Call for Public Affairs Fellow and Theme
Nomination call for 2026-2027 acdemic year.
The Office of Public Affairs Support is seeking nominations for the Public Affairs Fellow and theme suggestions for academic year 2026-2027. The 2025-2026 Public Affairs Fellow is Dr. Tina Liang, and the theme is Resilient People, Resilient Plant: A future worth choosing.
Theme ideas and PA Fellow nominations for 2026-2027 can be submitted separately. If a faculty member has a great theme idea but does not want to be the PA Fellow, we welcome the idea. Nominees who want to be the PA Fellow but lack a theme suggestion will join a brainstorming group to develop a campus-wide theme if selected.
Deadline to submit Fellow and/or theme nominations is Friday, Nov. 22, 2024.
Public Affairs Fellow
The PA Fellow will help develop the 2026-2027 public affairs theme and chair the 2026 Public Affairs Conference. The selected individual will work with the Director and Assistant Director to fully develop a theme that will interest the entire campus.
Nominees for the 2026-2027 Public Affairs Fellow should be: tenured in their academic department; committed to working with the director and assistant director to develop a well-rounded, broad public affairs theme/conference; be willing to look at all sides of the topic/issue; and have the support of their department head and dean. The successful candidate will receive an $8,000 stipend paid through the normal payroll process to be paid monthly from November 2025-October 2026. Although the compensated appointment will be for one year, the person selected will be encouraged to shadow the proceeding year’s PA Fellow to gain an understanding of the full responsibilities of the position as well as work with the director during the prior year to finalize the 2026-2027 public affair theme description.
Individuals wishing to be considered for this position should submit a CV and letter of interest outlining their interest, experience, skills and ideas to Mary Ann Wood, Director of Public Affairs Support no later than November 22, 2024.
Questions may be directed to Mary Ann Wood, maryannwood@missouristate.edu or 417-836-5073.
Public Affairs Theme
Public Affairs theme suggestions for the 2026-2027 academic year are now being accepted. As is the case with this year’s theme of Between the One and the Many: Considering Community and Individualism, the intent is to engage and excite the campus through a broad topic and provide meaningful opportunities for learning. While public affairs themes generally focus on challenges in public policy or issues confronting our world, all ideas are encouraged. Ultimately, the theme will be developed in a collaborative manner involving representatives of the university and Springfield communities.
Proposals should include a brief (1 page) description of the theme and how it would fulfill the above criteria (including specific examples of curricular and co-curricular activities that could take place).
Submissions should be submitted to Mary Ann Wood, Director of Public Affairs Support no later than November 22, 2024.
Questions may be directed to Mary Ann Wood, maryannwood@missouristate.edu or 417-836-5073.