Voinovich Challenge

Your NASPAA Institution is invited to join a ‘pitch competition’ co-sponsored by NASPAA and Ohio University’s Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Service in honor of the late Sen. George V. Voinovich. The Voinovich Public Innovation Challenge is an annual event highlighting exciting new strategies for enhancing student education, addressing unmet needs, advancing knowledge, and/or improving programmatic efficiency or effectiveness. This year, the challenge is focused on Innovative Approaches to Applied Learning and/or Executive Education. If selected as one of the three finalists:

PARTICIPATION

To apply, interested faculty or professional staff must:

Have developed an innovative program or approach that fits within this year’s theme – Innovative Approaches to Applied Learning and/ or Executive Education – through enhancing student education, addressing an unmet need, and/or improving programmatic efficiency or effectiveness.
Create a two-page written overview, telling us what you are doing and how it works. Submission deadline: September 2, 2022
Be prepared to give a short presentation of your idea and answer questions posed by a panel of expert judges at the 2022 NASPAA Conference on October 19 -21 in Chicago if you are selected for the finalist pool.

Submit questions and applications to:

Kate Leeman, Voinovich School Director of Strategic Initiatives, leemank@ohio.edu.

HISTORY:

NASPAA’s former Executive Director, Laurel McFarland, and Ohio University’s Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Service Dean, Dr. Mark Weinberg, conceived of this competition as a commemoration of their mutual friend and colleague, Senator George V. Voinovich (July 15, 1936- June 12, 2016), whose nearly half-century of public service was a living example of servant leadership. He encouraged others to design and deliver practical solutions to challenging public problems, to expand higher education public private partnerships, and, most importantly, to educate, mentor and develop people engaged in public service from every sector and walk of life.