In the News: David M. Van Slyke

Uzbekistan Ambassador to the United States Javlon Vahobov and senior officers from the Uzbekistan Embassy met Monday with Syracuse University officials to discuss educational partnerships between their country, the Maxwell School, and the School of Information Studies (iSchool). The visit included meetings with leadership of both schools, a tour of campus, and meetings with students.

According to Dean David Van Slyke, "The bigger and longer term issue is: What will be the capacity of the federal government to actually attract the best and brightest people to its work?"

"For many government workers, it's still a chance to have real upward mobility but also be able to balance work and life," says Dean David Van Slyke. "It's 40-45 hours a week of work, but you still can have upward mobility, positive benefits and have purpose in your job."

Maxwell alumnus Joseph Strasser ’53 B.A. (History)/’58 M.P.A., one of the Ssool’s most significant donors of all time, received the prestigious 2018 Arents Award, Syracuse University’s highest alumni honor. When accepting the award, Strasser spoke about his time in Germany and his philanthropic commitment to education and the welfare of animals.

The Susan and H. Lewis Rapaport Endowed Scholarship will support undergraduate students who have demonstrated interest in studying history or political science. When complete, the Rapaport endowment will total $250,000. “As a member of the Maxwell Advisory Board, I’ve seen first-hand the remarkable undergraduate students who are attending Maxwell today,” Lewis Rapaport ’59 B.A. (AmSt) says. 

University Professor John L. Palmer, a former long-time dean of the school, and his wife, Stephanie G. Palmer, have made a major gift commitment to the Maxwell School that will create an endowed fund supporting Maxwell professional master’s students, with an emphasis on financial aid and career development services. 

“I am pleased to have long known Woods Bowman, an important figure to me as a young faculty member when I was just beginning to teach public administration many years ago,” said David M. Van Slyke, dean of the Maxwell School. “This generous support for the next generation of graduate students in public administration and doctoral students in economics at Maxwell is a fitting memorial to Woods and one that we are honored to have received.”

“We believe in the importance of quality local government...hence the key role Maxwell continues to play in educating local government leaders,” Margaret Beemer Bringewatt ’68 B.A. (PSc)/ ’72 M.P.A. says. Her and her husband Paul Bringewatt are supporting this stance through a new gift annuity fund for Maxwell graduate students. 

These are interesting times for journalists in America. We reached out to nine of them, all with degrees from Maxwell. With their public affairs education, they understand as well as any journalists what the vigor of the press means to us all.

Students of the Maxwell School hail from around the planet, which assures a global experience not only for them, but for everyone who enters a classroom.