornell Institute for Public Affairs (CIPA) at Cornell University, a recent H-SC press release cited.

Officials in the release stated that the affiliation agreement between the two colleges will encourage and facilitate the enrollment of qualified H-SC students into CIPA, Cornell’s two-year Master of Public Administration (MPA) program.

“While CIPA provides exceptional training for leadership roles in the field of public affairs, two years is not a long time,” CIPA Executive Director Dr. Thomas O’Toole said in the release. “It’s therefore critical for us to recruit students from strong undergraduate institutions like Hampden-Sydney whose programs are compatible with the instruction and professional experience we offer at Cornell. I am very confident that this collaboration will yield the best of the best in terms of those who are eager and prepared to solve some of the world’s most difficult public affairs challenges.”

The release highlighted that in addition to an application fee waiver, students of various Wilson Center programs, including the Wilson Leadership Fellows Program and the college’s leadership in the public interest and military leadership and national security minors, will have the opportunity to interact with Cornell representatives at Hampden-Sydney each academic year to learn more about the MPA program and how best to position themselves for admission.

“We are thrilled to partner with Cornell University and the Cornell Institute for Public Affairs,” Wilson Center Director Ryan Pemberton said in the release. “CIPA is an exciting community of students dedicated to serving the common good at home and around the globe. The breadth and depth of the curriculum, the ability to conduct meaningful research and the collegial nature of the student body make it an ideal place to do graduate work. I am confident our Wilson Center graduates who choose to study there will have a great experience as they prepare for careers and lives of consequence.”

The release concluded with summaries of and insights into both the Wilson Center and CIPA.

Officials noted in the release that the Wilson Center for Leadership in the Public Interest at Hampden-Sydney was established in 1996 and was named for the college’s former president, the late Lt. Gen. Samuel V. Wilson. The Wilson Center provides opportunities for students to explore, practice and hone their leadership skills, and it offers minors in leadership in the public interest and military leadership and national security. The four-year Wilson Leadership Fellows Program began in 2018 with an initial cohort of 47 freshmen.

Cornell’s MPA program prepares individuals for management and leadership careers in public service, officials said in the release. The program offers a solid foundation of core coursework in management, economics and finance, and quantitative analysis while developing sensitivity to the moral and ethical dimensions of policy issues. Students receive a rich combination of coursework and practical experience, with hands-on learning opportunities offered both inside and outside of the classroom.

Officials cited that CIPA offers eight concentration opportunities including nonprofit management, environmental policy and international development. Additional certificate programs offer expertise in systems thinking, infrastructure project management and environmental finance and impact investing. Off-campus study opportunities are available in Washington, D.C., New York City, Albany and Mysore, India. Graduates go on to work for a wide range of government, nonprofit and private organizations where they serve as managers, executives and policy analysts, among other things.