• How did you select your graduate school and how did it prepare you for your career?
• Work or internship experience during graduate school
• What was the most important or useful course you took in the MPA/MPP?
• Were you a Presidential Management Intern?
• What has been your career path since graduating? What do you want to be doing in 5 years?
• What is the most exciting and/or interesting aspect of your current job?
• Do you feel your MPA/MPP is helping you to “make a difference?” How?
• What advice, if any, would you give to an undergraduate thinking about going for an MPA/MPP?

How did you select your graduate school and how did it prepare you for your career?

> Northern Illinois University’s reputation as a top quality school for city managers was well known. I went to NIU for my undergraduate degree in Journalism. Through contacts as a government reporter in the area I look further into the program, applied and was accepted. 

The MAPA program is a good blend of theoretical learning, literature review and analysis and, of course, hands on through the required internship program. The program provided me with an understanding of the scholastic issues relative to government and the internship added the applied element.

Any work or internship experience during graduate school?

> I worked as the Administrative Intern to the Village Manager in Deerfield, Illinois during my graduate degree schedule.


What was the most important or useful course you took in the MPA/MPP?

> I believe the broader context courses on the scope of government and its democratic roots were crucial in setting the framework for my career.

Were you a Presidential Management Intern?

> No

What has been your career path since graduating? What do you want to be doing in 5 years?

> I worked as the Administrative Assistant to the Village Manager in Deerfield, Illinois from 1975 until April of 1978. I then became the Administrative Assistant to the City Manager in Decatur, Illinois until January of 1979, after which I was the Acting Director for the Department of Community Relations in Decatur. In July of 1979, I was the Assistant to the City Manager of Decatur until January of 1982 when I became the Village Administrator of the Village of Bartlett, a position currently held.

I hope to continue to serve as the Village Administrator in Bartlett as it continues to grow and develop.

What is the most exciting and/or interesting aspect of your current job?

> Probably the continuing development aspects of our community. We are redeveloping our downtown, developing a new industrial area and building a new Village Hall.

Do you feel your MPA/MPP is helping you to “make a difference?” How?

> Because of NIU’s unique focus on suburban management, my study was very targeted and linked to my career. 

There is nothing that we do in our daily life that local government does not impact. Providing such a vast array of services, from safe housing to clean water, requires a vast array of skills, which the MPA help professionals acquire. Public Administration is a profession, where the work, at its core, makes a contribution to the betterment of the communities and the quality of life its residents.

What advice, if any, would you give to an undergraduate thinking about going for an MPA/MPP?

> There are certainly other degrees that teach you to run organizations efficiently, hone leadership skills, and communicate effectively. But, there is another component of a MPA degree that is essential to success in Public Administration and that is the focus on democracy and working for the common good in a community. The public sector is not like the private sector; we can’t simply make decisions based on the bottom line. Finding solutions is more complex when you deal with issues such as equality, diversity, inclusion, and consensus building.