Public Administration, Public Policy and Fast-Track Info Sessions

• Monday, April 5th from 4pm

MPA Fellows Info Sessions

• Wednesday, April 14th at 6pm
• Thursday, April 22nd at 12pm
• Tuesday, April 27th at 12pm

Survey Research Info Sessions

• Thursday, April 8th at 12pm

UConn Major Specific Events

• CAHNR Info Session on Wednesday April 7th at 1pm
• Communication Info Session on Friday, April 2nd at 12pm

U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (CT) is the senior United States Senator for Connecticut, currently serving his second term as a senator. He attended Harvard College, serving as editorial chairman of The Harvard Crimson, and went on to study for a year at Trinity College in Cambridge, England, before attending Yale Law School, where he received his law degree and served as editor-in-chief of the Yale Law Journal. Prior to his election to the Senate, he served in the Connecticut House of Representatives, the Connecticut State Senate, and as Connecticut’s attorney general. As Connecticut’s attorney general, Senator Blumenthal served an unprecedented five terms, fighting for people against large and powerful special interests. His law enforcement for consumer protection, environmental stewardship, labor rights and personal privacy has helped reshape the role of state attorneys general nationwide.  Most recently, Senator Blumenthal cosponsored S.529, A bill to require a background check for every firearm sale

U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (CT) is the junior United States Senator for Connecticut. He has dedicated his career to public service as an advocate for Connecticut families. Senator Murphy has been a strong voice in the Senate fighting for job creation, affordable health care, education, sensible gun laws, and a forward-looking foreign policy. As a member of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee (HELP) Senator Murphy has worked to make college more affordable and ensure that our public education system works to serve all students. Senator Murphy also led a bipartisan effort to reform our mental health system, working across the aisle to craft the first comprehensive mental health bill in the Senate in decades. He is a graduate of UConn Law and the author of The Violence Inside Us: A Brief History of an Ongoing American Tragedy.  Most recently, Senator Murphy sponsored S.529, A bill to require a background check for every firearm sale

 Dr. Cassandra Crifasi is an Assistant Professor in the department of Health Policy and Management at John Hopkins University. She is the Deputy Director of the Center for Gun Policy and Research and a core faculty member in the Center for Injury Research and Policy. Dr. Crifasi’s research focuses broadly on public safety including injury epidemiology and prevention, gun violence and policy, attitudes and behaviors of gun owners, policy evaluation, and underground gun markets. She received her PhD from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in 2014. Dr. Crifasi was a recipient of the NIH Health Disparities Loan Repayment Program Award in 2017, 2018, & 2019 and was awarded the American Journal of Public Health Editor’s Choice Award for Best Papers of the Year in 2018 for her paper on the storage practices of US gun owners.

Ms. Jacquelyn Santiago is the Chief Executive Officer at COMPASS Youth Collaborative, Inc. She is an advocate for equal opportunities for youth, a youth development trainer, and a voice for youth at risk. Ms. Santiago graduated from Trinity College in 2000 with a major in Sociology and received her Master’s Degree at the school of Business at Quinnipiac University in 2014. She began her career as a youth organizer at Hartford Areas Rally Together (HART) before joining COMPASS in 2001. Jackie serves as an internal leader at COMPASS, developing performance management processes that measure and evaluate the progress of the organization, as well as building and supporting the teams, and overseeing all programs. She develops and evaluates programs in four schools, initiates innovative projects and strategic alliances and provides leadership and support to the Hartford Community School Initiative. Jackie has been invaluable in developing measures, structures, and systems that guide COMPASS’ work with juvenile justice involving youth. Jackie was a recipient of the Hartford Business Journal’s 40 under 40 award in 2015 and 100 Women of Color Award in 2017.

Mr. Alan Bennett will moderate the event.  He is an Alum of UConn (Political Science) and Director of The UConn Foundation. He also serves on the boards of both The Brady Campaign and The Brady Center.

Additional participants to include: State Representative Jillian Gilchrest, Dr. Caitlin Elsaesser, Kiel Brennan-Marquez, and other members of the UConn community.

Opening Remarks, President Thomas C. Katsouleas

Closing Remarks, Provost Carl Lejuez

Course Description

Using the COVID-19 pandemic as a case study, we will dive into how your existing team has navigated the pandemic, what qualities and resources you need to develop within your team to be successful in the future, and how to hold yourself and your team accountable on the way.

This program will focus on assessing the qualities of yourself and your staff in order to develop into a resilient team capable of adapting to change and succeeding in crisis.

Who Should Take This Course

This course is for supervisors or managers looking to build and lead effective teams.

What You’ll Get

During this workshop, you will:

• Discuss the importance of continuous self and team evaluation;
• Identify strengths and weaknesses in your current team;
• Discuss the leadership qualities needed for creating and supporting a resilient team; and
• Discuss opportunities where you and your team can hold each other accountable.

What You’ll Do

Module 1: Your COVID Experiences

• Successes shared between you and your team
• Challenges within team
• How you’ve supported your team through the pandemic

This module will contain breakout groups to encourage participants to share triumphs and challenges among their teams.

Module 2: Five Traits for Developing & Supporting a Resilient Team

• Discussing the five traits
• Self-Assessment
• Group comparison and discussion

During this module, participants will be encouraged to complete a self-assessment as it relates to the five traits. Aggregate results will be shared in real-time to prompt discussion.

Brandi Blessett is an associate professor and Director of the Masters of Public Administration program at the University of Cincinnati. Her research focuses on administrative responsibility, disenfranchisement, and social equity. Specifically, she offers insight into the effects of institutional injustice and their implications for underrepresented communities. Dr. Blessett’s research agenda advocates for ethical practices, professional standards, and accountability measures to promote equity, justice, and fairness to all factions of U.S. society.

Sara Bronin is a Mexican-American architect, attorney, and policymaker specializing in property, land use, historic preservation, and climate change. She advises the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the Sustainable Development Code, serves on the board of Latinos in Heritage Conservation, and leads Desegregate Connecticut. She holds an endowed chair at UConn Law School and has served as a visiting professor at the Yale School of Architecture, the Sorbonne in Paris, and universities in Switzerland and Korea. She was educated at Yale Law School (Truman Scholar), Oxford (Rhodes Scholar), and the University of Texas. She is the author of the forthcoming book, Key to the City.

Asian American Cultural Center

Asian and Asian American Studies Institute

Department of Public Policy

Division of Student Affairs

El Instituto: Institute of Latino/a, Caribbean, and Latin American Studies

Enrollment Planning and Management

Higher Education and Student Affairs Program

Human Rights Institute

Institute for Student Success

La Comunidad Intelectual

Native American Cultural Programs

Puerto Rican/Latin American Cultural Center

UConn Avery Point

UConn Hartford

UConn Stamford