/ ABOUT PPIA
PUBLIC SERVICE / SHARED PURPOSE
Public service.
Shared purpose.
Empowering students with the knowledge, experience, and support to excel in graduate studies and drive impact in public service.
/ OUR PURPOSE
Our mission.
Our mission is to cultivate the next generation of professionals by:
- Expanding access to education
- Fostering inclusive leadership
- Strengthening pathways into public service
Our vision.
Our vision is a thriving and equitable world uplifted by visionary, inclusive and compassionate leaders.
/ OUR REACH
Our impact.
SINCE
1980
Decades of Public Service Impact
ALUMNI
5.5K+
A Nationwide and Global Network
UNIVERSITIES
60+
Partner Institutions and
Junior Summer Institutes
/ HOW WE WORK
Our approach.
/ 01
Expanding access
We widen pathways into public service through outreach, information, and targeted support for early talent.
/ 02
Equipping future leaders
Rigorous training, mentorship, and networks that accelerate success in graduate school and beyond.
/ 03
Inclusive environments
Partnering with institutions to build cultures where all learners can excel on merit and performance.
/ OUR STORY
Our history.
Late 1970s
A call for change
Public policy academics called for action to address the underrepresentation of ethnic and racial minorities in public service.
1980
The program begins
Founded as the Sloan Fellows Program, with support from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management, the program recruited and trained students of color for public service careers.
1989
A new chapter
With the Ford Foundation as primary sponsor, administration moved to the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation. The program became the Woodrow Wilson Fellowships in Public Policy and International Affairs.
1996
The PPIA name takes shape
The name became the Public Policy and International Affairs Program (PPIA), and administration moved to the Academy for Educational Development (AED).
1999–2000
An independent organization
After Ford Foundation funding ended, PPIA incorporated as an independent 501(c)(3), supported by the Foundation for Child Development and the William T. Grant Foundation.
Today
A lasting community
More than 5,500 alumni connect across the Sloan, Woodrow Wilson, IIPP, and PPIA fellowships, sustaining relationships and supporting one another.
