Dear President Fuchs,
As the head of UF, I’m sure you’ve witnessed the innovation, drive, determination and wide-eyed optimism of the Student Body. I’m sure you’ve met with students who yearn to make the world a better place. I’m sure you’ve talked to students with resumes and credentials that span many typed pages. And I’m even more confident each student you’ve met has one characteristic in common: They all want to do more and be more.
Another head of a public university also witnessed and heard the clamor of his students to do more. As a result of significant time and effort, Arizona State University created the first Public Service Academy in the nation. ASU President Michael Crow knows the academy "will build a culture of service and a pipeline of leaders who will work across sectors to undertake humanitarian efforts and to address real-life issues facing our unpredictable world."
The Public Service Academy houses the existing Reserve Officer Training Corps and the new Next Generation Service Corps. The latter group was especially designed with the intention of offering civilian students a way to hone their leadership skills. Together, the ROTC and Next Generation Service Corps participate in "unique civilian-military collaboration, a series of seven leadership courses and a set of summer internships in nonprofit, government or private organizations."
This is a truly innovative way for students of all stripes and cadres to work toward the common goal of becoming better leaders. Both future military leaders and future CEOs, teachers, politicians and journalists can create an impressive and positive societal impact through this Public Service Academy. And ASU is currently witnessing the impressive results of this joint-training program.
The academy seeks to create the future leaders of tomorrow that will face challenges "with compassion, collaboration and character — the type of leaders our future requires." The skills cultivated in this four-year academy will redefine "the role that business, nonprofit, military and government leaders can play in catalyzing collective social change."
President Crow is rightfully proud about his new university program: "Public service is something to which [ASU leaders] and I have devoted much of our professional lives. It is fitting that emerging leaders in the field are trained at ASU — a solutions-focused institution committed to the highest level of academic excellence to achieve maximum societal impact. We are eager to witness these leaders go on to improve communities in Arizona and across the world."
When I first learned about ASU’s Public Service Academy, I thought this could be implemented, executed and perfected at UF. It is well-known our university has some of the best Navy, Air Force, Marine and Army ROTC programs in the nation. It is apparent we have institutions like the Bob Graham Center for Public Service that can be useful in the implantation of this program.
Clearly, President Fuchs, we have a Student Body more than willing to become part of a program that will develop young people into the movers, thinkers and shakers of tomorrow after they graduate. After all, we all came to UF for this reason. We have a president with the vision and willpower to make a Public Service Academy. I would not mention all of these obvious things if I didn’t believe in them myself.
Organizations like the Peace Corps and Teach For America inculcate in their participants a sense of duty and desire to do public service. I think having a program with similar goals in our own backyard can produce the same, if not better, results and improve the participants’ lives and the lives of those around them. After all, President Fuchs, this is a worthwhile way for us to improve the Gator Good.
Michael Beato is a UF political science senior. His column appears on Mondays.
