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Twenty-seven students kicked off their Master of Public Affairs program experience with a five-day residency at Duke in DC. They connected with one another, engaged with faculty and staff, and began building the relationships that will support their learning and leadership journeys throughout the hybrid program. Residency highlights included: • A panel discussion with Duke alumni on Capitol Hill • A keynote dinner featuring former U.S. Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young • Opportunities to connect with members of the 2025 MPA cohort • A tour of the National Archives Welcome to the Duke MPA!
Why study public policy now? Duke Sanford School of Public Policy graduates explain. Featuring 2026 grads from our Master of Public Policy (MPP), Master of National Security Policy (MNSP), and Master of International Development Policy (MIDP) programs.
Meet the incoming Duke Student Government president: Angela Chen ‘27 The public policy and psychology double major is working to bring campus communities together through her CARE platform: Connection, Affordability, Reliability, and Engagement with the Durham community. “Sanford, @hartleadership, and @duke_dewitt have mobilized me to engage practically with local communities, policy practitioners, and industry professionals; to listen deeply, aid in grassroots advocacy and storytelling, and push for policy solutions, both on a local and global scale,” she says. “And here at Duke, I see @dukestudentgovt as my lever to enact change – to celebrate my fellow Blue Devils while proactively improving campus inequities.” We’re excited to see all that Angela and her fellow student leaders will accomplish this year!
Through the Sanford Pathways three-day immersive experience in Washington, D.C., a group of Duke undergraduate students connected with leaders from the @statedept @unfoundation @google and @insidenatgeo — as well as @dukealumni working in public policy — to explore impactful careers in public service. “From the moment we arrived in D.C., I was introduced to professionals whose work existed at the intersection of sectors rather than within just one, an idea that by the end of the program reshaped how I envisioned my own career,” shared Sydney Benson-Polk T’28. The Pathways experience also included visits to the @usnatarchives @nationalmallnps and the Duke in DC office. Thank you to our partners, alumni and speakers for sharing your insights and helping make this student experience possible!
As Head of Policy & Strategy at Apple in India, Smriti Sharma MIDP’14 has built a career around understanding the full story. Sharma works at the intersection of government, business, and global economic systems, helping shape conversations on issues ranging from manufacturing and supply chains to technology and regulation. But long before she stepped into policy leadership, Sharma spent nearly a decade as a journalist, reporting on many of the same forces she now helps navigate. That early experience continues to define her approach. Sharmas story is featured in the latest Sanford Memo - your Sanford alumni newsletter. See this months memo and learn about upcoming alumni events and opportunities: https://duke.is/Alumni-Memo #ForeverDuke #AlumniTuesday #dukesanfordalumni
Celebrating our grads with friends, family, professors, and the beloved @locopopsdurham tradition following the Sanford graduation ceremony. 🎓💙 #sanford2026 #duke2026
“Failure IS an option.” That line appeared in the syllabus for the AI Journalism Lab, led by Profs. Bill Adair and Tyler Dukes. The premise of the course: build AI tools for real newsrooms, test them in practice, and learn from what works and what breaks. Students partnered with local journalists on projects that tracked grocery prices, organized public records, summarized newsletters, streamlined event listings, and helped reporters navigate dense warrant documents. The class brought together students from public policy, computer science, engineering, journalism, and other disciplines. Some arrived with newsroom experience. Others had none. Together, they tackled real challenges facing local newsrooms and explored how AI can support journalists without replacing their judgment.
Congratulations to Professor Tim Nichols, recipient of Duke Sanford’s Richard Stubbing Graduate Teaching and Mentoring Award! Presented at the Sanford graduation ceremony, the award recognizes faculty members who share Professor Richard Stubbing’s deep commitment to the intellectual, professional, and personal development of graduate students. Nichols has taught at Sanford for more than 15 years and helped shape the Master of National Security Policy program, serving as faculty director through four successful academic years. He also leads the Counterterrorism Fellows Program, whose more than 100 alumni maintain a lasting connection to Duke. Students described Nichols as a “maestro” in the classroom who brings rigorous material to life and supports students well beyond the final assignment.
What a weekend 🎓✨ So proud of our new @dukealumni 💙 #sanford2026 #duke2026
🎓MPP 🎓MIDP 🎓MNSP 🎓iMEP 💙Celebrating perseverance, growth, resilience and community. Congrats, #sanford2026 #duke2026
Doctoral hooding, years in the making. We were honored to confer doctoral hoods upon our PhD graduates during the Sanford ceremony. 🎓 Paulo Antonacci, PhD in Public Policy Dissertation: “Essays on Tax Policy Optimization Under Heterogeneous Treatment Effects” Hooded by Kate Bundorf 🎓 Christopher R. Behrer, PhD in Public Policy Dissertation: “Essays in Health Economics” Hooded by Manoj Mohanan 🎓 Braydon Wade Madson, PhD in Public Policy Dissertation: “Trapped in Transit: Essays on How Irregular Migration Shapes International Relations” Hooded by Sarah Bermeo 🎓 Jaelyn M. Nixon, PhD in Public Policy Dissertation: “Perceptions and Ground Truths: How Subjective Interpretations and Objective Realities Impact Student Academic Aspirations and Parental Decision” Hooded by Anna Gassman-Pines 🎓 Brenda Ndanu Onyango, Joint PhD in Public Policy and Sociology Dissertation: “Race and Gender Differences in Patient-Centered Communication and Diabetes Management Across the Life Course” Hooded by Mallory SoRelle Congratulations to all the newly hooded PhDs on achieving this milestone! #sanford2026 #duke2026
“Your Public Policy education is a skeleton key that can unlock all kinds of doors and endeavors, from academia to private industry to the government service I’ve lauded.” -Chad Sarchio A.B.’92, P’25, Distinguished Speaker During the Sanford ceremony, we celebrated 145 students graduating with a bachelor’s degree in public policy. We also presented the following awards: 🔹Joel Fleishman Distinguished Scholar Award, given to students with the highest academic achievement in public policy: Rhiannon Camarillo, Anastasia Crowley, Joseph Raza, Samantha Richter, Jaden Rodriguez & Jackson Streit 🔹Terry Sanford Leadership Award, presented to graduating seniors in public policy who emulate Terry Sanford’s “outrageous ambition” in leadership: Abigail Bergen & Anastasia Crowley 🔹Best Honors Thesis: Kate Seneshen 🔹Susan E. Tifft Undergraduate Teaching & Mentoring Award: Jennifer Siegel, Bruce R. Kuniholm Distinguished Professor of History and Public Policy Congratulations to the Class of 2026! We’re so proud of you! #sanford2026 #duke2026