US Public Service Academy- Because America Deserves the Best

Isn’t it time for the United States to commit to preparing the next generation of young people to serve their nation? Some of us think so and that is what got me to join the Youth Advisory Council for the United States Public Service Academy. A former member of Americorps (with City Year in Washington, DC), the movement to provide the opportunity for other young people to serve their government in a more professionalized manner in my mind is key to ensuring our nation’s leadership in the world.

I graduated from high school with a willingness to serve others but without a direction. I mean I was well aware of the fact that college was where many of my friends had been headed. However after 13 years of education that I thought never really involved me, I wasn’t ready for more. This combined with the fact that I wasn’t totally able to afford it. I decided to take sometime off and get a job. This didn’t satisfy my urge to serve either until I found Americorps.

For the first time in my life not only was I making a real substantial difference, but I was being paid to do it! Not much but enough to allow me to serve. Everyday for two years of my life City Year- Washington, DC provided me the tools, resources, and stage to increase the literacy scores of young black males and females in our national capital. They entrusted me with the power to show boys who had become accustomed to street corners, drugs, fights, and death that somebody does actually care. Americorps made a huge difference in my life. Now we have the ability to take this outstanding success of a government program and do a whole lot more.

The United States Public Service Academy is a plan that has been introduced in both chambers of the United States Congress. It calls for an undergraduate institution devoted to developing civilian leaders. Modeled on the military academies, this Academy will offer four years of tuition-free education in exchange for five years of civilian service following graduation. Spots for nearly 1,300 incoming freshmen will be allocated by state, following a congressional nomination process similar to that used for admission to the military academies. Nominees would compete against other nominees from their state, thus ensuring that each state will be proportionally represented on campus.

Mainly I would attest that this academy would professionalize what President Kennedy started with the Peace Corps years ago. However what really got me to support this movement is below the fold:

• America faces a serious shortage of public servants: The Partnership for Public Service warns of a looming “Federal brain drain” as more than 90% of the federal government’s leadership becomes eligible to retire in the next decade. Eight in ten police agencies nationwide cannot find enough qualified candidates to fill empty positions, and the Border Patrol has difficulty retaining college-educated recruits.

• Young Americans have a strong ethic of public service, but they are often priced out of public service: More than 70% of the 2006 collegiate freshman class expressed a desire to serve others, according to the Higher Education Research Institute, the highest rate in a generation. But according to the Project on Student Debt, the average college student graduates $20,000 in debt, which makes public service careers difficult to pursue. In the past 25 years, public policy programs such as Columbia University’s School of Public Affairs have seen a 50% drop in the percentage of graduates pursuing public service.

• America does not offer a national civilian college for students interested in serving their nation in a civilian capacity: Nearly 15,000 students attend the nation’s five federal military service academies. Fewer than 15 percent of these students are female, while women constitute a majority (57%) of college students nationwide. In service organizations, women are an even larger majority: 58% of Peace Corps, 61% of City Year, and 71% of Teach for America participants are women. The military service academies are among the nation’s most competitive colleges. They reject tens of thousands of applicants each year, often for medical or physical reasons.

This bill, the United States Public Service Academy offers the best chance at professionalizing a national civilian corps. Just as West Point, Annapolis, and others made the armed forces the best trained and professional military in the world, this academy can transform the level of service citizens receive from their government. It is why I support it and call on others to do the same.

Senate Bill 960 and House Resolution 1671 are quickly picking up steam around the halls of the Hill. So far more than 99 Representatives have become co-sponsors along with 19 US Senators from both sides of the aisle. They know that know that if given the chance to nominate a young person from their district or state, those young people are very likely to complete their five years of mandatory service back home. They agree that more about 70 cents per student per year America can train the next generation of public servants. People will know that if you want to go into public service this is where you go. These legislators joined by countless numbers of military commanders and a growing number of non-profit leading organizations Catholic Charities and even SEIU. You can join our efforts as well simply by visiting www.uspublicserviceacdemy.org.

Tha-Kid JK

tha-kid@revkitchen.com