DC alums inspire next year's HKS cohort

HKS alums joined on April 4th to recognize over 40 HKS new admits from the DC-area who attended the event. Jayme Johnson, President of the HKS DC Alumni Council, welcomed guests to the event at Microsoft's amazing venue adjacent to the DC Convention Center.

Matt Clemons, Director of HKS Admissions and event host, congratulated attendees on their admittance to the School and acknowledged alums also in attendance from the MPP, MPP/ID, MPA, Mid-Career and Executive Education programs. He highlighted HKS' broad span of visiting national and international leaders who engage HKS students on diverse topics; visiting leaders go beyond presenting to students and also engage them through dialogue. Symposia, in fact, are intended to achieve three critical goals: broadening knowledge and understanding of national and global issues; engaging students thru constructive provocation; and, generating actions to develop solutions and new directions in policies and programs. Allyson Knox, Director of Education Policy and alum of Harvard's Graduate School of Education, spoke passionately concerning the inherent need to expand the number of individuals prepared for careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). The program was capped off by HKS alums Katie D'Hondt MPP, 2016 and Mark Flazone MCMPA 2007, and Dina Shahrokhi MPP 2015 who provided insightful and diverse testimonials concerning their experiences and appreciation for the School. Their two minute presentations concluded the formal program and served as an effective transition for additional networking and opportunities for alums to share their experiences with new admits.

A special thanks to Lourdes Tinajero and the team at Microsoft for generously hosting this event.