Public Affairs Communications program welcomes 2020 cohort

Public Affairs Communications program welcomes 2020 cohort

March 24, 2020

The Public Affairs Communications (PAC) program has announced its 2020 Public Affairs Professional Certificate cohort.  With its 24 PAC students, along with the Applied Politics program’s 24 students, the Public Affairs Professional Certificate program is at full capacity for the second straight year and is ready to prepare its students for careers in public affairs.

The PAC program received a record number of applications for the certificate this year, a testimony to the value that Grady College students place on the education it provides.  “I am excited to see the strong growth in demand for our first-in-the-nation program,” said Joseph Watson, Jr., Carolyn Caudell Tieger Professor of Public Affairs Communications. “The strength of our program rests in our Tieger Fellows, PAC Ambassadors, current students, outstanding alumni, and visiting practitioners; they deserve the credit for its success.”

The PAC program and Tieger fellowship are the product of the vision and funding provided by Grady College alumna and veteran PAC practitioner Carolyn Caudell Tieger.

This year’s Tieger Fellows, Carter Chapman, Raini Singleton, and Grace Wilbanks, worked to promote the PAC program throughout UGA’s campus. This work has led not just to increased interest in joining the program, but also to more opportunities for participating students, such as guest lectures, debate and election viewing events, as well as internship and job opportunities.

As the first undergraduate program of its kind in the nation, the PAC program offers students a unique opportunity to develop a focused skill set in strategic communications. Through coursework and experiential learning offered by the program, students in the 2020 cohort will be trained in educating, shaping or changing public opinion on public policy, legislation, political candidates or issues.

Here is the Public Affairs Communications Program’s 2020 Public Affairs Professional Certificate cohort:

  • Jakob Allen
  • Alexandra Awad
  • Sidnei Bailey
  • Laurel Lee Chatham
  • Kennedy Cleveland
  • Ellen DiGuisti
  • Valentina Drake
  • Peyton Etheridge
  • Taylor Evans
  • Emily Goncalves
  • Julia Hawkins
  • Darden Hearn
  • Alexa Kaemmerling
  • Caroline Kurzawa
  • Isabel Lewis
  • Jeter Long
  • Carolyn McLain
  • Megan Mittelhammer
  • Makayla Roberson
  • Olivia Salter
  • Molly Sikes
  • Jake Strickland
  • Savannah Ware
  • Emma Winstead