̫ӳ’s Jones named national PPIA Junior Summer Institute Fellow
Contact: Mary Pollitz
STARKVILLE, Miss.—A Mississippi State junior will spend the summer in a prestigious and intensive national fellowship program at Harvard University.
John and Renee Grisham Presidential Endowed Scholar Nyla Jones, a natural resource and environmental conservation major with a concentration in natural resource in law and administration, has been named a fellow in the Public Policy and International Affairs Program’s Junior Summer Institute.
The Memphis, Tennessee, native will spend seven weeks at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government over the summer—studying economics, statistics, domestic and international policy issues and leadership topics designed to sharpen skills vital for admission into the nation’s top public and international affairs graduate programs.
Jones is among 83 fellows selected from 83 different institutions across the country, and is one of two students chosen from Mississippi.
The PPIA Summer program helps high-potential undergraduate students have greater access to successful careers in public service. Fellows receive stipends covering their full participation in the program, free books and course materials, university housing and career guidance and coaching. They also are guaranteed application fee waivers when applying to members of PPIA’s graduate school consortium, a minimum $5,000 scholarship if accepted by a consortium member and lifetime participation in PPIA’s Public Service Expo.
Jones, a junior in ̫ӳ’s Judy and Bobby Shackouls Honors College, plans to pursue a career in environmental public policy after graduate school. She developed an early interest in protecting natural resources and intends to use the fellowship’s experience to strengthen her understanding of policy implementation, creation and community involvement.
“PPIA-JSI offers a plethora of opportunities for professional and academic development through rewarding courses and projects,” she said. “I hope to expand my knowledge on essential concepts of policymaking while working with a diverse cohort, thus engaging in creative and unique discussions that will broaden my knowledge of crucial policy-related issues.”
David Hoffman, ̫ӳ Office of Prestigious External Scholarships interim director, said the summer program represents an incredible opportunity for Jones to learn from preeminent scholars. Hoffman also noted ̫ӳ has now sent a student to the Junior Summer Institute nine years in a row.
“Nyla is an excellent example of a student that is maximizing her experiences at ̫ӳ and using them as a springboard to exceptional opportunities elsewhere,” Hoffman said. “Not only is she a stellar student, but she is involved in significant research work with Dr. [Courtney] Siegert, worked alongside environmental non-profits in Memphis, and engaged with the ̫ӳ campus and Starkville communities through her leadership with the Students for a Sustainable Campus and Residence Life. We are so proud that she continues ̫ӳ’s representation in this incredible program and overjoyed that she will reap many benefits from the experience.”
Learn more about the ̫ӳ Department of Political Science and Public Administration and Department of Forestry by visiting and respectively.
For more information about the Public Policy and International Affairs Program’s Junior Summer Institute, visit .
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