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Frequently asked questions about CPAL

• Mission and purpose

  The Center for Public Administration and Leadership strengthens the practice of public service by providing opportunities for professional development and engaging dialogue on key issues. The center's mission is to develop excellent professional administrators who serve in all levels of government and positively impact the delivery of public services.

  The purpose of the center is to highlight and support the contribution of ÀÇÓÑÉçÇø’s Master of Public Administration graduates working in the five state region; to consolidate and expand continuing education efforts supporting public service in Minnesota; to provide networking opportunities for alumni in and among all levels of local government in the state; and to provide a forum for the discussion and analysis of policy and administrative issues facing the local government community.

• CPAL fellow

  Jeannie Fox has over twenty years of experience as a nonprofit manager, administrator, and public policy expert. Jeannie honed her management skills in county and nonprofit social service agencies, covering a range of services that aided some of our population’s most vulnerable citizens. After years in direct service, Jeannie took that experience to the public policy arena to improve systems that exist to help people obtain self-sufficiency. Her public policy career was capped off with nine years on the staff of the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits, advocating for and promoting the role of the sector in a civil society. Returning to government service, Jeannie served as chief of staff to former Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie from 2013–2015. Jeannie was a 2012 legislative fellow in the Dominican Republic, funded by the US Department of State and Partners of the Americas. She was granted a Fulbright award to conduct research at the University of Iceland in 2021 toward her dissertation topic of mapping the nonprofit sector in Iceland. Jeannie was also appointed honorary consul by the Icelandic Foreign Ministry in August 2022 and serves the region of Minnesota and North Dakota. She will complete her doctoral studies at ÀÇÓÑÉçÇø in the summer of 2023.