Featured News – Department of Public Policy and Administration

EMPA Alumni Named to Insider NJ’s 2025 Powerful Women List

Posted February 20, 2026February 20, 2026 in EMPA Student News, Featured News, News, Student News

Insider NJ has named two Executive Master of Public Administration (EMPA) alumni from Rutgers–Camden – Dena Mottola Jaborska and Jigna Rao – to its 2025 Powerful Women of NJ list. In a featured story introducing this year’s honorees, New Jersey Assemblywoman Shavonda E. Sumter describes the list as a “carefully curated group of remarkable women” whose leadership across politics, business, education, and healthcare drives fairness, dignity, and opportunity statewide.

PhD Student with her research poster behind her at the annual Rutgers-Camden SPARK event

Women, Power, & Economic Change in Puerto Rico

Posted February 20, 2026 in Featured News, PHD Student News, Public Affairs/Community Development News, Student News

Mnguashima Valentina Soomiyol is a doctoral candidate in the Ph.D. program in Public Affairs. Her work was presented at the Graduate Poster Exhibition during the 2025 SPARK! (Showcase of Projects, Art, Research, and Knowledge), which highlights graduate research and creative work across disciplines.

Dr. Wright Featured on CBS Philadelphia

Posted February 3, 2026February 20, 2026 in Faculty News, Featured News

Speaking about Saving Grace Ministries, a Camden-based nonprofit that provides trauma-informed care and a safe space for vulnerable children, Wright explained that the organization’s situation reflects a broader pattern. Drawing on national data, he noted that 86 percent of nonprofits across the country have been negatively affected by rising costs.

Challenging the Status Quo in Public Administration

Posted May 9, 2025 in EMPA Faculty News, Faculty News, Featured News

Public administration isn’t just about policies and procedures—it’s about people, communities, and the decisions that shape them. Clinton McNair explores the complexities of social equity, local governance, and nonprofit management, using research to uncover how citizens perceive fairness and how those views influence bureaucratic systems

Where Public Service Meets Practical Skills

Posted May 9, 2025May 9, 2025 in EMPA Student News, EMPA Testimonial, Featured News, Student News

Navigating the demands of public service and private operations requires a skill set that’s both broad and deeply practical. As an Operations Area Manager at Rutgers–Camden, Robert Brant found that balance through the Master of Public Administration program. In this piece, he reflects on how the MPA helped him think more strategically, lead more effectively, and translate… continue reading

Two MPA Students Head to Tanzania and Latvia

Posted May 6, 2025May 9, 2025 in Featured News, MPA Student News, Student News

This spring, two Master of Public Administration students from Rutgers Graduate School–Camden were named recipients of the Critical Language Scholarship, one of the U.S. Department of State’s most selective international education programs. Their awards were featured in Three Rutgers–Camden Students Receive State Department Scholarships by Caroline Brobeil.