Dukes Helping Dukes Career Workshop

On April 19, the Political Science Department and its Alumni Board hosted "Launching a Career in Political Science, International Affairs, and Public Administration," a workshop (pictured) featuring alumni who have had professional experience in a wide range of fields related to our majors:  

• Lauren Gilbert, Government Relations Associate for Advantus Strategies, formerly Director of Programs for the Sorensen Institute for Political Leadership
• Jessica Killeen, Deputy for State and Local Government Relations for Deloitte, formerly Deputy Counsel to Virginia Governor Ralph Northam
• Zachary LeMaster, Government Affairs Director for Gentry Locke Consulting, formerly Legislative Aide to Virginia Senator Tommy Norment
• Jamie Lockhart, Executive Director of Planned Parenthood of Virginia, formerly National Director of Mission: Readiness
• Jason Mann, Senior MERL Associate for Plan International USA, formerly Technical Research Associate for Juarez & Associates
• Paula Melester, Regional Planner for the Shenandoah Planning District, formerly a programming and operations administrator for JMU's Center for Assessment and Research Studies
• Katie Pillis, Casework Operations Coordinator for U.S. Senator Mark Warner
• International Affairs major Taylor Nauflett provided a student prespective, and Public Adminstration major Valeria Lopez-Postigo moderated the opening panel discussion.

Earlier in the semester, students in Dr. John Scherpereel's Introduction to Comparative Politics course got career advice from three former International Affairs majors: 

• Laura Barela, Senior Member of Technical Staff for Draper, formerly a Security Analyst at the U.S. Department of Defense
• Kevin Melton, Policy and Partnerships Division Team Lead, for USAID (United States Agency for International Development), formerly a Senior Manager of Resilience and Conflict Mitigation for AECOM International Development
• Valeria Robledo, Economist for the Federal Aviation Administration, formerly an economist for the Bureau of Labor Statistics

Students in Dr. Hammond's Introduction to Political Theory got job-search tips from three former Political Science majors during a Q&A in March: 

• Andy Arnold-Murray, Energy and Environmental Policy Analyst at Xcel Energy
• Jonathon Matthews, Communications & Public Policy Manager for Nurture the Next, formerly a Communications Director at the U.S. House of Representatives
• Shauna Plesmid, Associate Director for Growth at Spotify, formerly Vice President of Global Subscriptions for the Wall Street Journal and Growth Marketing Director at The Washington Post