I read an interesting article here  that reflected what I’ve noticed, both at school and in my first few weeks of Washington (and, let it be known: I go to Penn, where the Wharton School is, and everybody and their roommate thinks about a Wall Street career).

Basically, the gist of the article is that Washington is now cooler than Wall Street.  Students would rather work in D.C., or go to public-policy graduate school, than barrel down the Wall Street track and earn an MBA.  Based on my (admittedly moderate-to-liberal, politically attuned, socially conscious, super-passionate-about-something) circle of friends and acquaintances, this is true. The center of the universe had shifted down the Eastern seaboard, as phrases like “social entrepreneurship,” “fair trade,” “microfinance,” and “global education” entered the lexicon.

Part of it, of course, is the Obama Effect. Part of it is that it’s really, really unappealing to work in an industry as decimated as the finance sector, and part of it is that public-service work is relatively stable, even in a period with such a high unemployment rate (if you think 9.4% overall is bad, check out the situation for recent college grads).  But there’s more — there’s the desire to help and to give back, to pay it forward, to make a positive impact on the community. 

This is why it’s such a crucial time to create the Public Service Academy.  The article posits that this will lead to a sea change as more and more students decide to enter public service.  What better way to help students out than to create the Academy? 

           This week — as the weather alternated between flash flooding and the kind of sweltering, sweaty temperatures that makes the heat devils dance — four new interns took refuge in the U.S. Public Service Academy’s office space at 13^th and I streets in D.C. While our window unfortunately does not overlook the gorgeous park where we picnic at lunchtime (sadly, we look into another office building) we’re all definitely very happy to be here.

            For the next seven and a half weeks, we’ll be helping Chris get the message about the Public Service Academy out, hopefully gaining endorsements and co-sponsors along the way.  Ben, a recent graduate of Lewis & Clark and an Arizona native, will be working as the government relations intern, trekking all across the Hill to talk to Congresspeople and their staffs about the Academy.  Melissa, from the D.C. area and a rising junior at WashU, will be handling special projects, like the planning of this weekend’s Sitar Yoga event (2 p.m. Sunday at the Josephine Butler Parks Center at 2437 Fifteenth Street NW). Nicole, our through-and-through Texan, will be handling outreach and education — working with Chris to earn endorsements and talking to groups and foundations about the mission of the Academy. And I — Alyssa, a soon-to-be-senior at Penn from Iowa — will be handling communication. I’ll be the one usually updating this blog, and I’ll also be writing op-eds, press releases, and getting the message and the mission of the Academy out there.

Can’t wait to get to know all of you!