SPEA Excellence
Amanda Stone
Graduate Student, Master of Public Affairs (MPA)
If college charts a course for the rest of your life, Amanda Stone's journey began as a psychology student volunteering at The Women's Center at Murray State University. Today, as a graduate student in SPEA's Master of Public Affairs (MPA) program, Stone, a native of Henderson, Kentucky, says her work at the center sparked an interest in not-for-profits and particularly, the issue of domestic violence.
"I'm interested in helping survivors of relationship violence who are trying to get out of terrible situations," says Stone, who works part-time coordinating tutoring for school-age children at the Julian Center — a shelter for domestic violence victims in Indianapolis. "I can definitely see myself coordinating programs, providing education, or possibly working in development and fundraising for organizations that support survivors of abuse."
Amanda Stone, Graduate Student, Master of Public Affairs (MPA)
One of SPEA's top MPA students, Stone was awarded a university fellowship for the program, which not only pays for her tuition, but provides a monthly stipend, health insurance and funds for travel to conferences related to her area of study. She applied for the fellowship and was selected based on her undergraduate GPA and extracurricular and community involvement. In addition to the MPA, Stone is pursuing a joint master's degree in philanthropic studies.
Although admitting graduate school is "a big change, especially having night classes," Stone is pleased with the progress she's made at SPEA, which includes completing courses in economics, fund development, public program evaluation and one entitled "civil society and comparative perspectives."
"Graduate school is much more focused, and I like that," Stone says. "All of it is information you're going to be able to use later on."
Besides her coursework, Stone is also completing a part-time internship with Girls, Inc. as part of her requirements for the MPA program. She found out about the organization's community assessment internship through SPEA's associate dean, Greg Lindsey. Working out of Girls, Inc.'s downtown Indianapolis offices five to seven hours a week, Stone has been heavily involved in developing profiles of different central Indiana communities to determine potential areas for outreach and expansion of the organization's services. Her work included facilitating online surveys to parents and community service providers to assess the needs of girls in the targeted areas.
Based on the practical experience she's received with local organizations, Stone is seriously considering staying in Indianapolis once she finishes her master's degree in 2008.
"I think I might stay here after I graduate," she says. "With so many not-for-profits based here, there are a lot of interesting opportunities."