Career Discovery Series

Join us for the 2nd Annual MPA Career Discovery Series. This series of panels (in person and virtual) will introduce you and expose you to MPA alumni and their various career paths through the lens of their current sector and with the theme of partnerships. 

Through this series, we’ll have over 20 alumni share their stories and paths, which means as they take time to be with us and share their stories that we expect that you’ll take time and attend and participate in each panel event in the series. Even if you think you know exactly what you’ll do in your career, we know this will be of value for networking and cross-sector understanding as you never know where your career will take you. 

Dates for this year are as follows: 

Local: Wednesday, September 17 - 12-1PM 

Private: Monday, September 22 - 12-1PM

State: Wednesday, October 1 - 12-1PM

Nonprofit: Monday, October 6, 12-1PM

Federal: Monday, October 13, 12-1PM

Deil S. Wright Public Service Forum & Reception

Friday, October 10

4-5:30 pm (reception to follow 5:30-7:30 pm)

SOG 2603



Not able to take the Immersion class but still interested in Emergency Management? The Deil S. Wright Public Service Forum is for you! Virtual attendance is available.

The Forum will be a panel discussion moderated by Norma Houston that focuses on relationships and coordination between local, state, and federal governments for successful emergency management. Panelists are:

• Christina Farrell, Commissioner, New York City Emergency Management Department
• Will Ray, Director, North Carolina Emergency Management
• Erik Hooks, Former Deputy Administrator, Federal Emergency Management Agency

SOG Faculty: So You're an Expert in What?

Thursday, October 10, 2:15-3 pm

SOG 2601 and virtually

A new MPA tradition is the "So You're an Expert in What?" event before the MPA Immersion. We ask three School of Government faculty to share their expertise, and they only have seven minutes to do it! 

o  Moderator:

•  Jeff Welty, Professor of Public Law and Government; Senior Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs

o  Speakers:

• Jacqui Greene, Associate Professor of Public Law and Government
• Christopher Mclaughlin, Professor of Public Law and Government
• Kristi Nickodem, Assistant Professor of Public Law and Government

This year's Immersion professor, Kirsten LeLoudis, got students thinking about the Emergency Management topic last year at this event when speaking on Public Health Law. Audio and slides from last year's event are available online.

If you want to know more about what the SOG faculty research, please join us in person or online!

Nonprofit Certificate Launches

The UNC School of Social Work launches a new interdisciplinary Graduate Certificate in Nonprofit Leadership this fall. The certificate is designed to prepare current and aspiring leaders with the skills to manage organizations in a complex nonprofit environment. MPA professor Teshanee Williams is a contact for the certificate, and Director of Academic Advising and Student Life Elizabeth Langefeld can answer questions about incorporating the certificate into your curriculum.

Applications open for Certificate in Innovation for the Public Good

The Carolina Graduate Certificate for Innovation for the Public Good (CIPG) is currently taking applications through September 15.  

CIPG is open to students in any discipline, focused on innovation and design-thinking practical skills that they can use when working on multi-disciplinary teams in businesses, non-profits and government agencies that increasingly demand the ability to apply cross-sector, community-engaged practices.

For more information, please see their website. In addition, MPA's very own Professor Maureen Berner is on their Board of Directors if you have any questions.

Campus Flu Shot Clinics available

Starting Sept. 2, the Student Stores Pharmacy, located on the third floor of UNC Student Stores, and Campus Health Pharmacy, located in the basement of Campus Health, will offer no-appointment flu shots for students, faculty and staff during open hours (Mon.-Fri. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. at both pharmacies and Sat. 11 a.m.-3 p.m. at Student Stores Pharmacy only). Bring your insurance card. Medicare plans are not accepted.

In addition, five walk-in flu clinics will be held between Sept. 25 and Oct. 23 from noon to 4:00 p.m.. No advance registration is required.

• Thursday, Sept. 25 – Genetic Medicine Research Building, Lobby
• Thursday, Oct. 2 – Michael Hooker Research Center, Atrium Lobby
• Thursday, Oct. 9 – Koury Oral Health Sciences Building, Atrium Lobby
• Friday, Oct. 17 – Frank Porter Graham Student Union (Employee Appreciation Day – 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.)
• Thursday, Oct 23 – Genetic Medicine Research Building, Lobby

More information is available at https://flu.unc.edu/.

Grad Student Reading & Writing Workshops

Join The Writing Center & Student Success for advanced academic communication workshops focused on enhancing your reading and writing skills. These workshops, designed with international graduate students in mind but open (and useful!) to all, start on September 3 from 2:30pm-3:20pm in the GSC. Light refreshments will be provided.

• September 3: Reading Efficiency
• September 10: Features of Academic Writing
• September 17: Research Introduction
• September 24: Principles of Citation & Avoiding Plagiarism
• October 1: Using Generative AI & Translation Software

ADHD & Learning Disabilities Support

Learning differences and disabilities can make graduate school even more challenging. At the Learning Center, our Academic Coach specialists can help you successfully navigate UNC and access helpful resources whether you’ve been diagnosed or not. Schedule a one-on-one coaching appointment with our ADHD/LD specialists, join the ADHD/LD Peer Connect Group and attend an ADHD, ME, and UNC event, and check out our tips and resources.

2026 COMPA Call for Proposals Now Open!

COMPA Conference: Building Futures by Bridging Divides: Public Servants Charting the Course for Tomorrow's Governance

February 22-25, 2026

Durham, NC

The Conference of Minority Public Administration seeks to advance the science, processes, technology and arts, and image of public administration by providing leadership in the elimination of discriminatory practices against all minorities. Priority submissions for proposals is September 30, 2025.

Annual Sustainability Social

Our Annual Sustainability Social is scheduled for Wednesday, September 10 from 9 am - 12:30 pm. Come meet University staff, student organizations and community groups working in sustainability and the environment. If you are a sustainability-related student organization and would like to table, please fill out this form.

Reading Effectively, Retaining More Workshop

Thursday, September 11, 4-5 PM

Peabody Hall 2028, 100 E. Cameron Avenue

From text messages to textbooks, we spend much of our day reading. But how much time do we spend thinking about our approach to reading? In this workshop, you’ll learn strategies you can use before, during, and after reading to help you get through your reading more quickly and retain more of what you read.

Applications Open for Graduate Student Community Tour

Are you interested in community engagement? Do you want to learn more about groups near campus engaging in public service? If you said yes, consider applying for CareerWell's Community Tour on October 16!

The tour includes travel across Orange and Chatham counties, as well as free breakfast, lunch and snacks. More importantly, this is your opportunity to network with representatives from more than 15 local organizations plus fellow students from across campus. Connections made here can grow into ongoing partnerships for research, capstone work or internships.

Submit your application by September 14 and reach out to Katie Stember with any questions.

Institute for the Study of the Americas Graduate Student Orientation

The Institute for the Study of the Americas (ISA) is holding its annual Graduate Student Orientation on Wednesday, September 17th at 5 pm, on the 4th floor of the Global Education Center (GEC). This is an opportunity for new and returning graduate students with an interest in Latin America or Latino/a communities in the US to meet other graduate students and learn about funding opportunities and other initiatives sponsored by our organization. We look forward to seeing you. Light refreshments provided.

Call for Applications: Language Access Planning for Emergencies and Disasters

Building Integrated Communities (BIC) invites applications from NC local governments for the six-month program, “Language Access Planning for Emergencies and Disasters.”

The program has no cost to local governments.

Deadline to apply: October 15, 2025



The course is designed to build capacity in NC local governments to communicate with residents in community languages, particularly in preparation and response to local emergencies and disasters. Participating local governments will create a language access plan.

The program will start in January 2026 and consist of a combination of virtual workshop exchanges, two in-person gatherings, and technical assistance. Meetings will take place on Tuesdays and/or Thursdays between 9:30-10:45am. As part of the course, participants will:

· Learn about promising practices from immigrant and language access leaders and practitioners,

· Conduct internal assessments and collect community data with support from bilingual UNC students,

· Design a language access plan for local government, and

· Initiate implementation of recommendations from that plan.

Informational Webinar on Tuesday, September 9^th at 11am. Register for the webinar here.

More information can be found at our website here. 

Building Integrated Communities Team (bic@isa.unc.edu)