The 2016 Georgia Students for Public Administration banquet wrapped up the 2015-2016 academic year with celebration of accomplishments and awards. The event planned and executed by GSPA officers and members was an opportunity to acknowledge outstanding teachers as well as students. The keynote speaker for this year’s banquet was MPA alumna and current UGA Director of Recruitment and Diversity Initiatives, Dr. Lisa Sperling. Dr. Sperling shared her experiences in public service and the myriad of stories of MPA alumni who have gone on to have local and global impact.

The awards for professor and students of the year were announced at the banquet as well; the Professor of the Year, which was voted on by the students, was Dr. Bradley Wright. Students made comments that Dr. Wright, who is also the Department Head for the Department of Public Administration & Policy, was in addition to being a great teacher demostrated extensive process to guarantee fairness in grading. The Ph.D. and MPA students of the year were voted on by faculty and were announced to be Dr. Ben Brunjes and Brianna Yoder.

The 2015-2016 GSPA board members were honored for their service, and they passed the torch to the new officers for the 2016-2017 academic year. The newly elected officers are Ryan Fleming, Cana Carroll, Jacob Wingate, Kristen Hill, Michelle Nguyen, & Jay Still. For more information on GSPA and their events for students check out their website and Facebook page.